The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1916-06-02
GENERAL JOFFRE, FRENCH LEADER, WORKS l7 HOURS
 A DAY ON MILITARY JOB
Travels 10000 Miles in 20 Months Warfare-Writes Very Little and Won't Use Telephone Commander Has Remarkable Memory and stickler for Details Of Construction Work

1 the conduct of the greatest war in his | tory has travelled more than 7O,OOO l miles in a motor car, do not seem to l have aged this veteran soldier a bit;
 there is not the slightest betrayal of
 fatigue in his countenance, his step
 or in his Step or in his mind; he is quite as ready for any development 1 today as at any time since the war be- gan, and his decisions are as prompt l and clearly thought out as on the his Il torica1 August 26, 1914, when he is-
 sued to the French armies the gen | eral instructions for the Battle of
 Marne.
 It is in a quiet villa surrounded by
 a pretty, garden and in spacious
 room on the ground floor with a bill Hard table covered with maps in the center and maps on all the walls that
 the general-in chief begins to receive
 reports from his staff officers between
 five and six o'clock in the morning. r General Joffre on sitting down at his workable finds a single sheet of II paper on which is noted the latest
 news of the situation of the French
 and German armies received during the night. There is no inkstand on
 the table, for the general writes very
 little, and no telephone, an instru ment that he detests, and never uses Ii excepting by proxy There is a small M complicated set of colored crayons,
 however, with which the General with his own hand marks changes in the
 situation of the armies upon the
 maps.
 After a nasty glance at the memor- H andum, the general listens to reports from the staff, which are rapidly
 commented upon, while concise or
 ders are given covering questions of ! detail; afterward projected orders of li considerable consequence are submit
 ted to the general by members of his staff, or submitted by him to the staff. II General Joffre listens to his off kcers with a rather detached air; he |l even has the appearance of paying no attention to what is being said; then | suddenly will surprise his staff by in- Ii terrupting the reader of the report or letter and reaching out for it. When ever a phrase or a word strikes him, he insists upon reading for himself; he also follows for himself, pencil in hand, reports concerning military Op-
 erations ahd movements of troops. and seeks out for himself even the most insignificant points named in the
 despatches With the same care he
 reads every telegram, every order, be- fore signing 1t.
 The first session of the day disposes
 of questions of organization, troops required at different points, move
 ment by rail, sanitary service, ar Engagements for endorsements, all of which are decided to the smallest de- tail.
 The first part of the session is de-
 voted to what is called the situation
 of the ttNortheast,'' which means the
 North and East of France or the
 Franco-Belgian front; then follows a
 discussion of what is called the '"T. O. Er standing for Theatre Operations
 Exterior.''
 After about three hours consecrated
 to reports and the necessary orders
 to provide for the seventualities of the fr.ravo hi fae-1] G \ puts on his cap, which is the signal for the departure from the general
 headquarters to some one of the ar
 mics at the front. It is generally
 about half past nine. Three power - full motor cars are always waiting al 0 that hour in front of the villa. As the f general passes out of the door, an of
 ficer pushes into his hand a small pa
 tper that he sticks into the pocket o1 d his jacket. It is the time table and e the itinerary of the days journey, ar t ranged and approved by him the ev- n ening before and from which no di- t Vergence is permitted
 n The general-in-c chief and an ordin It ance officer get into the first car
 while a second officer follows in wha d is called the ftre1ief car,'' the thirt O one being reserved for two secretarie . who accompany Joffre on all his wis e it's to the armies. These same car "a have carried the general and his suit , since the beginning. Of the war owe nearly every mile of the ground iron Ia the sea to the Vosges.} The hours h. , spends speeding over the country ar : hours of comparative rest for him. H !; improves the occasion to read in nor .I detail long reports that have not re .. quired immediate attention but whicl . he wants to know from beginning t - end, but most of the route Is spent il v rest, the general being an adept in tn - art of catching Snatches of sleep e. 19 route He is credited with the powe - of sleeping when he wants to and o 'iA ava kening at will.
 IL The generals car is known to every re one in the army by the tri-colore P fan on with gold fringed cravat tha le it carries. He always arrives withoU cr ceremony and proceeds immediatel
 ands simply to the business in hant n- whether it be a discussion of import idl ant projected operations with tn ty commander of an army, or whether ir be his simple lunch, which he ofte ed takes seated the ground at the si d es of the road and which he dispatche is with good appetite. Frequently, il
 stead of leaving the car to visit tn
 headquarters of an army, be takes th
 t general in command into the car wit
 him and discusses matters en rout
 thus saving time and keeping to th in time table prepared for his round. I'll Id discussion goes on while the genera Q in-chief and the general in comman ie | of an army are making their way ris the communicating trench throug - which they will proceed to the fir ar -. - ., 4 .4.. = +1, - trenches escapes Joffre; if there anything wrong anywhere, the off ilS cers say, it is that very thing that tf nd cre,,orsi,s ave will 1iehf mon He nr, SC Fa1 +o ta T1no+icef7 i1 these sorf
 business trips to the front, insistir
 that they in way partake of tI
 form and ceremony that attaches
 reviews, but, instinctively, when tf ey old "erandfather'' passes. the senti1 of els, and soldiers present arms. redde1 ok ing with p1easurab1e emotion becaus tn of this opportunitY to honor the ge1