Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1917-12-30
AMERICAN CAMPS GROW
OVER NIGHT IN FRANCE
Nothing More Impressive Than
Great Military Base in
the Making.
SCENE or MARRIED ACTIVITY
Town Being Removed and Houses a
Century Old Razed, Because Space
Is Needed for Trackage-Frcnch
Like American Sports.
Hy II. W. ROSS.
\ Californian with the United States
EOrceS in ErRnCe.

fOrreS IN France.
. SOMEWHERE IN FRANCE. Novem-
! bcr 30.-Dcar --: 1t is swo weeks
, since wrote YOU. have been delay
/ ing the last few days. expecting to
/ hear from YOU 10y the next mail"
I Tho bulk OF tho next mail arrived
two or three days ago. but driblets
I have been coming through daily since
! There's another due tonight and
/ here's hoping. All told. I've sent you
i've letters since arriving herc--don't
know how many arrived.
/ Also | have been rather busy Of late
/ | have been assisting in tho promotion
I OF an epochal evcnt-the first Ameri-
can boxing tournament held in France.
! 1t took place Saturday night in
I strange little thcatcr on crooked rue
/ in nearby city before an audience
/ OF soc observation-disclosures. sailors. ma
rincs and civilian employee; OF the
a. l.. F.-und 200 French mostly
women. Tho feminine sex arc great
/ fight fans over hero. There was 4
special train from the nearby engineer
! ing and military camps. and permission
! from tho various commanders for tho
! men to stay out after 1850 =. NJ, at
/ which hour ordinarily all but per cent
/ OF tho men must DC in.
/ The lightw eight cham pionship OF the
Pacific Coast was at stakc-5,00 miles
away. Stanley Burns. claimant OF the
( lightweight championship OF California.
and +. j.. tyclcpt "Fishting'D IIuelet.
! champ OF the Northwest. who both arc
I members OF the regiment. put on the
/ principal go. 1t was for only six
/ rounds and Huclct got the judges de-
! cision. But a twcnty-round fight has
! been arranged for three ur%.our weeks
! hence and tho argument ought to he
| definitely settled. There is no limit
! on the fight hero and no reform Gle
mont. All tho fight fans ought to join
| the army and come on over. It has
/ great possibilities.
/ All the American sports have been
! tried out over here already. Base
! ball created interest. but football was
a sensation. The French heard OF
I the intcrrcCmental games and now
/ big exhibition game has been ar
/ ranged between the two best teams
/ in this part Of the country and a
/ guarantee has been given by tho
/ French promoters 10 clear 1000 francs
/ for the rerimcntal mess fund Of the
, winning organization They play only
! soccer over here.
I GETS GREAT INSIGHT
INTO WHAT Is GOING on
I !, was while was on ticket
| selling tour for tho fights that | got
! my greatest insight into what is going
] on over here. Ordinarily soldier
! doesn't sec much. lie stays close to
| his regiment, gets but few hours OF
! liberty each day and overnight passes
I seldom. llc doesn't get far from his
/ station. Eut I worked in a radius
Of several miles from what is rapidly
] becoming an american base"
| have seen New York skyscrapcr
! climb toward tho infinite, a story
I day: saw square rods OF concrete
! poured into forms that nodded a dam
which impoundcd a lake and reclaimed
the NTH Of a state; / have seen new
railroads fell their way across deserts
ana mountains and rivers. | saw the
Panama Canal before they turned the
water in the cut" More spectacular
these, possibly. but no more impressive
than an american military base" in
In" making. And certainly no buster.
en- certain day a fcw-a very few
months ago an American general
stood on certain spot and. shifting
Il pCnting finger. said.
There will be railroad yards. and
there docks, and there rest camp
ard that building over there will be
Il base hospital"
And from thar certain spot to-day
ono looks and secs what very soon
viii he yards and docks and camps
and a hospital.
/ In one direction string OF low
wooden buildings stretch as far as
vision. They arc ten abreast Four
hundred and forty of these buildings,
each capable OF housing sixty men.
Twcniy-siX thousand troops they will
accommodates. Ana within an hours
march are livc other such camps.
Merely a rest camp" it is explained
! now. Troops will remain there "A few
! hours or few days between boat and
train. on their way 20 tho front"
y highway parallels tho waterfront
and il was on this that the America n
genera stood the day he swept his
finger in tho circle and conceived the
| improvements that are becoming rcali-
| ties so rapidly. y toWn was within the
sweep Of his arm. 1t is being removed.
! Houses a century old are being RACED.
/ The space is needed for trackase
On the other side OF the road the
| docks are going in. bikes are being
! built quarter of mile from shore
and dredGers and hydraulic pumps arc
banking silt behind them. One long
stretch is ready for the flooring and
the bulkheadS iialf Il dozen pile
drivers arc snortins. Scores OF expert
timber mcn--SwedeS mostly. from the
forests OF California and Wisconsin,
CIVILIAN employees are trimming piles.
spuarinE timhcrs laying planking
! Further along men of the American en-
einccrinE regiments are continuing the
dixie. \ steam shovel is removing a
scmbles Gatun.
MEETINGS