The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1917-12-26
Get Sentimental
Christmas Brings Thoughts of
'EBack Home" to SammieS.
eIOliday 'tOver There" Replete
With Customary Festivities.
PLAY SANTA FOR FRENCH TOTS
$50 Officers at Hotel Spread
Sing Old College Songs.
Santa Claus Partial to Ameri-
can Soldiers in Hospitals.
By J. w. PEGLER.


With the American Army in France
Dec. 26.-Christmas day, 1917-an
American Christmas in France, a mer-
~ Christmas. a Christmas full of such
creature comforts as food, tobacco.
candy and presents. but just the same
q Christmas every man in Americans
,5lsmy was glad to put behind him to-
day. There was many a firm jawed
American fighting man over here in
France whose thoughts went roaming
! ack over the submarine infested seas
to home folks" and a home Christmas
and who took a new resolves to do
this job of democratizing the world in
the most business-lilIe fashion.
1t would require modern day Santa
Claus with an exceedingly busy span
Of reindeer and highly trained repor-
torial instincts to tell of the Christmas
day spent by every American unit
now in France. The best the United
Press correspondent can do is to give
those back home this series of pictures
OF Christmas day in France:
Fill the Little Stockings.
\ giant Sammy sentry standing in
the snow outside a quaint village no.
te'. giving pennies to three little
! rench refugee children, who had Just
finished singing a real, honey. Christ
massy carol. An expert on languages
might-iust might-translate his re-
marks TO the youngsters to the effect
that they'd better run along home and
see what the American Santa Claus
lad put in their stockings that morn
Ing.
Downstairs in a roughly finished
hotel dining room a dozen Sammies
have dragged in an ancient tin pan
piano They were clustered around
-
Of the Minneapolis symphony orches-
ira was the pianist One hundred and
l4fifty officers banqueting in a harra ok
like structure down one village street
singing the immortal 'Fo-o-r-r It's
Al-always Fair Weather" The sing
ing to critical ear sounded just bit
flat and unenthusiastic.
The $50 were plainly thinking of
vi, es. children and sweethearts back
howe and trying to camouflage.
Y, NJ. c. A. barracks-any one of a
dozen Rather serious faced men
tearing seals on Christmas packages
reading over and over letter from
mother-"God bless you and bring
You back to me"
Dozens of snow blanketed villages.
Ike the little town of Bethlehem,
Nesting in the valleys-and many
Americans. billeted in stables, sleep
ing themselves in the managers.
Rcd Cross Their Santa.
An American hospital-sick and
wounded receiving bOunteously from
the r d Gro s s-tobacco, candy
sometimes the recipient was sternly
forbidden to eat-and plenty of pres
ents from home folks.
Thousands of little French children
who learned of Santa Claus for the
first time and got that unreasonable
-khrill that come with the opening OF
2 queerly bullying stockings. Thousands
more who learned all about Christ
mas trees and who treasured all thru
the day the wonderful toys and candy
which moist-eyed Sammies getting
ready to fight the boche, had bough
for them.
Plenty of turkey and trimming
everywhere-even to thousands oil
American railway engineers, strung
( ON close to the front to seaport.
The United Press correspondent /!
writing this close to the point where
that Minneapolis symphony man il
teasing melody out of the janglinl
Tres of that piano. The bunch
has finished Holy Night" now. One
hears a shout:
Like Lively Tunes Best.
And. Immediately the pianist had tc
slam the worries like mad to ract
along with the believing. swelling
course, taken up by the voice of every
man within hearing
Good Bye Broadway Hello
And 81 IL 1tras a MARRY Cbrietr,as