Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1917-05-01
This Is the second tnstdliment OF
"The Life Of Marshal JoUre," phtoh
began IN yesterdays Erentng Ledger.
LIEE AS A SOLDIER

gathered on the subject, and 1t must be
remembered that all such testimony is
colored by the glory Of the Generals pres
ent position. 1t indicates lovable nature.
shy and not given to demonstration. with
self-restraint in constant evidence, with
thoroughness IS leading quality' with
readiness to face squarely every issue, deep
ly given to thought and to dream dreams.
Scratch a Catalonian and you discover
a poet" a reliable witness. NJ. Emile Hin
zelin. declares that the student Jonre once
composed a poem in honor of Alsace-Lor.
raine, after the war Of 1870, Of which the
first two lines were:
J'ai pour repe despoir ct viston d'dmour
L'ecidir dc nos Jasiis en- mdrche sur Strds-
bourg
or in English "The dreams OF my hope
and the visions of my love lie in seeing our
rifles resume the march on Strasbourg";
more prophetic perhaps than poetic.
on the other hand. II Is recounted In
Rivesaltes that at the age of eleven Gen.
eral Joffrc was asked to join in game
BY the boys of the neighborhood. He re-
fused on the plea of having lessons to pre-
pare. Taunts failed as we'll as cajolngs.
It was hard even then to swerve Joseph
Joffre from his purpose.
Fxaspcra ted the leader OF the boys struck
a vicious blow at the eleven-year-old Jof-
FIRE. For once the lessons were forgotten.
quiet Joseph became warning lion; but
the battle over. he calmly picked up his
DOCKS anu HuIIlcu HolIc W hiuhS up ava Wv
time.
with the exception of actual warfare.
this is the only record of n fight in General
Joffres life.
Struggling memories of men, who are
eager to remedy the lack of interest they
exhibited in the man, who at present Nils
popular imagination in France to the same
extent as did Napoleon n hundred years
ago. show that If not greatly liked because
of his reticence. Joffre was respected while
q student at the Polytechnic. The truth
of this is borne out to n great extent by the
fact that General Joffre's career Is sim
Eularly free from jealousy. If he did not
make friends, neither did he make enemies
He never blew his horn, being willing to
let the results of his work speak for them
selves, nor did he have others sing his
praises, and, consequently, he Is beholden
to no one for his achievements
From the very beginning of his life Gen.
eral Joffre has seemed to move along
straight line, and 1t Is more than probable
that the General of today differs but little
In his mental and moral makeup from
the student of forty-tve years ago.
Neither by the stroke of chance nor
through his own aggressiveness did Second
Lieutenant Joffre distinguish himself in
the campaign of 1870. He did MS work
and did 1t we'll" declared one of his for
mer superior officers, in speaking Of that
disastrous campaign
1t is hard to make General Joffre himself
speak of that period. As a matter Of fact
It Is impossible to make him speak Of him
self at all He is not a sociable man, and
there is nothing that would lead one to
suppose that he was any different at the
beginning of his career.
lie saw the Prussans sweep before them
the French resistance but even in his youth
ful enthusiasm he conceived no daredevil
plan to destroy the foe, many another
young French officer of that time did, pay
Ing with his life for the attempt. He
witnessed the Commune with all its hor-
rors, and unlike young Bonaparte, he
dreamed not of subduing the mob to his
own will. but most likely of his studies
so rudely interrupted by the war.
Those who know the General do not
hesitate to assert that the goddess Of chance
never smiled upon his too kindly, for what
ever he Is, and whatever he has accom-
plished, was due to constant applica-
ton to the problems TO be solved. His love
Of study, his joy at having performed
q difficult task were the cause of the only
recorded outburst Of enthusiasm on his part.
Years after the siege Of Paris. Captain
Joffre, while inspecting some fortifcations
at Versailles fell with his horse and was
80 badly injured that long rest was
dered. He went to Rivesaltes. and there, in
the loneliness of his room. he passed days
Of agony, waiting to whether no
the verdict of the physicians that he would
never again be able to resume his mathe-
Not word of complaint. escaped his
lips not sign of anxiety showed on his
face as he asked for pen and ink and set
himself arduously to the task Of solving
the most complicated and difficult mathe-
matical problems
Day after day passed, and whenever his
anxious relatives tip-toed into the room
they always found him hard at work. tear
Ing UP sheets of paper and recommending
his calcula tions.
The Joffres are not given to demonstra-
tive speeches or acts, but the Generals
sister confesses that the family began to
worry, lest the disappointment of being
unable to pursue his life's work would up
set his mind.
ready to go to sleep. the future Generals
simo burst into his room. joyously shouting:
'Its all right! I'm well I'm saved!'
He had succeeded in solving a most
abstruse and intricate problem. and his
Joy at having recovered his mental capacity
was so great as to overcome his physical
sufferings.
But to return, the moment the war OF
1870 was over and peace was signed. young
Joffre re-entered the school, and about two
years later graduated as full lieutenant.
He was but one Of scores Of other young
men who had chosen the army as their pro-
fession. No predictions as to his future
success were made-army promotions are
slow and tedious when there Is no war,
and France then had no thought Of, any
thing but peace.
Perhaps. in his Pyrenean home, an old
father hoped to see his eldest son become
q generals perhaps his brothers and sisters
believed firmly and stanchly in his star;
but even they said nothing, save to wish
him Godspeed.
Then began for him the uneventful life
Of soldier in days of peace.
Graduating from the military school did
not mean to him the cessation of his studies.
Quite the contrary. He worked as hard. II
not harder, at his beloved mathematics but
II he planned anything beyond his i'm
mediate duties he kept 1t a strict secret to
himself.
Little Is known of the life he led during
that period. If he had any companions
they have thus far failed to come forward
to claim the distinction; II he made any
friends they remain unknown.
"Joffre? Who is Joffre?" would have
been the answer of most lleutenants In the
Paris garrison had they been asked about
their silent comrade-in-
= One day Field Marshal MacMahon hap
pened to visit the section of the fortifca-
tions being constructed under Joffre's super
vision He was SO SURPRISED at the perfect