New Britain herald., 1917-03-02
AFLOAT ,. ! OFF GREEK COAST
Entente Leeates Nov Have 0i-
 fiCes Aboard Small Yacht

On Board the Abbassieh or Piraeus, Greece, March 2.-The Abbassieh is the ship which. since December 18th, has housed all the entente legAti0ns accredited to King Constantine, aavo the Italian mission. A small boat, once a yacht. she Is afar from com fortAble dwelling for so many diplo- natists and their families, the Asso- ciated Press finds
 The various cabins have signs on them indicating that one or the other is the British legation. tho French sle- gation. the Serbian, Belgian, Fussian or Rumanian legation. The main sa- loon at meal times Is . common din- ing room as international in character as that of any Swiss hotel in the tour ist season. By dint of long, enforced residence at close quarters, some of the little niceties of life have gone by the board. French, the common dip- lsmatic tongue, is here solely the. hn- guage of the French. Each group sticks together and converses in it's native speech. save at the formal con- ferences.. .@: vt
 After the tommon breakfast, the tables are cleared and the; reading of the Athenian morning papers Is the order Of the day. q task usually fafl- ing to Mir. Fglidor, the <Rumanian Greek. The task Is .rathersa thankless one, as the Athenian newspapers have little good to say of the Entente Pow ments of the listeners, however, are the other side. The news of the day digested, there Is the iirst conference and discussion on the days program. Once the conference adjourned, the legations separate each to occupy Q set of tables of its own for It's work when there Is any to do. Y 5 Rumanian Minister Forlorn Figure.
 The British and French legations are the busy ones. The Rumanian minister, almost entirely cut off from his government of whose seat he is never quite sure. is a forlorn figure. pacing the deck while his colleagues labor. The Russian minister. is some what buster, especially since he acts as his own cook. The Sarbian minis ter disappears. frequently quietly slipping ashore and making his way to Athens, to return, only late In the eve ming. spending the night aboard as Q ' D.
 At ono table Sir. Francis Elliot. the British minister in shirt sleeves is tapping the typewriter himself, at an- other one of his secretaries Is lost among a maze of papers that with every roll of the ship slip to the floor. Nearby at another table two other British secretaries are playing chess. Tn a corner. four of the diplo- matic ladies have organized a day. long game of bridge. The Belgian charge watches the bridge. sadly, his thoughts far away on the sand dunes that are all that remains of his na- tive land.
 On the opposite side of the cabin. Jean Guillemin, the French minister holds sway. Nervous and restless, he is constantly up and down, rushing back and forth from his cabin or breaking in on his British colleague who listens, to comment or discussion impressive. returning to poking one finger of each hand at the typewriter keys when the storm has passed. Capt. de Doquefeuille, the French naval attache. hurries in with the lat est reports from the Athenian cafes. filled with the lurid color characteris- |tio-o& sor1ent4 The a4aos fsnch