Evening star., 1917-10-21
ny LAwnErcE .JERRoLD.


in tFrance- are not yet at the front
although, they are burning to be there
but they are not far from the front.
have lust spent few days with them
watching them get to business They
are getting to business with real Amer
lean energy and go-aheadness. and with
the warm help. gratefully received. OF
French and British instructors who
have had three years of war already
and know what 1t IL.
The first American troops landed In
France in June. I saw them land, and
when Pcoollected that the other day
III was amazed at what I saw.
Tho American troops in their billets.
their camps, their training grounds
near the flont, are already absolutely
at home.
The French villagers have adopted
now broken Franco;American Ian.
guage-sister tongue. though different
to the now classic Anglo-French spoken
for three years from Calais downward.
The American troops have made them
selves at home, have settled all their
arrangements with business-like final
ity and are out TO do their Job thor
oughly. Their bases near the front
seemed to me already definitely organ
ixsd.
They are settled in villages. where
they disturb the villagers by aggressive
sanitation. They have abolished all
dunghills, to the old farmers amaze
ment and alarm. They have purified
the water. cleaned up streets, cottages
and farmyards. The villagers. at first
terrified by these Wild measures, are
now reconcfIed. and every little village
grocery sells American matches, Amer
lean tobacco. American groceries. ster-
1lfxed milk, canned goods" American
mustard and everything American, ex-
messes. where I was received with open
arms as an ally Of today and forever
no American officer makes any doubt
about that-cold American purified
water and French coffee with Ameri-
can sterlized milk are the only drinks.
Villages of France have become
American. and American cafe au lait,
colored cars and motor bikes with side
ears tear all over the country, driven
BY university boys turned "chauffeurs."
Learning From the Allies.
Our new allies are learning from US
both-from us old allies. English and
French. L first saw French division
In horizon blue teach the new American
Army, IN khaki and wearing British
erepch helmets, what a modern battle
Is like. 1t was moving sight. 1t was
POIGNANT really, when one heard that
the French division had just come back
trUm verdun and was enacting over
again in play what it had just done in
terrible and glorious earnest. The
American stan stood on a knoll watch
ing, with the French stan explaining
On the edge of the hill to the left of
the stan the new American Army
watched
Farther to the left the French troops
came on. Every '-poilu' among them
had just come from the real thing. He
grinned as he played at war this time,
ana one felt how he must enjoy play
Ing at 1t now. The whole thing was
done as one has before watched it be-
ing done under less -eassuring cfrcurn-
stances for ones self. The lines ad-
Saneed IL open forGls tiurl. then stopped
FOR the tarraGe fire 10 be pushed for
ward FisFez were ssHl up To signal
% the artillery There was aaotherr
ste Pc forward end-r barrsee fire. ar
other sShAin) barrae-f~ fire. more 5.res
ana rockets the horizon-blue line crept
cautiously ncGnG to take the first
trenches. the machine gun parties came
|rp- One more barrage fre and more
Signals, then the Boche trenches below
|ls were taken
is WAS all exactly as it would have
beer in real war. The French colonel
|ef artillery, straight from action. ex-
|piainea it TO the American generals,
Gen s. and Gen. D twho has
|trst won the French military cross at
|Cerdunl.
The American troops understood and
appreciated keenIy
VINO would not! These play actors in
lhe hollow Of our feet had just come
from the real tragedy. and had fought
tnd won, but had paid the price OF tic-
|sory.
French and Americans are not much
pike IN method or by temperament.
Picard French Officer describing a battle
with perfect technical accuracy. but also
gfth dramatic expressiveness and with
TIE literary sesse. An American officer
Immediately translated the French into
american. and it was Americans short.
sharp, almost cracking with crisp
hescrEed. but the difference in the de-
|scripStps was delightful to note.
.Pupils and Instructors.
British instructors and American pupils
understand one another equally well
| ] never was more amused. pleased
Isheered and bucked up than by watching
}Britfsh .sergeant-instructors training
american officer-cadets. Imagine typi-
sal British sergeant with three years OF
war abehind him and with seven or more
Eears Of British military training before
every particle of his keenness and every
word OF his vocabulary teaching young
Americans what they will have TO do in
/ few months time. and the young Ameri-
PANS using every muscle OF their body
all their alertness and all their keenness
loo, to make themselves ready for the
light that all are yearning to be in. Par
ties Of American officer-cadets Gnc'uding
Foung Lieut.. ~ dug line upon line Of
sham trenches. killed dummy boches on
the way, dashed through four lines of
trenches. dug themselves In at the last
and began instant rapid fire AT more
|boche targets. Advance said the SER
geant. A second later. Co" and the
young chaps leaned out.
=, Clean Killing Wanted.
kin 'em sweet and clean, Clean kill
ing is what we want shouted the SER
Eeapt The young Americans were at
the dummies and each dug his dummy
with n wild YAH" or college yell or
scream-
are srsore boehes beyond Clean killing
is what we WANT And the America rs
charged at several more lines of dumrnies
before they leaned irto the front trench
and s4beean firing. This sort of exercise
they do something Ike twenty times a
day. from am TO pm, but it is not
afH-ays the Same exercise
InRnother field machine-Eur party
Is hoc1e little 'resting''-that is, the
boyssare having mule race. in which
theSimust pick up their hats on the
waY.rz Half a dozen Of them fall over
end-orer again on the hard ground, but
they seem harder than the ground, and
go IN yelling with laughter all the
TING. There is nothing the matter with
the s"morale" of the American expedi-
tionary forces in France