The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1917-03-31
FRANCE FIGHTING OUR
BATTLES FOR Us SAYS
YOUTHFUL VETERAN
Joshua Campbell. American Ambu-
lance Driver At the Front, Thrills
Richmond Audience.
USE OF GAS ONE CAUSE
OF RITTER HATRED
Says France Looks to America for
Relief, Although II Does Not At
Times Understand Our Viewpoint.

France has been fighting America 5
war for two and a half years" de-
clared Joshua Campbell young Vir-
ginia am bulance driver, OF the Ameri-
can ambulance on the French war
front. back in this country ON n short
furlouEh. and speaking before large
ttrcwd~ AZ tase~A 5effersoa. hoteis aadsr
torium last night He is making q
short tour of a part of the United
States. urging America to not waver
in the program of assistance she has
arranged for the relief of the French
in the great struggle they are max
! ing In the European war.
France needs money most of all,
but she needs men. too" he said, and
she Is looking TO America to save her.
The French are doing all in their
power to understand America, for
they believe in her and believe she
will not fail them" Mr.. Campbell.
who has been connected with the
American relief work on the immedi :
ate battle fronts in France and
Belgium since the very beginning of
the great war. spoke in a most pic
turesque way OF the gigantic strug-
gle for supremacy that is shaking the
whole of Europe. and held almost
h~eathiess the auditorium full OF peo-
pie for two hours.
Tells OF French Hefpism.
He spoke in n most informal way
of conditions as he has seen them
along the war fronts since the war
began. telling his story Just as the
facts occurred TO him. and not color
ing them with any of the horrors OF
hloodshed and battle. He dealt chiefly
with the French and their share in
the war. since his observations have
been confined for the most part to
that country. His admiration for the
people of that land was unconcealed.
Death to the French. he pointed
out. has now come to be matter
of course 1t isn't horrible thing
to them any more. for 1t is FOR
France that her bravest sons are
dying. 1T is better for young man
to die for a good cause" they say,
than to live hundred and eighty
years and never do much"
AMBULANCE Not Neutral.
The American ambulance is not
neutral The moment We enter the
service it Is with the understanding
that the ambulance service Is for the
applause greeted hts remarks. The
ambulance corps is enlisted in the
French army, and live as unit OF
the army under its instructions. The
American corps consists OF 500 autos.
while on the Somme front alone the
French government operates 1000
cars.
Dead Germans. Mr.. Campbell said.
inspire French soldiers and Ameri-
can ambulance men with peculiar
Kind of citation they could not re-
more than pleasant. he said, to see
these people, who have sent gas
clouds over an army and who have
murdered women and children, killed
in any manner. He described an in.
cident of German aeroplane being
brought down by a French machine,
and declared that the event caused
more happiness in the ambulance
ranks than had existed for long
time before.
Killing n Matter of Course.
All SENSE of suffering and grief at
seeing people killed has fed. the
speaker stated, because now II Is rec
ognized as not cruelty but only a
hunt, a game. He described wildly
the opening of an attack at Verdun.
A line of men rushed forward, under
cover Of their guns. They stopped.
half Of them were moved down. and
then the great cloud OF cannon smoke
settled over the scene. until it seemed
that every one had been killed. and
ali was lost. Then the earth began
, TO be torn up in pieces. as big shells
came down. and the whole sky seemed
in turmoil, with death and horror
everywhere. These are only the rou-
ltine details OF war, he said,
In another case. In Belgium. bat
talon was sent to take a hill. They
pushed on. and when their wounded
(Continued on Fifth Pareh