The evening Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1918-1920, 1918-12-04
REFUGEES
0uE BACK
To WEIR HOMES
Faces Worn and rrying
Little Baggage
MANY OF THE TOTS
ARE ORPHANS
In Tears When the Band
Played the
''MarseilIaise"

AfAStA
Evian, France, Nov 20-(Corres-
pondence of the Associated Press. J
The return to France of the wom-
en-, children and old men who were
sent out Of that part of France oc-
cupied by Germans for more than
four years presented pitiful specta-
cles. Many of these refugees were
little tots whose fathers and mothers
had been taken away by the cruel
Boche to work in Germany or behind
the fighting lines. Others were or
phans.
Twice Gaily the affecting scenes OF
their return were enacted here when
trains bringing them through SwitZer-
land brought 600 OF. TOO repatriates
back to the beloved soil of France.
With them were Belgians who came
from parts of Belgium then occupied
by the Hun, Much was done to relieve
the sufferings of these poor people
by S. S. Howland, representative OF
the Belgian Relief Commission sta
toned here, and by Mrs. Howland,
his wife.
Describing the scene Of the return
of a tr&nload of refugees, Mr.. How
land writes:
Slowly, the long line came towards
us, the old and the young about
equally divided--alas, but few Of mid
die age, fof the Germans had use fol
such and would not let them go
While few showed traces of actual
destitution, we knew that but small
number possessed more than the
clothes they wore and what the hand
bags and bundles they carried con
tanned
I "They were not emaciated, but
their faces were worn, sometimes
anen1ic. How, could they be other
wise after: the years of constant suf,
ttferang continued horrors thes
had endured, with no hope Of release
before them, but victory for the Al
/ lies, or perhaps the good fortune tt
be enrolled inone of these little bands
of repatries
"Now and again someone .woulc
rush out from the sidewalk to greet
a relative Or friend recognized after
years of absence But though sucf
Instances were rare, they served t.
buoy up the hopes of the rest thai
perhaps farther along they too woult
| be as fortunate.
tsfIWn oh ,{r. A. ~
the seemingly countless children
might be able to keep up. Brave
little tots they were, holding close *
their mothers, if they had them, OF
| if not to those who had befriendet
them on the way, for many were or
lphans, or had had their parents takel
away by the Germans to work
Perhaps, hundreds of miles from then
homes.
Inside the great rooms of the Ca
sino long lines of tables set for sup
per filed almost the entire spac,
AS the repatries filed in, wome1
ishowed them to their seats, while
others distributed small French flag.
| to young end old aIke-the flag tha
once more they might wave freely
! Bowls of soup, slices of goot
bread, ho@ well-cooked meat ant
glasses o. red wine still furthe
cheered the hearts of the stranger
so that when the orchestra in tn,
gallery began to play well-known ant
cherished French airs-airs that hat
not been heard before in all thes
long years-tears streamed down tn
cheeks Of many, and of lookers-on a
well, while hands and voices pro
claimed their keen delight.
I mo man did we see between four
teen and sixty unless they were pal
pably ill OF crippled, and compare
lively few women who had not lon,
! since passed their prime Mother
had been separated from sons an,
daughters dragged off by the Boch
ito work in factories adm mines, evel
on Notifications to be used agains
their own kin.
| The feast was nearing its en-
when the Sub-Prefect mounted tn
jrostrum and began to speak. In
stantly there was silence He dwell
upon Frances love for her people
her sorrow for their suffelings.
His words had hardly ceased whe,
the band struck up the Marseillaist
, The old, the young, the halt, tn
, blind, sprang to their feet, tryin
their best to join in the refrain bu
, frequently prevented by sheer ner
vous exha ustion. Sobs could b
heard and the faces of most of tn
, women and of many of the men wer
, hidden in the handkerehiefs. wit
which they wiped away their tears c
JOY"