South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1918-05-25
HE'LL LET LOOSE
SAYS JOHNSON
That's the Adequate Way "Y"
Secretary Describes DeVa-
stated Town.

Hell let loose -

Hell LEI loose"
That's the only adequate way 10
describe a town just devastated by
the Germans, according 70 a letter
received here today from Walter
n. Johnson, jr.. one OF the Y. NJ. c..
A held secretaries in France
He was IN scissors when he
wrote. which had just been bomb
ed for 1--WE days by the Germans.
Shrapnel still whined around the
ruins OF what had once been a city
OF $4,000 inhabitants. and trains
stopped some distance away, TO
avoid being shelled. The station
hadn't any roof. Neither had the
hotel. There was a shell through
the middle OF what had been Y. NJ.
Q. A. headquarters.
Those who remained lived in cell
lars. for protection from the bonn
bardment. their homes having been
destroyed. The very trees were
nothing but SCARED stumps. With
out destination or plans, trainloads
Of women and children and old men
were being borne away from the
place. clinging 20 what household
goods they could carry.
In a letter TO II. L. Martin. gen
eral secretary Of the local Y. NJ c..
A, Mr.. Johnson says.
For several days the trains
hadn't run clear into scissors. be
cause OF the bonn bardment. but
that day il seemed temporarily di-
rected elsewhere. and our train
blown off the map. and it's all
caved in. About a block away is
the Y. NJ G. A. warehouse and
headquarters. or what a week ago
was headquarters. before a she'll
went through IT, Across the street
is a hospital with the roof blown
off The Germans bombed il for
five days. and injured two OF their
own officers, prisoners there, after
an aeroplane accident
The population Of this beautiful
little city used to be 5000 20 90,
900. now it's about 1900. During
the last week il has been decreased
by evacuation from 1000 or 5000
20 this number The Hotel Lion
Rouge where 1 stayed is now minus
half the roof II was once a Ger
PER majors headquarters
the afternoon walked
aci the river. the Aisne. and
looked over the old German
trenches or dug-outs. A great place
for souvenirs. if one had truck.
AS 7 walked back into town, 1
had the new and unforgettable eX-
perience Of having shrapnel whine
and then burst over my head with
a loud boom and puff and a minute
later heard the spit-spit OF its land
ing all around Believe me. / snug
gled up as close as possible TO an
old stump, and so did the two
Frenchmen WITH me Just as got
hack across the river tthe Boche
we're Smelling the BRIDGE a house
not yet demolished was struck and
blown up.
"To see the beautiful cathedral
half shot away creates hate, I'll tell
YOU And 20 see also where the
Germans had run a railroad right
into the building 10 carry away big
stones II was one of the most IA
nous cathedrals I'm France. In one
corner Of the transept not COM
pletely destroyed French priest
was holding services for few
French soldiers.
"On the way hack % Paris I saw
several trainloads Of refugees
mostly women and children packed
into the trains like sardines. en-
route south That refugee sight is
typical Of most Of the trains going
south now. Many Of these poor
creatures have now for the second
time been driven from their homes.
and have lost everything. The refu-
gees are from the Somme area,
Amiens. ComPeisne. scissors. etc.
Hardly any Of them knew where
they were going They had with
them the worldly possessions they
could carry. The most interesting
part OF the goods was composed %
their animals. One family had a
baby goat. a rabbit. two dogs and
two chickens.
The system was 20 feed them
end then put them into camions.
taking them for the night 90 the
Red Cross hospital al 81. Sulpice.
or the Y. NJ. c. A hotel pavilion.
At these places the following morn
ing they'd be tagged and sent south.
I remember particularly one family
OF II. two women and nine children
Ct all ages The night before I
worked there. two babies were
born in the cellar Of the station.
In all this work YOU can't compre-
bend the tenderness and indefatig-
able energy Of the English and
American Red Cross nurses"
OUR BEAUTY PARLORS.