davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1918-02-21
CHRISTMAS WITH THE ARMY IN FRANCE

The Christian Advocate prints = let
ter written from France by Rev.
James Cannon. III. to his home people
In which he tells II Christmas with
the soldier boys The letter Is one 10
the family but IS full Of interest II
follows:
December "a, 1917.
This Is my fret Sunday Somewhere
IN France" and, OF course. have
thought OF you all, and OF your Christ
mas preparations. have been ex-
trernely lucky in running actoss the
two men IN France whom I know
The arst night ! was out from Paris
I met KID Anderson. Of my class at
Trinity In a y NJ. C. A. hut. where
T Worked for one night washing
dishea He told me John Bo"gs was
&c nlerhere IN the vicinity and ! kent
my eyes and ears open until this at
tar, DON whom 7 located John oh u
th~es mics away. and as It was Il
quiet day with nothing much to do,
I walked over, had supper with him,
and then We walked back together,
Naturally. he was both surprised ard
pleased, IS OF course was /, at seeing
a familiar face, and we had most
ENJOYABLE afternoon.
am in cemp with one other sec
etary. Mr. Shaw: we are hoping 10
open ur big new hut tomorrow,
Christmas Eve. with n treo. stove
presents. music. etc. At present wa
are living and working In the end OF
q regular brrraek, the main part OF
which IS the hall for men, but has
only dirt floor and puts up gloomy
aprearance. besides being too cold for
then. % sit around in. Our end has
a floor and a stove, and IN Il We Keep
and pell the canteeu stores, besides
sleening IN Il on our cots ut Tght.
have been quite warm at night as
we'll as by day, since the first couple
OF nixhts, as II took me n while 10
ret on to the best scheme for arrang-
Ing my blankets. ] now put my pom
cho next TO the cot, thon nv sleeping
bag, folding the large double blanket
and ono other to go under ne. ] then
put one blanket in the foot Of the
sleeping bag for my feet, put four
over the foot, fold the covers OF the
sieepiuF bag over the sides and head
nut n blanket over the whole, and
crawl IN, I wear my foot warmers
aud a pair Of socks over them. my hell
met, bathr 5ba, sleeveless sweater
house shirt, union suit, covered with
some heavy cotton / got n Paris
When l get up, take off the helmet
and bathrobe change TO two other
pair of socks, put on my gray sweater
and new heavy uniform. q great heavy
pair OF shoes, my short coat, and II
necessary. gloves, etc. OF course,
don't always need this much and II I
need more still have my overcoat,
murfler, more gloves. more underwear.
rubber boots and helmet.
The most valuable things have in
the clothing line are my helmet,
.leeyelsss sweater, sleeping socks,
The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1918-02-21

sleeping bag, and short fIseoe coat
saw some things Roy John had in
Paris, but couldn't find a place TO get
them. will look again when go to
Italy. They were knee caps, reach
ing from about the top OF the leg
gins TO the thigh. and very close Mt
ting ! got aso-called money belt in
Paris which fits quite tightly and
holds my clothes right against me all
leather belt around the waist of my
Uniform outside which serves the
same purpose.
Since I started this It has become
Christmas Day Christmas Eve we
were very busy all day getting the new
hut ready for the opening at night
where We had Christmas exercises for
the men. 1t lacked windows, stoves
roofing, so we had to make the win
dows. The stoves came just in time
and we scraped up enough lanterns
to see by. There was n tree for which
the Y. NJ. c. A. sent abundant dec
orations. The regimentsl band played
we sang some hymns, I read the les
sors from Luke and Matthew and
made the prayer. Shaw spoke a few
words. and then we handed out the
presents, II was something all
W
Of. all OF you and missing you trelnen-
dously. I felt repaid in The looks and
faces Of the men. They had not ex-
pected anything for themselves. but
we had three huge sacks fun OF all
kinds OF things. whistles, funny faces.
horns. sparklers, little blow-up pigs
and other animals, paper caps. a few
fireworks. trick cigarettes, and watch
es, every variety OF funny things.
Some OF the younger officers helped
pass ont the things and we gave every
man his hat full as he went w. You
lshould have seen the eagerness with
which they came up, the surprise AS
they felt IS their hats being tiled.
and their interest as they got in the
end OF ths line and could look in TO
see their Santa Claus. No child open
ing his stockings ever had his pleas
ure any more than that great, bunch
! OF men. There was one young lieu
tenant especially who enjoyed the
thing so much that this morning he
decided 70 DO Santa Claus TO ali the
men OF his company. and so came
down and brought n can OF tobacco,
packages Of chewing gum and cigar
cites for each OF them
felt so sorry for one little fellow,
not over seventeen, who was on guard,
and din't get in until ell the presents
were gone. He almost cried for one
Of the little pigs that would blow up.
Tonight some of the men are Civ
| ing minstrel show, ard there will
probably be a tremendous. jam at the
hut 1t is a larger one than any we
had at Oglethorpe, being two rooms
as large as my largest room there
with folding doors between. Then
there is an officers room, a chapel
q billiard room. ONCE, Kitchen, wo-
mems room. dining room. and Tor
The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1918-02-21

been an unusual Christmas, it has
been made much finer for a vast num-
Der of men, and so l do not regret It.
though of all the times we are togeth-
er as a family, Christmas has always
been the most sacred and uplifting to
me-,
/ had letter from Or. John Gran
berry the first day l got out here, the
only letter I have had in France so
far. He saw my name in the PARTS
New York Herald aud thought It was
papa, so wrote asking about the ftal-
ian work. He was with MIR. Shaw
in a camp nesr here. but was trans
ferred TO the French, and is now
thinking of Italy / wrote him at
once.
My postoflce address, remains IL Rue
d'Aguesseau, Paris; cable address,
Recreation, Paris.
All my Christmas love and good
wishes and prayers for all are in this.
II my cable was delivered on time
I caught you all Christmas gifts; *
It was not I catch you all with this
And while you are busy and occupied
as usual. / am well and working. and
believe axn doing profitable woxA.
The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1918-02-21

The biennial session q the general
assembly Is drawing to a close. Much
work Of value hss heen accomplish
I'd, rnuIatudes Of local measules have
beer disposed Of; and yet there remain
several sllls o, enormous Importance
on which acton should be delayed ne
longer.
Chief among these IS TIE Mapp-
Jones hu. introduced IN both houses
several weeks a~o, undertaking. So mase
vitality necessary amendments to the
prsselt prohibition law of tGe state
The tiH has had numerous hearings
Oh various pha=sg of IFS provisions u
has been discussed 6y the members
Of the committee, IT should - ready
for presentation to the general mr.
ssrnbly by .hls uE-a. that 70 may have
chance Tor > fun ard fair discussion
on the fcor Of both housee
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-, ST..
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The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1918-02-21

u this body ol opinion IS contained
Ira the pending bill
while the legal loophoies are be
ing stopped up. practical provision
should be made, by all means. TO on
force ne law even mere completely
thar is possible with the force now
a, the disposition Of the commission
er Of prohibition.
The boat lines from New York snd
baltimore to Norfolk and private yes
ects rJvtne ween chose ports bring
a. constant and dangerous supply OF
sntozicents into the 90 Dominion.
The railroads fron Washington to
Isnrnbur= and from Washington to
Richmond. Petersburg and uopeweiL
The hiehwaJr between TIE same points.
and the roads from lfaeer.tnwTr Up
the Whitley Of Virginia, are nororrouaiy
open to bootlecRers. Notwithstanding
frequent arrests. Tho Illicit traffic along
these avenues can he stopped 1t IS
a question IF getting sufficient rorse
on the 3ob. The present force, acting
urdor the personal direction or tno
commissioner, has amply demonstr7t-
cd what II IS capable Of doing
There should Re no hesit.-4oy about
giving the CO, rnis.ions~ the vum Of
money 70 which hc asks IN order 80
continue and cvteai the important
work ne has 50 well begun. His de-
rartment has alreaav turned into tbs
state treasury thousands of dollars in
excess of the total expenses # his OF
free. The pending bin creates addf.
ttonal sources ~ revenue which VIII
amply provide every dollar Of expense
contemplated. 70 that there will he
M additional drain upon the treasury
Even II this we're not tho case, thu
vsst majority Of the people Of th'
state. the aau1o people who believe II
prohibition. heart and souL and whe
have witnessed the benefits arising
from the enforcement Of the law
would not hesitate TO put into IN
hands NJ the comm 'ssicner whatever
he may need TO mako the law abwo
lutely effective.
II IS time 70 begin to DO business
with the hil
The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1918-02-21
HOME DEFENSE LEAGUE
GETS INTO SERVICE

CITY Clerk Mcdowell Is busy this
VT * performing the services OF off,
ciai tuductor u the members OF the
Home Defense league. two companies
~ which ne has already sworn IN.
He haA Officially performed the func.
ZION upon tho companies At GtnteF
] ark and Highland Park. ard viii 80
to Barton Heights tonight FOR +he
pur 0sA Of otticia'i- recognizing the
company ct that pia =, The CITY clerk
will ~hen take Up he companies IN
the city proper, and hopes by the end
OF next week TO have completed his
work.
There ara about 500 members OK
Tho league. Communicating On fef
Ainslie is getting "A roster OF aach com
peny. 80 chat he may he prepared ia
empower them as special pollceuneu
A. the proper time.
The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1918-02-21
FEBRUARY Il,

sleeping cubicIes. II is. in fact. the
largest hut in France and represents
lots of money. or course, 1t is i'm
POSSIBLE TO equip 1t as we were able
to do where things could be had in
abundance, for we are living under
war conditions.
Christmas Day.
We get up late, tho 8rst thing be
ing dinner at noon. II was quite am
pie lots of turkey, dressing, potatoes.
green peas, bread. coffee, butter, pump
kin. doughnuts, cake. OF course, we
ha7 extra dessert OF fruit cake and
coffee in our quarters, and 1t was GER
tainiy a treat to every one of us.
Tonight we viii have more cake and
chocolate after tho mems show, which
comes very soon now. / gave part
Of one of the cakes to John Boggs
FOR his Christmas. He said 1t was
the only present he got. Part of an
other / gave to Toy John. He said
1t was all he had. Part OF the third
I gave to Kid Anderson, the same be-
ing true of him, also OF Mr.. Shaw.
so while l have almost three whole
cakes, have been able to make Christ
mas for someone who wouldn't have
had It, And what last night and to-
day would have meant to the men, but
Tor our SNOW stC't hstls ~ tiIHh'
Many of them gave their whistles, etc,
TO the French children today, SO the
whole village shared In It.
/ din't have time to properly thank
each and all of you for the things you
gave me. In every case / have found
what you gave practically indispensa-
BILE. the bathrobe the handbag, the
medicine case, the fountain pen, the
gloves, the toilet case, the slippers,
the box of candy, the chewing gum and
chocolate, the fruit cakes. every one
has been Just the thing for a real
need. You are all so thoughtful of
me and to me / cannot tell you how
1t makes me feel impelled TO be worthy
of you and your love John and !
were saying today that of ell America
home and its training Is the heart and
soul for us now. 80 while this has
The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1918-02-21
4 surly and Eccentric
Character.

ne eccentric John Randolph, OF
ROANOKE, was accustomed or his way
10 washington 10 attend ina sessions
D. ''oEress' ana on his return from
washington. 10 stop at the Indian
luce" motel in fredericksburg, Va.
on one occasion when the Demo-
crats OF the city heard that he was
mere thsy assembled 70 pay their re-
spec'f 10 MIN, and hrewed p bowl Of
pul''it anu invited "iF, Randolph TO
The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1918-02-21
THE STATE TAX FOR ROADS.

il is useless 10 put these road, on
paper # reasonable amount Of
money is not provided TO begin their
construction.
While a wise economy should gov
ern our expenditures the proposed
TAX will produce no funds for'use le-
fore the working season of 1919, ana
then only a very moderate amount
During tho past len years, tho state
% Maryland has spent $50. 900. 900 IN
construction OF improved roads ana
yirs ia less than sa.oo0.ooo.
n we are TO have improved ruaf
IN ths time Of any one living today
The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1918-02-21
COLONEL JOHN MURPHY.

and welfare OF many Of her people,
Murphy's hotel now one OF the
LARGEST and most successful in the
South. In monument to John Muir
ply He made the hotel what the
worthy younger men associated with
KIM IN recent years helped 10 build
into the splendid institution that It is
Fol-. several docs des Murphy's has been
The natural rendezvous Of the public
men and political lea iers Of Virginia
Especially during the sessions OF the
general assembly has Murphy's been
tho gathering place Of the great hosts
interested In the making Of Virsiu.a'H
laws So also have the spacious lob
btos OF this hotel bssu the srene@ ~
nearly MI the great political gather
ings OF Richmond sinos he old DAYS Of
the Exchange and Banerd hotela
Colonel Murphy as an ideal ho- HH
gave nts per~onaI attertton as Iorg as
II was possible for him 70 10 SO 70
every department OF his hotai He was
attentive 70 his guests in an unusual
'esree. and strangers who came to
Richmond and met John Mesp1y wore
made TO feel welcome ant at home.
The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1918-02-21

The people Of Richmond and many
throughout all Virginia will mourn
The death OF Colonel John Murphy,
the well known hotel and public
spirited citizen who passed away yea
.erdAy. Few men IN Virginia we're
better known and few had so many
frisnds a. the genial and popular pro-
pristor Of the big hotel which bears
hs nam. whils the iuhrmities Of
age had forced Colonel Murphy TO re-
ltnauiah such active participation In
busin ess lie and public affairs for the
last year or two. ssh h,s friends were
not prepared TO believe that his end
w~s so near.
Colonel Murphy wss one OF Rich
rnonds great successes. From his
early manhood he had taktn tie deep
sat interest in all that affected the
welfare, development and growth Of
Richrnood, and was foremost IN every
move calculated 70 pr note the eitya
interest. Fun OF energy. POSSESSED Of
exceptionally good IL gn1ent and With
an. abiding confidence IN The Richmond
of the future. rae has made h!msel' 6
substantial factor n the city's 4
The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1918-02-21

-aoald ws not go about It IN earnest
IS II not also possible that the whole
r'1n Of q state highway system wiz
10 inperiled II tho provisions t5r con-
ructio7 are SO raeaser that only e
few sections ~ tho state VIII derive
any bcaeht therelrorl, for years to
ecu0e.
We hope The general assembly VIII
realize that penuriQusnass Is not al
.wayr economy and that the state can
never reach a fun measure Of de-
veIcprnent and prosperity without an
adequate syaten Of improved roads
The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1918-02-21
BETH AHAPhH WILL
UNFURL ITS FLAG

Congregation Both thabaa % going
ia urfurl a service flag at the service
tomorrow evening. There will be spe-
cial music hy tho choir. assisted by
the members Ct the volunteer choir.
Or r. ~ Cssiser will con -urt the
services a@A the Rev r, It. McFaden,
0f the First Presbyterian church will
deliver an address
Dr. Cslisch viii also speak and will
give second installment on the topic
The pubnfe Of Xionfsrn g The SER
vices begin al si5 o'clock and the
general public is welcome
The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1918-02-21

San Antonio. Tex. Feb % Private
Ivey Cleveland, neero, Twelfth com
pauy, Jhir' battalion l65th depot
brigade. Camp Travis, is going hack
TO the Erazos bottoms" where shoes
are not essential lie viii take with
aim an honorable discharge. as he
t6s the biggest feet % any man who
ever tro6 the parade ground 81 Camp
Travis. lie arrived at the camp wear
iug a pair OF no il broEans. y. hlch
were too small
By ard by CleveIand's No l4s be-
gan to wear cue, and army officers
tried 20 ind a shoe TO fit him. They
tried = pair OF Nm. IL. double r. shoes.
but Cleveland could not gin to get
his feet In them. Rather than 20 70
the expense of having shoes made at
a cost % S15 or $40 Private Iyey was
given his honorable DISCHARGE
The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1918-02-21

Suit for divorce was 7led vest erday
in law and equity court ny Thomaa
@. Walker against Elizabeth Radcliffe
Walker. The petition charges deser-
ton. The couple were separated
shortly after their marriage by mem.
hers Of the BRIDES family IN April.
1913. Walker afterward sued for
$4,000 damages, charging alienation
OF affections, and verdict for So, 900
was given. which withstood al! the
tests Of legal procedure.
The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1918-02-21
Peoples Forum

WI. too. like paris Of the Battle
. Hmm" but we wonder N our
esteemed CORRESPONDENT. Cver heard
JOHN Browns Budy"
The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1918-02-21

Cherlottesville. Va.
Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1918-12-24
New Yorker Holds
Record in France
as YankS Propose

Paris-Miss Helen Besler, daugh-
ter of the president of the Central
railroad of New Jersey, is probably
the most proposed-to girl in France
today. 1t all came about because
one night in one of the American
camps she ran out of "encores, -
and sang a little nursery song
called IF No One Every Marries
Me-" II goes like this:
IF no one every marries me
And 1 don't see why they should,
For nurse says I am not pretty,
And I'm seldom very good"
The direful fate of the little girl
in the song was to be to buy a
rabbit-hutch and live all alone in a
little wood. But the American sol
diers saw no reason why Miss Bes-
Ter. who is pretty and petite" and
a typical American girl, should
have a similar lot After they had
given her the three cheers and a
tiger with which they usually thank
the Y. NJ c. A entertainers. they
hesitated a moment and then added
a purely personal message
"Barkis is within" called the A.
E. f., as one man.
Since then the incident has been
repeated in every American camp
Miss BesIer has visited. No cen
sor would allow an estimate of the
number of proposals she received
in that way to pass.
Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1918-12-24

convoy which escorted President
Wilson across the ocean, are due
off the Ambrose Light Tuesday
morning. The Pennsylvania is Ad-
miral Mayo's flagship. The other
battleships are announced as the
New York, flagship OF Admiral
Eodman; the Texas, Wyoming,
Florida, Arkansas and Nevada of
division 6, and the Utah, Arizona
and Oklahoma of division 3, com
manded by Admiral Rodgers.
The exact number of destroyers,
converted yachts and other small
vessels in the returning squadron IS
not known at present, but there
will be a large number of them,
and in addition to the vessels that
are now hOmeward bound across
the Atlantic the following vessels
now located at or near this city viii
meet those returning from foreign
service am take part IN the review:
The New Mexico, the Mississippi,
Missouri. Maine, Wisconsin, Ala
bama, Illinois, Kearsarge. Iowa, IN
diana, Massachusetts, the hospital
Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1918-12-24

New York-Unless the weather
prevents, the first detachment Of
the great American fleet that has
been on the other side OF the At
iantic for months helping to clear
the seas of submarines and keep
the way open for troop and supply
ships, will steam into New York
Larbor the day before Christmas.
Ten DreadnaUghts Lead.
Then will follow, according to
annCuu cements maze IN Washing
ION a naval review of surprising
significance and comparable to but
far exceeding that attending the ar
rival of Admiral Dewey many years
ago. A few hours later New York
eTs viii have a chance to get a
closer view of the men and officers
who have been waging the war
afioat, in land parade which
should arouse the town to a pitch
of enthusiasm equal to that which
marked the first peace celebration
last month
Ten dreadnaughts. headed by the
Pennsylvania, the flagship of the
Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1918-12-24
Licensed To Wed
MILAN

Mr.. and Mrs T.. r. Brown Of Chi
EGO spent The Weekend with reIa-
Mr. Emma Fuhr Of AIedo visited
~ hsE uncle, William Canaan. and
-sinllF .e first OF the week
y, Aatthe" Williamson Of stanton.
u "as visitor al the Caruaghan
Aoine THURS day
s,. Mss Margaret Dibbern, VINO is a
Evanston. is spending the Lofl-
eSys with her parents here.
mrs white entertained Mrs.
Ehlll Nelson. Mrs. Mary Groom,
ntS- N white and Mrs Ben VIII
-4Je al dinner ThuTsday-
l. a. his home. is much improved.
uAF- and Mrs. Ira ZaHn and Mrs
c.s4en Hunter left for Dies MOlHeS
SreIt1rdag 10 spend tie holidays with
Miss Nina Ferns and Margaret
is si7sa@s aa ~psnt sunday with Rock
Milan chapter so 22f. o. =. s.
go go eieclou of officers Friday sy-
TAg As follows worthy matron,
81 e. -; a i-,e Y. Eddy. worthy patron
as Mary Hardin: secretary, Mrs
pIlifiia Martin. treasurer, Mrs. Ida
- S&4,aarHer. coHdl.tresS, Mrs Min
~ Williams. associate ConduCtrcSs.
- Grace Dunlap Installation VIII
A,,t'd early ia January
1its- Elmer n lmbeN and little
- -k.ter I@yTaiue are improving from
atl1cE II influenza
h[Iahh EF4sEar 81 Dayton, Ohio,
- - returned home from q few days
bz ~ al TIE home Of william Can
Mr.. ana Ms Albert BanfeIson
IN returned from a visit at OF
mws, Iowa
Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1918-12-24
Get REBATE ON
WATER SERVICE
City Commissioners Adopt 0rdi-
mace Providing q Discount
for Prompt Payment

Rock Island city commissioners
in regular session yesterday after
noon. adopted an ordinance that
provides a per cent rebate on
all city water rent bills, providing
they are paid in advance and be-
fore certain dates in each case.
On all fat rate bills a 8 per cent
discount will be allowed for semi
annual accounts from May 1 to
Nov. l and from Nov. l to May l,
providing the bill On the first &C
count is paid on or before May Is
and before Nov. Is on the second
account.
On all meter bills the same re-
bate will be allowed for quarterly
periods of Feb. / to May /, May l
20 Aug. 1, Aug. and Nov. 1 and
Nov. l to Feb. l, providing the bills
of each quarter are paid on or be-
fore the fifth of the following
month such as, March 5, June 5,
Sept 8 and Dec. 8, respectively.
In addition to lowering water
rate rents by ordinance some time
ago the city has passed thu rebate
ordinance, which allows citizens of
this city the opportunity OF obtain
ing water service at a lower rate
than any previous time since the
waterwOrks system was installed.
The commissioners did not take
up the matter regarding the petit
ton submitted q week ago by the
Rock Island Railway company re-
questing that the city .vacate a mar
row strip Of territory on Railroad
avenue between Thirty-ninth and
I orty-second streets.