Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1918-12-12
PARIS WILD AS
HUNS AGREE TO
CEASE WARFARE
Ola Men Kiss Statues as Younger
Generation Parades and
Cheers. Weld Writes.
oFFICERS SALUTE CIVILIANS
America saved Her Country French
Girl Tells Islander During
Greatest Event

Following is an extract from a
letter received by Attorney and
S.rs. ii. A. Weld. 1925 Twenty first
street. from their son, Lieutenant
Lyman /. Weld, who at one time
was reporter en- The Argus and
more recently has been connected
with the advertising department of
the B. r. Goodrich company. Akron,
ONO.
Lieutenant Weld is stationed in
Paris with the American Red Cross
commission and the letter was
written On Monday, NOV. ii, the day
the aru.st5ge was signed
His letter IN part Is appended.
Monday evening at . O'Clock.
Paris has gone mad-stark mad.
You never saw such "a day IN all
your life. I know that ] never have.
Ola men are kissing statues, young
men 20 paFadluE down the streets
with "a girl on each arm, waving
flags and shouting themselves
hoarse. every boulevard full from
curb to curb and overlooking the
sidewalks. blocking traffic and cele-
bracng with utter abandon.
"I- all started this morning at Il
O'Clock We heard that the armi-
srice had been signed at ) o'clock.
but at II the cannon went OF,
every window opened and put out
its flags and the doors simply
poured out people. Work Is su5-
peudeE-you can't set into stores.
Everyone is on the streets. Old
men go around in taZis, standing
on the back seat TO see better
officers are salutug privates. Pri-
Yates are saIutlng civilians. The
whole world says Ia gueTre est
fni-Vive Ia France" Eive L'Amer-
lQue, vive everything and every
body. Girls take YOU by the arm
and walk along for a blOck-eveTy
block has its parade headed by a
trumpet or a drum and wends its
way XIII stopped by 4 blockade Of
traffic or another parade when il
breaks up and becomes only a mob
again All the schools are closed.
The students in their caps which
distinguish them from ordinary
civilians parade together Men,
women and children. French, Eng
lish and American mingIe together,
parade together. It makes no differ
ence whether they can understand
| each other or not They speak the
same language Of JOY today.
Greatest Day.
Really have never seen such
an occasion. Election night is like
il for the mobs. The cafes of Chi
cago and New York for JOY and ut
ter abandon on New Years night
only. After four and one-half years
France feels the thorn of war
pIucked from her side-it's the
greatest day in the world for them,
For 60 years Germany has threat
eued them-iu 1870 she licked them.
Now. for the first time they hold
the whip hand. Why shouldn't
they ceIebrate2
Il stood in my window this morn
ing when II was commencing. and
an old man came bowling up toward
the statue Of Joan of Arc out in the
Place du RivoIi. dofing his hat to
her. He placed a wreath Of flow
ers on the statue, and kissed the
railing around it, while a crowd
gathered around and Chered and
sang the "Narsellaise-"
Catches Enthusiasm.
q saw q crowd of French school
girls gamer II q circle around an
American naval officer. and dance
and sing as they circled around
him. At first he was an unwilling
prisoner but the spirit, the song,
caught him and he danced with
them and then tucked one under
each arm, broke the circle and
danced some more. Then On he
went and on they went That has
been going on all day long. The
streets are just rs full now as they
were at noon. I can hear them yell
ing d block away on the Rue du
RivoH now The reaction after
four years is terrific. France IS
simply insane
''Viiinsky has invited me to his
homo for Thanksgiving dinner His
mother read IL the paper how We