The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1918-12-30
STRANCE QUIET RULES
OVER ALL BATTLEFIELDS
A Few Villagers Have Crept Back to See
What Has Become of Their Homes
Long Military Trains Pass
Over the Highways.

Behind the Lines in France, Dec 80
Correspondence of the Associated Press
This land of recent battles is queer
land now. Over the shell-torn villages
and blasted woods, the pitted fields and
the ruin OF all that once was, is strange
quiet. The winter sky is lacking in air
planes and great hocks of crews have
taken their place.
A few villagers have crept back to see
what remains of their homes and hold
ings, but they are few and probably the
winter will have passed before reclama-
tiOn and reconstruction are undertaken
on large scale.
Along the roads repaired and rebridged
for the allies advance into German terri
tory, long canton trains move slowly and
always southwark, They travel leisurely
now, for the need of hurry is gone. They
bring back the salvage OF battlefields, all
the things that 90 TO make war, aban-
doned or captured.
Truckload after truckload of rifles and
shells, of water bottles and haversacks,
cartridges, machine guns. bayonets and
trench knives and pistols. mess kits,
overcoats, caps and an endless catalogue
of paraphernalia are brought in. The bat.
tie zone is still full of it all, in heaps and
racks waiting salvage.
Now and then come trains of airplane
camions, burdened with dismantled fying
machines of every type and every nation,
engine and fusilage and running gear on
the truck and the great wings on its spe-
cially, designed trailer. Some of them
are unframed, but many show bullet
holes through the frail fabric or the ruins
OF crash. A fair proportion of them
bear the Maltese cross that marks them
boche
There are trains of captured enemy
artillery, particularly of motor batteries,
driven and manned by Frenchman, and
these are happy outfits Often the guns
are decorated with evergreens and always
the French soldiers laugh and wave
greeting. As they creep through the vii
lagos the populsee fiocks out to view the
cannon that for four years sent death
and devastation to their land, and the
children Chamber on the carriages and out
on the grim barrels
But it is the troops on the way back
that are most interesting, returning to
rest areas or to their ports of embarka
tion for home. French or American.
their behavior is the same. Always they
are laughing or singing, always they
greet everyone cheerily or boisterously |
and always the French officers salute |
with smile when they meet an Amer |
lean car, while the men wave and shout |
La guerre est finie" or similar greet. |
ing Even the children cry "inis, fms"
to the passing car.
Strangest Of all are the lights at night, /
in the hamlets and villages or shining
friendly from the isolated farmhouse, in |
regions further back, For so long France
seemed deserted land to the traveller by
night. Hour after hour the Associated |
Press correspondent has travelled at night !
without glimmer TO be seen in the |
and now from every hill and
vale the CHEEKY windows shine and the
villages are ablaze The papers devote
columns TO the illumination of Paris. but
t is here in the remote part of France
where war has been. that lights at night
ieem most wonderful even if they are
1ut candle or little lamp. Where once
'amions or staff ears doomed lightless in
he roads to the imminent threat of col.
ision, and often its accomplishment. the
brilliant headlights stab the night.
There is no village now but where the
travelling stranger can obtain food. not in
'ariety, perhaps, but enough and verv
Hospitality. The deprecatory polite and
Necessary refusal to requests for refresh
nents that usually were received in little
lamlets or single farms has given way to
cheerful offering of what there is, for
he farmers know now that the specter
II winter of short rations has disap
feared The rationing of certain food
tufts is still in effect. Bread tickets are
Necessary in public eating places, no mat
er how unpretentious, butter and milk
re seldom to be had and cheese is scarce /,
nut Of plain vegetables and certain meats
here is plenty, and the carefully boarded
torres of the light red and white wines
# the country are Forthcoming when
sked for.
At this season there is game in the
mall town markets, hares and rabbits.
enison, red legged partridges and the
lrge French quail and wild boar II Is
Ugh, but not SO high as it always is at
ONE.