Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1918-02-22

WITH THE FRENCH ARMY IN THE
FIELD, Jan. 10.
THE power and strength OF heavy
l. cannon confront the adversary from
Dunkirk TO Venice. barring the bit of
Switzerland Their message Of death
forces ally and boche to take refuge
under the earth. to lie fat upon Its
SCARED surface TO give and take. In n
fight that has endured three and a half
years. France has said in tones of
clarion heard around the world. Ills ne
passeront pas"
have seen this situation on the
Sommc, at the Chemin des Danes, at
Verdun, at Rheims and st. Mihiel and
Luneville. For months have voyaged
from one secteur OF the French front
to another. with the ever-growing Ger.
tainty in my mind that nothing the
boche can ever do, even IL the antlci-
pated offensive OF which rumor is in
the air, comes off, will ever break
through; that the victory is with the
Allies because of the advent CT the
| United States.
write these lines in the shadow OF
Pont-a -Mousson, the little city lying
upon both banks of the Moselle, the
scene of tremendous fighting In the early
| days of the war, picturesque town
whose outer edge Of housese has been for
| three years and a half In the very front
line. In the far-back springtime oi
| Peace, remember Pont "A -Mousson, and
my first sight of II. lying in a gentle
haze of early spring morning. As saw
| IL today. a mass of ruin in the main
most OF Its houses mere wreckage. other;
stil standing and inhabited. I was STRUCK
with the courage of those who still lived
within it's borders. The ma jority are
women, for the most obvious and of
repeated reason that all the men arr
dead or In the uniform of the poilu.
SCENE OF DEsoLATIoN
I walked its desolated streets in {
gale of wind and falling mixture o
rain and hail. all the way out to th
front line, among the ruins OF houses
about which are mitraileuse and trencl
mortar and the guarding soldier o
France, and back again through tn
city.
The Grand Place reminded me OF a
ancient object of art. demolished. ye
standing still The shops about it wer
open selling all sorts OF merchandise
the customers being only poilus o
course, In the main. They offered tn
inevitable pinard. canned foods. fianns
shirts, embroidered silk handkerchiefs.
rose or n pansy with the word
Souvenir de Pont-a-Mousson."
The streets are camouflaged wit
sheets of coarse bagging and interlace
twigs, as are many roads about th
front near the line. As far as ] haN
observed. Pont-a- -Mousson is the onl
town along the front so protected an
: the only one directly under fire and
part of first trenches on this wester
area of battle. In clear weather "
boche can see almost into the window
of standing houses he has been able
for three years and over he has belche
thousands of shells upon the city, but
. has not passed. nor will he!
| crossed the ancient bridge over Il
Mosele that united the two sections
the city. August IA the French destroyt
, 1t, but communication has been re-e
tablished In rough fashion for foot pa
sengers only. II is so near the bocl
. line that the enemy can distinguish vii
. naked eye whomsoever crosses an
. when he sees anything looking like an
: nation. he launches a tornado of shell
At the entrance to the bridge fro
, either side are two poilus, whose du
, is to permit the crossing of only tv
= persons at time. since the last ar
|, nineteenth time the temporary bridl
: was destroyed by German fire. Inc
| dentally. I may say that Pont-a-Mou
son has been bombarded 2s6 times sim
the war began, and that hardly ds
passes but that a few shells fall upc
the little city.
;, WOMAN STAYS AT "HOME'
1t so happened that as / crossed I
day my fellow passenger was wont
resident of the town. woman on 4
other side of middle age. her head u
: der great umbrella. fur of rabi
skin about her neck and heavy wool
= socks over her shoes. She preced
= me, walking slowly but solidly, bask
! = -------------