The Fargo forum and daily republican., 1918-05-04

mystery and fear,
l have lateIy returned from three
days motor trip into the war zone
trip which took me SO near the
Lorraine front that the low nufter
of the guns floated on every piist
OF wind; SO near that I was able 10
touch hands and exchange greetings
with men waiting, packs on backs
ready for the order to go forward
into the trenches. Much that was
menacing and strange saw there.
but no fear nor any shadow Of fear.
Bombs Spare Toul.
The Toul sector, as it is called. is
part Of the French front in a corner
Of northeastern France drained by
two historic rivers-the Meuse and
the Moselle.
Toul itself is an ancient walled
town at some distance behind the
lines. Some sixty kilometers Cthirty-
seven and half miles) to the north
east lies immortal Verdun. And
eastward, half that distance. almost
in straight line, is Nancy. the cap
ital OF old Lorraine before the Gers
mans stole away its head and heart
Lately the German airplanes have
been systematically bombing Nancy.
and today the city seems doomed to
follow Rheims and Louvain into the
limbo Of vanished beautiful things.
Toul the German bombs have spared
so far.
Peaceful enough, France appeared
as I approached the war zone from
the south. Spring was in the air In
spite of cold wind and a wet, cling
ing snow that fell internationally dur
ing three days and nights The fields
surrounding the low villages had
been freshly plowed, and here and
there a gnarled peasant man or
woman, blue shocked aand kerchfef-
ed, stolidly dug and narrowed Just as
their grandparents did the while
Frederick the Great--and Gott
raided the border near these very
farms; just as their ancestors did
during numberless wars of old.
Straight and white for miles ran
the ribboned highways between their
avenues OF tall poplars. But soon
the roads began to show holes worn
by wheels of heavy war trucks and
gun carriages, and fields to the right
and left put on q strange and sinis-
ter dress.
without the aid of pIow or har-
row they blossomed suddenly into b
harvest of barbed wire entangle-
ments, mazes SO wound and woven,
SO thick and strong that only repeat
ed shelhngs from heavy guns could
level them. TO me they looked like
some deVilish parody of the rich
vineyards had seen only a week
ago terracing the hills of southern
France.
u s. A. Looks Like Home.
Other reminders there were of
combat, defenses SO Tar removed that
exclaimed, Surely the Germans
could never get as Tar as this
Probably moi" was the reply oI
the officer who was personally cone
ducting our party OF correspondents.
But we are not taking any chances
Suppose our men were forced to re-
treat. Wen, here are rear dsfenses
waiting for them"
Our motor car was no longer alone
on the long high road to the north.
We travelled now in company with
many chocolate -colored motor trucks
and ambulances. alI with ''U 8. AZ
and a string Of identity numbers
painted Ia white letters on the sides.
We passed mule teams the mleIall
choiy mules wearing AROUND their
necls the grDtesqus gas masks which
y
over here Groups o9 foot soldiers.
mostly Americans, hailed us az VIE
passed. Others we saw iii the dis
tance digging and draining. The
road over which we travelled was
hard and dry, but tho country was
sea OF mud.
Our immediate objective was
village too small to deserve u na1as
except on war maps, It ig about tae
last point at which Il Is saafe 10 ven-
ture out without a gas mask, and IS
5s a distributing point along this
particular sector Tor Amer
troops and army supplies. The To0
leading into tfe village and tia Knasn
street when gge reached I'll
chozea with motor TRUCKS agnbu-
1anees, mules ard men. M we bad
luck our officer guide told gis
uN CA g9 H