The Arizona copper camp., 1918-08-17
CHAPTER ".
on the Firing Line.

When / reported on the Cassard
after my fourteen days leave, 1 was
detailed with detachment of the
legion to go to the Flanders front. I
changed into the regular uniform Of
the legion, which is about like that Of
the infantry, with the regimental
badge-a seven-aamed, grenade.
We Travelled from Brest by rail, in
third-clasS cars, passing through La
Havre and st. Pol, and finally arriving
at Bergues. From Bergues we made
the trip to Dixmude by truck-a dis
tance Of about twenty miles. We car
ried no rations with us, but at certain
places along the line the train stopped,
and we got out to eat our meals. At
every railroad station they have booths
or counters, and French girls work day
and night feeding the Poilus. 1t was a
wonderful sight to see these girls, and
1t made you feel good to think you
were going to fight for them.
1t was not only what they did, but
the way they did It, and it is at things
like this that the French beat the
world. They could tell just what kind
of treatment each Poilu needed, and
they saw to it that he got it. They
took special pains with the men of the
legion, because, as they say, we are
strangers" and that means, 'the best
we have is yours" to the French These
French women, young and old, could
be mother and a sweetheart and a
sister all at the same time to any hairy
old ex-convict in the legion, and do it
in a way that made him feel like lit
tie boy at the time and rich church
member afterwards. The only thing
ne did not like about this trip was
that there were not enough stations
along that line. There is a tip that
the French engineers will not take,
am afraid.
There is another thing about the
French women that have noticed, and
that is this: There are pretty girls in
every country under the sun, but the
plain girls in France are prettier than
the plain ones in other countries. They
might not show it in photographs, but
in action there is something about
them that you cannot explain. have
never seen an ugly French girl who
was not easy to look at.
We finally got to Dixmude, after
having spent about eighteen hours on
the way. On our arrival one company
was sent to the reserve trenches and
my company went to the front line
trench. We were not placed in train
ing camps, because most of us had
been under fire before. never had,
but that was not supposed to make
any difference. They say if you can
stand the legion you can stand any
thing.
Before we entered the communica-
tion trench, we were drawn up along
side OF crossroad for rest, and to
receive certain accoutrements. Pretty
soon we saw bunch of BocheS COM
ing along the road, without their guns,
few of them being slightly wounded.
Some of them looked scared and 9TH
ers happy, but they all seemed tired.
=. Then we heard some singing, and pret-
Vty soon we could see an Irish corporal
stepping along behind the Huns, with
his rifle slung over his back, and
every once in while he would shuf-
fle bit and then sing some more. He
had q grin on him that pushed his
ears back. A
The British noncom who was de-
tailed as our guide sang out: "What
kind of time are you having, Pat?'
The Irishman saIuted with one
hand dug the other into his pocket
and pulled out enough watches to
make you think you were in a pawn
shop. "Oh,, foin toim I'm havin',"
he says. II got wan from each of thin