The Washington herald., 1918-12-16
Yanks Occupy Kaiser's
Best-BeLoUed Resort
Riddles Think All Americans Run
Around with Candy Especially Pro-
vided for the Purposes of the Chill
dren of Coblenz, Runyon Says.

wide sidewalks, critically eyeing their
conquerors.
1t was the Twenty eighth Infantry
which first entered the town. They
marched as IL on parade. Their
brown faces were shaded by steel
helmets. They bore their heavy packs
as lightly as If they were pillows.
All the way through the town the
band knocked all quiet out of the
atmosphere with a steady BOOM
pah."
Played Harvard Fair.
1t played Hail to the President
the same march with which the band
of the 122nd Artillery played out the
war that morning of November IL
back on the Meuse. Then it played
another march which an excited
Bostonian insisted was Fair Har-
ward" 1t would have been somewhat
appropriate at that. For not far be-
hind the 18th Infantry a famous Har-
vardian was leading the 26th Infantry
into the outskirts of the twon. He Is
Lieut.. Col. Theodore Roosevelt, jr.
Besides the 2Sth, the 10th and 18th
regiments are also In the First Divi-
sion.
At noon today, the company passing
through the city stopped right where
they happened to be and had dinner
from the rolling kitchens. One outfit
located itself in one of the public
squares right in the heart of the bust
ness district.
As each man of the mess got his
, plateful OF steamings grub. he sat
down on the curbing and started to
eat Presently they were all sur
| rounded by children and even adults.
1t was a great object lesson. White
bread was especially an object of
| comment and soon some children were
in the happy possession of pieces.
Riddles Like Yanks.
There is one thing the Germans have
not mad, however much they may
have had of other things, and that is
chocolate. The children seem to have
an idea that every American goes
around loaded with sweets. and are
constantly appealing for il,
All the principal hotels were quickly
taken over today for rooms for head
!, quarters and officers.
| Up to this morning the American
occupation of Coblenz has been en-.
| urely informal, and the Germa ms
gathered a slightly mistaken impress
sion. They evidently thought the
whole invasion would be what YOU
might call self-effacing as the policing
has been.
7 Today. however, burly Signal CORPS
men began stringing new wires into
hotels without saying much about the
matter to the proprietors, while mill
tary police took charge of the trafic,
and the whole city found itself under
the complete control of businsSs-like
AmeIicans
The Rhine here is lined with heau-
utul homes. Some officers were bill
leted in houses.
Tomorrow the troops cross the river
and take over that section of the
town. probably including the fortress
Ehren Breistein.
There was a great race yesterday
among the war workers to get into
Coblenz. Two stalwart members OF
| the Knights of Columbus came gal.
I looping in first. They were Fred RiIer.
/ OF Torrington. Conn, and John j,
! Donovan, Of Boston. They brought
hve tons of gum drops and other
! supplies.
Soon afterward the first Ameri-
can women to reach the Rhine ar
rived. They were. of course, girls
of the Salvation Army, God bless
EN-. Miss Eddie Hodges, of Rich
mond. Va. and Miss Florence Turk
! ington, of South Manchester. Conn,
] are their names. They came with
Fred Anderson, of Tacoma. Wash,
and Were three days and three
nights on the road.
The war workers were not AL
lowed foreman in town yesterday.
I because they got here too soon. Our
| army is very squiffy about those
matters. But they came back to-
day.
The Salvation Army made.a record
! in this war which will never be for
| gotten. You may not have heard
| much about it SO far, but you'll
hear plenty when the boys get
home. Someone asked an old COL
onel commanding the organization,
in France why he didn't hire a
press agent.
Why" he said, innocently, "I
never thought of it,"
The knights of Columbus, too,
have done great work. 1t is about
a toss-up between them and the
Salvationists.