The Lynden tribune. [volume] (Lynden, Wash.) 1908-current, 1918-08-29
LYNDEN BOY IN ITALY
WANTS NEWS OF WAR
I'VE Never Hear A Word Over Here" :"
Writes Gale Edison From South
ern Battle Zone

Though in the heart of the war
zone, one Lynden boy appealed this
news about the war. Gale Edison,
who Was with TIL, first America.
troops to land n Italy, declared in a
letter received by Ed Edison, that
the troops over there were ignorant
of the progress of the great struggle.
Says Edison:
Things are entirely different yet
in general they are the same as we
have in America. For instance, they
be no uniformity in their width,
or the direction they run. Many are
not over ten feet wide with three and
four story buildings on either side.
These streets as you may guess are
thickly tenanted and of course not
a model of sanitation.
Innumerable shops that are mere
holes in the walls line both sides of
these busy thoroughfares. They are
all interesting to look at and often
l find myself gawking in at door or
window very much like a farmer on
his first visit to the city.
The "Farmacias" Drug Stores)
are quite a good deal different from
ours in America. In most cases they
represent an exclusive prescription
business, but even those that pro-
fess to carry a sundry stock fall far
short of our modern Pharmacies both
in size and luxuriousness of fixtures.
The ever present ice cream parlor at
home is represented in Italy by vino
shops and gardens. Wine drinking is
as natural for the rative Italian
as eating ice rceam would be for US.
Notice l say would be for US. Ice
cream is as scarce as hens teeth
here. Their substitute is an ice they
call gelata. 1t tastes pretty good
these hot days though. Street cars
are dinkier than ours. but in other
respects resemble those of New York
City even down to the lady conduc-
tor.
We are camped quite near one OF
Italy's ancient cities and consequent
ly there remains some remnants of
Roman architecture. chief amongst
which are the old nqueducts built in
Augustus Caesars time l believe.
They are not in use but appear as
serviceable as those built in 1400 A.
ID. should say that the modern Ro-
man follows much the same architec-
tural plans as the American except
that he builds more permanent. Stone
and marble is the cheapest and most
abundant building material; there
fore beautiful structures.
have been working in the field
garage most of the time since we ar
rived and incidentally have received
some preliminary training not on the
schedule. The Italians have big
gun testing station near the garage
and we have the doubtful pleasure
of listening to the roar ond screech OF
the shells as they tear out to sea. We
are also becoming accustomed to the
purr of aeroplane motors as they
shoot here and there through the sky.
l never realized that those machines
reached such great attitudes until
the other day two passed. over just in
sight of the naked eye. and I'm here
to state that that's pretty high.
One OF the most peculiar customs
of the Italians that l have noticed is
the way they ring their church beiis.
/ DO begin with, churches are more nu-
merous than stores in America ana
that is not including the private cha
pels of the many villas either. Each
church has all the way from one to
four or five bells all of different
pitch and they ring them at all hours
of the day and night. The big ones
they toll and the small ones they
CidnB IKE a hic a'oi AZ.
IL is a twenty-four hour concert.
Speaking of private chapels !
might add that each villa has one In
connection with their home and these
homes are the most wonderful places
that you can imagine. The only thing
we have in America to compare with
them is the stately old southern man.
sion of civil war days and that It Its
best is hardly fair comparison fhe
villa is to Italy what the chateau and
castle are to France and England.
took my first swim in the sea yes
terday and it is almos, az good as At
lantic City and a good deal saifier
You have probably learned that
we are (deleted by Censor) IN Italy
and / may add that on July 4th VT
gave the first official parade o, sai1
troops in this country. When We
left Seattle over a year ago we hopeo
10 be among the first to land II
France. But for reasons known ane
unknown that hope was never real
,zed. Now however. we take grea'
satisfaction in (deleted by Censor