The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1918-11-14
Gives Description of Won
derfull Paintings and Build
ings He Has Seen Be-
yond the sea.
SLOW METHOD OF TRAVEL
Passenger Coaches Only Hold About
Fourteen Passengers Each and
Two Coaches to Train, and
Move Very Slowly.

Corporal Ed. Meyers, of Kenosha,
who is with the American Expedition
airy Forces in France, has been using his
eyes as he goes through that country
and has many yarn to tell of the
quaint and curious things he has seen
there. Some Of these things he de-
scribes In letters to his mother, Mrs.
Fred Myers, of 155 Sheridan Road, and
are ro-~~7-roed herewith. He says:
IA little Belgian boy has been
hanging around our barracks. One of
the band boys speaks French and he
told his story. Three years ago the
Germans took his family prisoner. The
boy ran and jumped into a river and
waded out into the water until it was
captured. He was only seven years
old at that time and has been bum
ming around ever since. His clothes
are very poor and he has no under
wear at all. So the band took up
collection among themselves and bought
him complete outfit.
cit rains here almost all the time
and it is very cold. Our barracks is
just shed and is cold and damp. They
have no coal here and they only allow
few pounds of wood day to the
kitchen. Sometimes they hardly have
enough to cook their meals, so you can
see we would have poor chance to
get wood if we had stove.
"Well, tomorrow is Sunday and our
band is engaged to play at Rennes, a
city thirty miles away. It is three
hours ride on these trains. I under
stand that ours will be the first United
States band that has ever played there
and we are going to be met by the
mayor. Rennes has a population of
one hundred thousand and is an old
historical place."
After returning from Rennes Corp.
Myers describes his trip thus:
"After dressing at fve-thirty in the
morning, we, had bite to eat and went
to the depot. w chad only short time
to wait until the Rennes Limited pull
ed in. The engine looked like a cross
between coffee mill and cook stove
and was about the size Of a one hundred
egg incubator. The train consisted Of
two coaches with accommodations for
fourteen passengers each. There were
l. +Io
they beat us to it, so that there was
not enough room for the whole band,
twenty eight men. We were informed
that the next section was due in twenty
minutes SO we waited for that.
"We went about thirty miles and
lit took us more than three hours. We
had gone a short distance when the
train came to stop and there was no
town in sight. But evidently the en-
gineer and fireman were dry, for saw
them headed for a building with a
wine sign on the front. After they
had licked up few they came out and
we went on our way. It is very es-
sential here while travelling to carry
loaf Of bread under your arm and
a link of sausage in your pocket.
Every once in a while some French
man will pull out sausage and cut
off piece. One fellow dropped his
bread while trying to cut a piece and
| it rolled all over the floor before he
could get hold of it. But this did
not hurt it so far as he was concern
| ed, for he ate it just the same as if
nothing had happened.
I'm due time we arrived at Rennes
and a "Yo man agreed to take US
around. Rennes is an old town and is
one of the most historical in France.
1t was formerly owned by Bretagne
Brittany. About the year 400 a
wall was built around the town. The
French fought for years and years to
take it, but never could do so. A GER
tain knight of Bretagne died and it
was his dying wish that the town be
turned over to the French and when
he was buried the keys Of the city
were turned over to France. The king
of France then ordered the wall to be
torn down which was done, with the
exception of small portion which
still remains standing. This is in the
center of the town now. People are
living in it, on it, and some have build
ed their houses onto it. You would
never know that once it was an old
city wall.
eve next visited the. Hotel de Vile.
Now, Hotel in French does not al
ways mean a lodging house. It means
a large building. Villa means town
So Hotel de Vile means the city hall,
or town building. So this was the
town building. It is closed now to en-
tertainments Of any kind, but was
forTnarlv7 used for bamouets and balls