The Cordova daily times., 1918-03-02
MANY COMF FORTS
 ARE PROVIDED ] FUR DEFENDERS
(By Associated Press)

FRENCH FRONT, Feb. 1 (by maiD The veteran of 1914 who has passed four winters at the battle front is apt to make ironic remarks about feather. bed soldiers" when he hears newly Joined comrades speak of the discom. forts of cold-weather cantonments. At the beginning of the war the fighting men were more than pleased to dis cover a comparatively dry spot under the trees of a forest or in a drafty stable or barn in which to pass their very rare and short periods of repose.
 Now all has been changed and every thing possible is done to provide some sort of comfort and distraction for the men when they come down from the fYOnt-line trenches. 1t must not be supposed that all the modern aids to human comfort are furnished to the soldier, but his lot is luxurious com pared with that during the early months of the war
 In every village in the immediate rear of the fighting line out of the range of the German guns a town major has been appointed, who makes it his business to know of every nook and corner where men and horses can be housed. When a battalion or regi- ment marches in everything is in readiness for it's reception. Regimen tai workshops and offices, stables and kitchens already are arranged, and bill letting accommodations for officers and men listed in such a way that the sol Gliers have only to go in and occupy their quarters. Sometimes they are lodged in the cottages, but in general it has been found more convenient to place them in farm houses and barns, az the hygienic facilities in the coun- try houses are far from modern.
 Every available grange and barn has been thoroughly gone over and made watertight by having it's roof covered with tarred paper and it's walls made draftproof by thick crenelated card board. Electric light has been in stalled every building provided with a stove and washstands Partitioned If is a compartment where the men may take hot and cold shower baths. In the nearby kitchens every requi- site fs handy for cooking.
 As to the mems personal comfort, each of them is given a trestle bed, with straw mattress, known generally as "six-foot feathers" bolster, sleeping sack and blankets.
 In the vicinity of the villages sports grounds have been inclosed and marked for football games, while nu- nerous plots of land are set apart for truck gardening and generally cuiti- vated by old reservists who do not go into the firing line. The produce is much appreciated by the troops, who' when at the front, have to content themselves with canned vegetables.
 Tn each cantonment large hut has been erected to serve as a recreation and reading and writing room. It is provided with a fairly extensive Library and all kinds of indoor games. Every week or so a moving picture performance is given by the army the ater. which also arranges dramatic shows.
 Besides these official arrangements for the troops other efforts are made by private bodies to cheer the men be- tween their arduous and pertlous peri ods of trench work. In almost every eantonment a canteen has been estab' lished under the auspices of French, American or British women, who serve the men with hot coffee, tea and bouil- lon and little food delicacies,
 During the chilly months from Sep tember. to May each soldier is given extra supplies of warm clothing, com prising three cotton shirts. two pairs of f1annellette undergarments, two or three pairs of woolen socks. three bian Rets, one sweater, one scarf and pair of woolen gloves. and in the Vosges
 mountains and other sectors where the cold is most severe still more warmer clothing Is placed at the. disposal oi the troops in case of need.
 WOMEN OF TEXAS