The herald. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1905-1953, 1918-05-09

invasion Of hostile hOrdes. We will not
rest until the last enemy lies on the
ground and before the leaves fall from
the trees we shall return home vic
torious. The enemy is In full retreat
and the Almighty will bless our arms
further"
After this talk we gave three cheers,
something which had become routine
for us. And then we resumed our
march. We now had plenty Of time
and opportunity to discuss the graft
tude expressed by the supreme war
lord. We could not make out just what
fatherland we had to defend so far in
France. One of the soldiers expressed
the opinion that the Lord had blessed
our arms, to which another replied:
"a religious man repeating such silly
sentiments is guilty of sacrilege, If he
speaks seriously"
Everywhere, on the march to Sup
pes, in the fields and in the bitches,
lay dead soldiers, most Of them with
misunderstanding open wounds. Thou
sands of huge flies swarmed on the
corpses, partly decomposed, and CIV
ing off a fearful stencil. Among these
corpses, unsheltered under blazing
sun, were encamped wretched fugi-
tives, because they were forbidden the
use Of the roads while the armies need
ed them, which was practically all the
time.
In the evening, after long march,
we reached the town OF Suippes. Here
our captain told us we would find nv
merous frank-tireurs. We were or
dered to bivouac, instead of being as
| signed quarters, and all going into the
village were obliged to take guns and
| cartridges with them. After a brief
rest we entered the village in search of
food. Dead civilians lay in the middle
| of the streets. They were citizens OF
the village. We could not learn Me
reason for their having been shot. The
only answer to our questions was a
shrug of the shoulder.
The village itself had not suffered
to any noticeable degree as far as
| destruction of buildings was concerned.
! but never in the course of the war had
/ seen a more complete Job Of plumber
Ing than had been done in Suippes.
| That we had to live and eat is true,
and as the inhabitants and merchants
had flown there was no opportunity to
pay for our necessities. Therefore we
simply entered a store, put on stock
ings, laundry, and left the old things,
then went to another place, took what
ever food looked good to us, and then
proceeded to a wine cellar, there to
seize as much as our hearts desired.
The men of the ammunition column,
located in the village as well as the
sanitary soldiers and cavalry by the
hundreds, searched the houses and took
whatever they liked best. The finest
and largest business places in Suippes
served a very large rural district sur
rounding and therefore were stocked
up on almost everything. Within a
short time these places had been
cleaned out. The munition drivers
and train columns carried away old
pieces of silk, ladies' dresses, linens,
shoes, dress goods and every other ar
ticle imaginable. and stored them away
in their ammunition cases. They took
children's and women's shoes, and
everything else they could lay their
hands upon, although many of these
articles had to be thrown away short
ly afterward Later. when the field
post was developed and gave regular
service, many Of these things were sent
home.
A large chocolate factory was robbed
completely, and chocolate and candy
In heaps were trampled in the ground.
Empty houses were broken into and
wrecked, wine cellars cleaned out and
windows smashed, the latter being a
special pastime of the cavalrymen. AS
we had to pass the night In the open,
we tried to find some quilts and en-
tered a grocery store and a market
place. The store was partly demol-
lshed, but the apartment upstairs was
!, as yet intact with all the rooms locked.
1t was evident that woman's hand
had worked in this house, for every
thing was neat and cozy. But all this
order was still surpassed by the ar
rangement in a large room, which ap-
parently had been inhabited by a
young woman. We, were almost
ashamed to enter the sanctuary. To
our establishment we saw hanging on
the wall opposite the door a picture
burned in wood and under 1t a German
verse: Honor the women, they weave
braid of heavenly roses in their
earthly life" (Schiller). The owner
} apparently was young bride, for in
the wardrobe was trousseau, tied
with neat blue ribbons, carefully put
away. All the wardrobe drawers lay
open. Nothing was touched here
When we visited the same place the
next morning, impelled by some Inn
pulse, we found everything in that
house destroyed. Barbarians had gone
through this home. and with bitter
ruthlessness had devastated every
thing, with every evidence of having
utterly cast off the ethics and stand
ards of civilized races.
The entire trousseau had been tori
from the drawers and thrown partly
on the floor. Pictures. photographs
mirrors, everything was In pieces. The
three Of us who had entered the room
a y,