The Washington times., 1918-11-28
Copyright 1918,
blythe Tribune
Association.

lows anu BdlidnI HS SHLeES ana we nave
not a word TO say against them, but
they have their own methods For
instance, IL we say we are going to
attack at half-past 8 o'clock. We at
tack at that hour exactly. but if the
French say they will attack at half
past 5 they are just as apt to make
1t twenty minutes past seven as not.
"On the other hand. the French
sneer at the British stan, and speak
OF the useless sacrifice OF men because
the British high officers were so slow
to stop doing things a certain way,
just because that was the. way the
British had always done them
Mutiny In French Army.
"You her. too, in Paris, what will be
news in America, of the serious mu-
tiny in the French army in 1917, and
of the difficulty in suppressing 1t. In
this direction, too, the advent of
America into the war seems to have
saved the situation. Neither Eng
land nor France have any use for
Italy. They tell you that the Italian
troops were a bitter disappointment,
that they fight all right when things
are Roin gtheir way, but they cannot
b. depended upon when they are not.
and have to be stiffened by suppo I
whenever a real fight is due. And
that they were eternally demanding
men and money and refusing to carry
on" unless they got them.
The Red Cross and Italy.
GIn the month OF April alone, of this
year. an American official who knows
states that the American Red Cross
presented to no less than 324.OOO ltal-
ian families a sum OF money ranging
from 80 to $50 lire. The money went
only to those families whose sons or
husbands were fighting in the Italian
army. When she received the money
the mother or wife of the Italian sol
dier received also a letter telling her
that it was given by the American
Red Cross because her son or husband
was at the front fighting valiantly
for Italy. She was required to write
this fact to the son or husband at the
front.
'WhiIe the Red Cross in this way
spent millions Of dollars land they did
some of this in France. tool in way
not guessed by the people back home,
the statement is fatty made here that
the Red Cross disbursements in this
way so strengthened the morale of
the Italian army that 1t prevented
Italy from Withdrawing from the war.
The Portuguese's VaIoR.
AS for the Portuguese. they are
said to be the limit. In April. 1917.
the Portuguese were holding a sec
tion of the front line with the Brit
ish. When the boche launched his
attack the entire Portuguese divis-
ion threw down its arms and streaked
IL for the rear, leaving a gap in the
line Of 1000 yards, through which
the boche poured like a torret and
which nearly gave hi mthe channel
ports The Portuguese scattered All
directions and the only way in which
they could be gotten together again
at all was by he British refusing TO
feed them except in one place. This
ended their experience as hrst-Iine
troops, and since then this story abs
gone through all the armies In
France.
an what Is written above I have
tried TO give a glimpse OF the inter-
national political talk current In
Paris at this time. 1t is the gossip
OF the politicians perhaps the most
important gathering that foreshad-
ows the peace conference. the kind
in the history OF the world. 1t does
not represent the views of the peo-
pie. Nor Will you hear any OF IL
when you get outside of the inner
circle, but IL does accurately repre-
sent the feeling and thought therein.
In London. Americans of sanity and
balance, removed from the whirl,
contend that much of this is the nat
uraI atmosphere of Paris. which
lends itself most heartily to politi-
cal intrigue. and that Americans who
take this sort of talk seriously have
infiuenZa, OF the soul and not very
much intelligence. There may be
something in that, but II is too
strong. too concrete and discussed in
too high quarters to be thus dis
missed.
Great Game to BE Played.
There is a tremendous interna-
tional political game about to be
played here and the players will be
the biggest and brainiest men in the
world, and the stakes will be tre-
mendous. The present turmoil in
Paris is but preliminary to the OPEN
ing of the game. II President Will
son comes here. personally, the pre-
dictIon is made that Americas voice
will dominate the situation, not only
because of the power of our posi-
tion and the tendency OF all weaker
nations to look to US as their cham