Evening star., 1918-07-28
FRENCH PEASANTS
co BACK TO RUINS
Choke Highways Below the
Marne, East of Cha
teau Thierry.
by the Associated Press.

BY the Associated Press.
WITH THE AMERICAN ARMY ON
THE AISNE-MARNE FRONT. July
26-French peasants again are chok-
ing the roadways below the Marine
east OF Chateau Thierry. But this
| time they are going home instead Of
leaving, as. was the case in June.
when the alarms were sounded that
| the Germans were coming.
Every road leading northward con-
tains streams Of peasants and ve-
htcles of every description, with ef-
fects Of all kinds piled high on them.
But on the faces of the people is a
different expression than that which
they bore when they were going the
other way. The expression at this
time is Of anticipation. but also Of
anxiety, as they know not what
awaits them at home.
| Many peasants travel in great two
two and sometimes five horses in sin
gle file. The carts are loaded with
household effects, with bicycles, bird
cages and similar belongings swing
ing over the sides.
& GIandfashers, IRAN fat srandmothers and
as seats. Fathers drive the carts
and mothers and walking children
and cows, goats and dogs trail be-
hind. On one occasion a boy was
seen hauling a small wagon contain
Ing the family cat. The father was
string to reach his former home as
soon as possible.
| Various surprises await different
groups of the French people. Some
OF them will md their thick walled
stone or frame houses hammered to
nothing more than a pile Of crushed d
rock or shattered woodwork. Their
helds have been pitted every few feet,
as II by a rain of iron. Vegetable
gardens are bare, the vegetables hav-
Ing gone to feed the Germans. Some
standing in great holes. the red tiled
roofs and windows shattered AND
what was left behind when the exodus
began In heaps, everything Of value or
OF use to the Germans having been
taken.
Some will ind their kitchen stoves
standing. mirrors intact, and beds in
place. the latter with Indications OF
having recently been occupied. These
will be the farms where the Germ ans
made themselves comfortable and
when the allied offensive began they
were SO taken by surprise that they
did not have time to destroy or pack
the utensils of which they had been
making use. II the peasants left be-
hind any live stock that they viii be
i WnAAt
now are awaiting harvesting and In
places 1t Is surprising the little dam
age that has been done. despite the
shells. True, most of them are dented
by the heavy pro5ectiles from the
guns. but in some instances the farm
ers can f1ll in the holes ana soon use
harvesters to cut their grain.
From a distance the hillsides along
the Marine, over and upon which the
battle ragged. appear like a great
i checker board. the different ripened
grains representing the little squares
| AS the battle line wavered under
the impetus OF the allied thrust, one
peasant had his tent on a cart ready
to leave for home. He had heard that
his house was down and his orchard
| gone; that the farming implements he
had left behind were filed with bullet
holes or were rusty and useless But
he hurried on, like hundreds of other
peasants. to what had been his home
A until the Germans came-and wha,
would be home again.