Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1918-01-28
Back at Work

Back at Work
Dear Family-Well, my permis-
sion is all over now and here L am
for four more months before the
next one heaves in sight. Heavens
knows, waited long enough for
this one.
"The last letter / wrote you was
from Biarritz. AS I remember 1
described the place, but didn't say
what L did. o course everybody
spoke French, so we thought We
were due for a poor time. But the
first night we met an English girl
a perfect wonder, too. She was the
daughter of Sir. Herbert Gutherie-
Smith a general in the English
army. She heard US talking Eng
lish and as she couldn't speak
French, she was glad to talk with
us. Later in the evening ne met the
General and Lady Gutherie-Smith.
So all the rest of the time we, that
is Hort Page, Miss G-S and myself,
chased around together. We played
golf at the club and she showed us
up for fair. She didn't tell us she
had a national handicap in England.
Then we went for tea every after
noon and wonderfu4 lkttle CON
fcerieS' every day. We also took
some long walks and one day we
took a trip to Mayonne, an old his
torical town near Biarritz. We saw
the old Castle where the Black
Prince, Lord wellington, ETC., etc,
stayed and the old Gothic cathedral
and then climbed the hill overlook
ing the city and river to some old
ramparts. We took several good
pictures, which l will enclose If II
don't forget.
I'VE only stayed there four days,
however, and then went back to
Paris. We met some very nice
people there and did the real So
ciety act of walking along the Ave.
du Bois de Bologne. Talk about
your 'snappy' sights! The monde
of Paris turns out in force on Sun
day morning and breezes up and
down the Aye. for about an hour
It's the "chic" thing to do, so we
couldn't allow them to slip anything
over on us.
"Qne day we went out to Yer
sailles and saw Louis XIV's 'hoveI.'
Quel Homme! He certainly did live
in some little shack! L never saw
a more gorgeous place in my life.
Wonderful paintings, mirrors gold
leaf, marble, seemed to be the chief
eomponents. but they were juggled
so that Louis could feast ais eyes
on some little place.
The Air Kings Spad
We also saw Guynemer's Spad
with which he brought down so
many Boches, the Yep Las and u
whole bunch of aeroplanes, which
were all displayed in the courtyard
of the Invalides.
Several times we were invited
out to dinner or tea and of course
had a very enjoyable time. The
Harpers We're very kind to us and
did lot to make our stay in Paris
as nice as it was. of course most
of the conversation was in French
and while 1 didn't shine, 1 man.
aged to- say a few words once in a
while.
Paris is rather dull now but
filled with soldiers of every descrip-
ton. You so to theater and you
can see every kind of a uniform:
British, Canadian, Australian, Rus
sian, Serbian, Portuguese, Hindoo,
Senegalese, French, etc, etc, and
Americans by the dozen. Paris liter
ally swarms with Americans. It's
a wonderful sight to look over an
audience and see the different COL
cred uniforns sprinkled with the
bright color of the dress of the
feminine part of the crowd.
Next week / expect to send my
application in to be admitted TO the
artillery school. I'm not going to
stay in the Ambulance Service for
the rest of the war if / can help it..
| want to do something more active
II can, even tho you do lodge
shells in this service too often for
comfort.
After breezing around Paris for
q while and going to the theater,
we came back to the section. So
here we are.
ut certainly was fine to go away
from the front for a while and not
hear the sound of guns. But While
/ was there I saw a woman killed
on the Metro (Subway). She fell
in between two cars and her neck
was caught in between the platform
and the moving cars with her head
resting on the platform and her
body underneath the car. 1 saw
the whole thing happen and caught
two women as they tainted. Tt was
great sport catching the two women,
only they We're both old and neither
Of them good looking.
"The dogs we found in the field
arc growing like the dickens now
and we are having lots of Gun train
ing them. If I get some GOOD Pic
lures of them l will send you some.
They certainly are cute.
Last week the section got all
brand new cars, so now / am sport
ing around the country in my new
Ford 1t sure is n bear!
Lots of love to all.
Franklin" e.