The Manchester journal. [volume] (Manchester, Vt.) 1861-current, 1919-11-13

the next few days. II wasn't easy to b.
funny when wc looked over the sea Of
faces and realized that many OF then
would never come back; and as w
moiored back to Chaumont, We passec
an almos, endless line Of ambulances
solemn and ghostly procession, just
a tiny light at the back Of each. anc
wondered IL they were on their wa,
10 be ready for perhaps the very boys
we had just left 2
We went ou, to the ammunition
boys in a truck, and found them es.
peclally enthusiastic when they knew
we were from New York. they were
all from "9sth Street. up" they said
and there were a number Of young
actors among them. They all gather
ed round at the end Of the perform
ance, and insisted on feeding us
chocolate and cake!
At the gas school," composed en-
tirely Of officers, we found a motley
crowd. for many Of them were black
ed up" ready for a minstrel show
which they were to give later in the
evening. Their costumes were fear
fully and wonderfully made, and they
had on gas masks as hats, with the
tube hanging down behind, by way Of
decoration. We told them, quite seri-
ously, that we thought them most in
hospitable not to ask US to stay to
their performance, and that we
thought we would stay, anyway. They
said they'd love to have us, but they
wouldn't be able to give it if we were
there! They wrote our names and ad-
dress on the blackboard, where the
names stayed for days, SO that every
one could copy it down and they are
coming to see us as soon as they get
back to America.
One got used to surprises, and to
meeting ones friends in strange ways
and places, but it was shock to find
one Of the officers, who had come from
Bar-sur Aube to say goodbye to us,
leaning against the little tower of our
hotel when we drove up in the truck
at about 10 o'clock. Where to take
him, there was no room that we had
ever seen but the bar-room, we didn't
know, but when we went indoors and
Madame saw his rank, she took US in
to a marvellous little sitting room,
which she must have kept for royalty
at least---and where we were quite
"comme il fout.'
Another day, as we were waiting
under an awning to protect us from
the sun in front of saloon, DIR. Ern-
est Stires joined us: we all stood,
quite unconcernedly, and chatted for
long time. A "chat" during the war
is not talking over ,Tivialities by
any means. and we only lope that the
public will be able to know some of the
absorbing tales OF his experiences "at
the front" that DR.. Stires told us that
day.
Fortunately for US the days in
Chaumont were mostly clear for in all
our spare time we were able to be out
of doors, which meant being in the
park, just at the top Of the hill over
looking the old Chateau OF the Duke
of Champagne-now the police court.
All sorts of unexpected incidents oc-
Cured in our park, all most interest
ing; sometimes it was the playing of
kittens which picnic parties had
brought, sometimes it was the chill
dren balancing themselves on the high
wall, we wondering how long it would
be before they would topple over the |
steep decline below; and once, a |
French Poilu divested himself of as
many clothes as he properly could, and
proceeded to shave himself II was a |
most interesting operation, especially
as all the instruments, water and all,
we're carried in the "musette" on his
pack: the mirror, he hung on the foot
If the statue in the center of the park.
There was often young soldier sit
ing on the wall, and we Of course
ipoke to him. His English was so
good that We asked him to
what college he had gone, he said
Trinity" and when we asked him
What he was doing now, he told us
hat he was cooking at the hospital
Work that he had known nothing
lboutD
Chaumont may not be the 'front.'"
'ut ,as one boy wrote home, there is a
var there that never ceases, between
he Signal Corps and the nurses. (Ask
omeone who has been there for
urther detailslD
Burgess Johnson came down, unex-
'ectedly from the front, and stopped
4 our funny little hotel. He told us,