The Manchester journal. [volume] (Manchester, Vt.) 1861-current, 1919-10-30

NAdbet Nd4fh 4Vf hoNtA@s ssiN NiAN. h"'
perfected the only real shower bathi
that the town had ever known. Be
fore we left, six women nurses were
sent down from Paris: il was Al
! though Heaven had suddenly descend
ed upon them.
Il The thunder was rumbling when We
started out for Ville-sur-Terre, il wal
the first we had heard all summer, anC
il was 30 loud that II didn't sound rea
anyway The performance had just
begun, we standing on the steps OF tn,
town hall, when the rain came dowr
in sheets. The men carried the piano
into school building back Of US, all
those who could crowded in and the
rest stood outside in the down pour
with just their head poked through
the open window so that they could
hear US. The lightning and two
candles were all that we had by way
of illumination.
Travelling by automobile through q
country at war is always absorbing at
least, but as we started back, the man
who was to run the car told US that
he had never run q Ford before, that
the muffer was broken, which ac-
counted for the ear-splitting noise;
that he had no lights, the clutch slip
ped, and that the brake didn't work,
but that he thought he could get US
down the mountains without any acci-
dents. We skidded through the black
ness Of the forests with only brilliant
linghtning to show us the road, and
when we got to he hotel we were wet
TO the skim that was nothing, how
ever, compared to the drenched condi-
tion of the boys who had walked miles
to hear us.
The "Y" man had rented a fine large
room in Bar-sur-Aube, just over the
chief cafe, and it was used as an
officers club. 1t was pretty forlorn
sight when he took us up to Sc it, for
it had gotten to the point where only
woman could bring it out of its
chaotic state. There were yards Of
curtains to be made, so first of all, we
swept, busted, scrubbed everything
and then made them. The ceiling was
tremendously high, so we borrowed a
soldier from the streets below, who
did the only perilous part of our
work, climbing the tippy ladder and
hanging them. We were fortunate in
the soldier, for he said, when we ex-
claimed at how well he seemed to
understand the arranging of the folds,
that he had always hung the curtains
at home for his mother.
We wrote frantic notes to the Paris
office, and they sent down canteen
worker, the only one the town had
kown, and such a sweet girl as she
was! Directly we saw her we felt
like old friends, and it was interesting
to find out that the first school to
which we had ever gone was the one
which her aunts had kept.
The Chaplain put up flaming post
ers, saying: "A reception will be given
at the officers club Ga house warming
by the only three American women in
this part Of France, every officer is in
vited," and they were all there on
Sunday afternoon.
Mademoiselle Thierry, from our
hotel, took Frank into their flower
garden and the blossoms she gave us
were beautiful They decorated the
mantles and tables with them, and the
room was soon filled with our guests.
There were many French officers
among them, so Madame Thierry and
her three charming daughters were
kept busy entertaining, while Miss
Bottomly showed the two soldiers,
who had come in to help US, how to
make lemonade and 10 serve the cakes,
passed on brown pottery dishes, which
cost thirty centimes piece.
We sang, gave monologues and did
of songs in French. for those
Of our guests who understood no Eng
lish, until il was time for dinner, then
we all trooped over to the hotel to-
gether A few days after our little ;
party" almost all of these officers
we're in the midst Of battle at the '
front. !
Down the street not many doors {
away, lived our wash-woman, who
We were only too glad to go to visit
on the slightest proyocation. Three /
IF her sons are fighting, she is aIy
widow with two little girls to sup v
port, and il is impossible to imagine G
inless one has been in France in war
ime, under what difficulties she {
works The same amount of coal b
which formerly cost few centimes, n
he now pays six francs for, so she o
,eQts hgr Trims over "a gnan1l hrn vier n