Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1919-06-27

bridges which had so often been blown
up and shellcd and played such a
part III the battle. The town must
nave been very pretty. There are still
streets which retain their rows of
trees and some of the houses seem TO
nave escaped serious damage, but
parts of it are but heaps of stone
unsafe walls and buckcd streets. Fore.
es are ut work trying to clean up
some of it,
we spent the night ut the oldest
niue thotel. We were taken through
the kltchen into II court yard and nm
some stone stairs into 4 large lonr
room with nice, soft beds and three
windows. was SO tired slept like
Il log doubt if | ever turned over
we started early the next morning
Tor Belleau Woods where our Marines
Fought so ierccly just at the right
minute. shant try to tell you any
thing about it for just now it is nil
to vivid and my feelings are too
Keen Tor expression.
! You know all the historical mart
ana you would get only my personal
IDEAS which | am not likely to FORGET
: Every rock and shattered trce md
Inc niue cemetery ut the foot of the
mn with lis tiny, futterng flags are
| before me every time stop to think.
from There we went to Rheims
through fields of trenches, camou-
tagged roads and wire acknowledgements
l could people the country with the
rrench and Germans and our own
noys sprnkled in. In approaching
itheims where the French and Cor.
nuns fought back and forth 30 much
we round hut mass of trenches. Th,,
town rs IN ruins. have some cn,d.
got especially for Claire 10 So,
knowing how we'll she knew thr town
1t IL not yet being repaired, hear,
us they are waiting for the domorr
To bc appraised.
we went northeast to the Linden
purE trenches and down into u ms,
cUihe gun emplaccmcnt where nm IN
~, ,"c mh'hlhc gun company STAYED.
we went down. down, down. | thourht
we would never stop going down
Steps! AZ last We reached tie bottom
ana found wire cots, tables. chair.
stove. a fine place with lni. ~
cohvenicnces. 1t Ind evidently been
occupied by officers. My flash lirhi
WIS tricky and | was afraid il would
40 out and leave us in total dark
ness hut we got out by another wnv
IN" up INTO the fresh air again Thc
dliEout WAS filled with hand rrcn,d,s
star shells, and all sorts or ihinr.
IKE that, all of which we were nrrn;J |
!" '""ch us many Of them are sill |
connected with wires or sci I, NV
plode when tempered with Th,. |
French soldier brought ONT sam.
n,al Sheii" from which he took lhc
p"H"I ana set II OIL for us. One was
,'"' one green and one white. II was
ct''''' w. ~ regular 18th Of July
IRE works ] brought TN empty shell
""'" wan me and il | can get il
c'eahed up, shall carry il home to
you hs II souvenir Of these iuIrrc.t
ing places. ''' ''''
we next went To l'ismes and from
liicre to Scissors, where we ancni
Ihe hiEht. This is another ruined and
neVaSted town. We had IL very com
'"rtnbie room though nothing TO hru,,
on. You see these places are nll .hnt
up TINS hotel is full of shrnnnnI
,'oies ana our room had been the
headquarters of French officers Tbcv
are sui stationed in the town.
Inc next morning we went I'm
quentin Rooscvclts grave. knew il
was near and had n great desire I'm
see II. IL is located i'm n mos, bn,u
liiul spot on the side of n hill TL..
morning they were cutting hnv in ~
'c'u ana as trailcd along throurbi
H. Tried to imagine how il lonLnd
'eSS tnin year ago, when il was or.
cupied by the Germans You pa
member that Quentin fell ius;Jc ,hn
herman lines the last of july or I,sI
ye''r' me grave is marked by both
lhe French and Americans and has
" mule fence around it, II was cover
ed WIN fresh flowers. II was n lovely
iei'cciul scene that morning but RIGHT
npoVe me on the hill there were i,vo
mes OF trenches that had been cill-
ca IN and ut the gate of the meodow
mere was large dump hcnn or
herman trash that had not vet hoor
S'iVagcd or destroyed. When onn
secs an thls and thinks of the livrs
M .r. nave been SO unnecessarily sac
ri ,ced one is absolutely horriricd
ana 'eels that the world has all gone
wrong ana wonders why il had to mo
cur next stopping place was Ferc.
m ardeno's where we speuL thc
lunch hour. These places right here
an" IN the surrounding country will
''he years and years to restore if II
eyer can he done. Forests are torn nm
broken and ruined, the towns nr r,
destroyed and the fields are ohso-
i r.y Torn to pieces by trenches and
'ieh with barbcd wire. DOM coo
no" they can ever get rid of Thai ono
th'ng. The people ARE returning vcrv
slowly as they are waiting for peace
10 be signed, which seems 81 sIow
ne French up here are much nicer
20 % the IN Americans than they are in tbc
.. y. y. as we call the part of The
country behind the lines. They nrc
both polite and kind. arc
from this liffln nI,oo