The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1919-01-31


ETY. Receivers Its SmiIe-This, Like
No Other Victory, Has Been Peoples
Victory and It Was a Peoples cele.
bration Wild Succession Of Pro.
cessi9ns, Songs and Dances.
The capital Of France celebrating
peace in victory. The soul of France
revealing In the overthrow of Frances
fiercest enemy. The city of lights
emerging from four years of darkness,
the city of gayety recovering its smile.
Millions of men, women and children
stepping, dancing out of the shadow
of the death that has struck down
their loved ones-the death that has
threatened themselves.
That is what we watched for two
days and three nights. We always
thought of Paris as gay. We have
learned to know her as brave. Now
we have seen her mad with joy. 1t is
much to have seen.
For 1t was Paris that celebrated.
Not the Paris Of the cafes and the
bOulevards, not the Paris of the shops
and the theaters and the hotels and
Montmarte and the Latin Quarter
but all Paris. Paris of the busy fac
tories, Paris of the big banks, Paris
of the little shops, Paris Of the far
off suburbs-the Paris that has lived
and sparkled through 1000 years of
strife and blood and history. These
days q Paris triumphant and glori-
ously happy as she has never been
before.
For this, like no other victory, has
been a peoples victory, and it was
peoples celebration.
Whole Nation Happy.
There were no leaders, there were
no onlookers. Everybody walked the
streets and danced and sang to give
expression to the feeling that was in
at one time or another felt like rum
ming out into the street and dancing
for JOY. Well, that's what 100000
of people have been doing here.
Paris had much to express, and Paris
Is an artist in expression.
Some Of us wondered why Paris did
not celebrate the taking of Noyon,
the clearing of Reims, the storming of
the Chemin des Danes, the cutting
off of st. Mihiel-any of the great
milestones of the allied victory Of
this late summer and fall. Some of
us thought Paris belied it's reputation
and had turned phlegmatic. Some of
us said so to our French friends. We
have been apologiZing since we saw
the real celebration.
If the celebration could be summed
up in two words they would be these:
Everybody smiled"
OF the hundreds of thousands Of
faces that drifted across our vision
here during those days ar1 nights
don't think there was o.. Lat did
not smile. That smile spread over
the city as the sun clears the stormy
air. That smile was the sure meas
ure of the genuineness of Paris Joy.
Beside it New Years eve, an
election night, the night of football
game or boat race at home are as
tinsel to pure gold. This was whole
udllOU SlOflHeu anu nupDy.
No Sign Of Trouble.
Paris has marched before. She
marched out to meet st. Genevieve.
Her sturdy citizens took their pixies
and marched out to repel the Norman
brigands. Yes, and just such crowds
as these formed in the streets and
marched to Versailles to pluck the
mote Of absOlutism from Frances
own eye-to overthrow Louis XVI
a hundred-Odd years ago. Then they
were fierce. In this celebration they
were happy, for Paris seems to feel
that autocracy-the spirit that Paris
has never brooled-has lost its last
disciple That, think, is what makes
Paris so marvelOusly happy.
Tt is easy to say that a crowd or
{. city is happy. But usually in a
s"baCpy" crowd, happy city, there will
Ishfis, despite all the crowds, despite
all the celebrating. Even the gen.
darmes danced.
i. OF al the. wild, SUGGESTIONS of pro-
Z cessipns and songs and dances and
cheers, there are three pictures that
burn themselves into the memory.
! The first. was the way the news
spread. AT eleven O'clock, the. hour
when hastihtigs- ceased, the censor per-
mitted Tho Agence Radio to display
(. from, their Balcony a banner bearing
Z the words, 'The armistice was signed
Hat FIVE o,oItrcl< this morning" That