Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1919-03-03
(By Victor McNausht.)

<S-Ss NaICa S.-Wnen the time
eso-ss 20 write an adequate story of
N tie ~sr & is doubtful whether M
large ycsune vii! hold the history Of
tie !nnansrahle acts of humanity
that have been performed. Surely
nj single organization has ever done
-e-s Socd II the name of the Ameri-
Gal People Ny purpose now is to
-E- Of q single bit of activity. a mis-
sas2 q good work carried on by a st.
Lexis doctor. which is typical Of the
<E--c shown by the Red Cross all
q France
ll@stSate!y after the close of hos
1l-rEs On November IL. a traveller
Trough he desolated regions might
se several times a day some poor
1sasznt man or woman struggling
along the muddy road. pushing a
rerambulator or carrying q pack
loaded with a few simple household
belongings. These were the villag-
ers. the toilers of the soil, making
their way back slowly and painfully
to wrecked homes in the little towns,
ruined and blasted by she'll fire.
Peasants Long for Homes.
The French government aimed to
keep the refugees safely together in
the back areas until a program for
their return had been worked out. No
one was TO be permitted to go back
withou, official sanction. Just as
soon. though, as the shells ceased
falling, the peasantry began to stray
gle away homeward. in defiance of or
ders. home is a word of especial sig
rlflcanc TO these poor people; they
care nothing for other places.
Sometimes the returning villager
could find what was once his house;
often he could only guess at the place
where it had stood. At any rate. he
would try to get one room into some
sort OF habitable form. with a make.
shift roof over his head. and with pa
per replacing the glass in the win
dows: The rubbish-strewn floor
would be cleared up, and provision
OF some kind would be made for n
fire.
How Ruined Towns Look,
One v forgets the Impressions
gained in passing through a broken
and battered French village. The
houses OF stone. resembling in color
n yellow1sh-brown adobe Of our far
southwestern plains. are now for the
most part nothing but walls and rub
Dish heaps. A bed or a chair NAV
be seen on a bit of remaining up-
stairs floor. A clump of weeds or a
Dit OF wild vegetation is grow.
ing out Of a pile Of dirt in a corner
or creyice.
The houses were built so close to
the curvlng road that there is scarce.
" enough room for two motor cars
TO pass. There are no sidewalks, nor
sewers, nor electric street lights. AS
the traveller passes through one Of
these ghostly villages, he sees occa.
sionally a curl Of smoke coming from
a pit OF pipe thrust through a hole
IN wall made perhaps by an en-
tertng shell. Then he knows hat
some refugee has come home.
AS was bound to be the case. the
returning families have been plagued
with sickness, due to p%rivation, ex-
posure. lack OF proper food, and gem
eral tnsanitary conditions. The IN.
fluenza epidemic added new tro,,hias
10 borne no one knows how
What DR.. Roach Found.
DR.. ]. F. Roach. who went "a
france from st. Louis a few months
ago., was stationed for a while at
where he heined
care Tor our sick and wounded soi-
dters, When the war ended and fhe
there was closed. DR.. Roach
looked about him in the neiRhbor-
nooa. ana found that the returning
civilians were having a yery harS
time Of it. AAu
7 investigated conditions in the
region between Chateau Thierry and
Scissors" DR.. Roach told afterwarI
and found them 50 desperately had
that I sent word to Red Cross head
quarters in Paris at once for srn
plteS. Without a moments hesifa.
ton the Red Cross sent out 70 ma
an ambulance and 4 motor truck
with beans lentite canned
milk. rolled eaSs, sugar. coffee tea.
bpnilion cubes shoes. s,.ys itea for the
babies. sweaters. ,capez. sorka ,,udars
clothes, co.'s and Blankets Thes.
were eaactiY the things E.4ts tse Ink
cold md nqt.SFy people gneeaed. ana
9tsth my assistants l set 10 wort q,
oace 70 itsrr.tate therr asfp.z tae
,,ss5 ! AZ ~ s. get repay e car
q heat two cisast YER day osa
At o3lesy and At NeutIIy =,
Front. where had my headnuarfesa
Every week my two nurses INV am.
buiance drtyers and II took care ~
400 to 600 people. We coversd
thirty towns. In our work and -
were busy constantly Those 10.
derful nuEses;I shall never force
nov faithfu!ly they kept af IL
Ore Fhthers TfoubSes.
Visited one home In Roxet III
Alb9n wheTesfOuF were lying Nrs III
tnfluensa. While I was there, the