The sun., 1919-07-13

or French interests, many OF which GEN.
tered In troublous Morocco His work
mere attracted the attention of Gen
Lyautey the Resident General whom
the French regard as their greatest col
onial administrator.
Made Public Works Director.
Gen. Lyautey made him Director OF
l'ublic Works and when Gen. Lyautey
was recalled to France to serve in the
Ministry of War NJ. de Billey was made
Deputy General in Morocco, where he
carried on successfully the difficult and
delicate task of controlling the half saw
age trtbesmen which Gen. Lyautey tad
successfully inaugurated.
With the outbreak Of the war II. de
Billy was commissioned a Lieutenant
Colonel OF artillery and was sent as a
liaison officer to the British army. He
| later went to London on a mission for
the French Government and came to the
United States as Deputy High Commits
| sioner In May. 1917. with the officers and
! experts who followed the Joffre-Niviani
! embassy after the American declaration
of war.
His talent as an engineer and business
executive made him invaluable in the
! task of coordinating French and Ameri-
| can war purchases In the hectic mar
kets OF those days, and It was largely
through him that the artillery pro-
sramme whereby the American army
war equipped with the fine French ITS"
and "155" was put through. He super
visei the purchase and assignment OF
much OF the raw material in this couD-
| try out of which these guns and the
! Chauchat machine gun were made.
NJ. de Billy became much interested
also in the work of American relief or
| CARNATIONS. Through his effort duplica-
ton among the various American soci-
cites was eliminated and each was as
| signed its task II was also through
him that such societies as the Red Cross
! Fatherless Children of France. Ameri-
| can Fund for French Wounded ana
other organizations were enabled to
make their work effective In France. He
| arranged for their workers and their
/ supplies and supervised their relation
! ships with the French Government.
Perhaps the most important of VI. de
! Billy's tasks was the manner in which
lie kept the American public informed Of
the situation in his own country He
returned to Washington after visit TO
! France in the early summer of 1918
Just before his arrival some officers Of
| the American General STAFF had returned
| from an inspection of the western front
| and had been quoted in Washington de-
| spatches as believing that the task of
! breaking that front was impossible
| This report was officially denied. but IL
! persisted in the minds of many persons
and many officials In Washington.
Gives> Real situation at Front.
| NJ de Billy assembled the Washing
| ton correspondents and surrounded ny
group of French officers told of the
real situation at the front. He declared
that the morale of the French army had
never been higher and described the en-
| thusiasm with which the first contacts
| OF the American divisions with the enemy
had been observed. He secuted the idea
| OF the German west front being impreS-
nable and cited figures and conditions
to prove his contention.
| 1t was just at the time that Field
Marshal Haig had issued his famous
| Backs to the Wall" order of the day
and at the time when in response to the
call of Lloyd George American soldiers
| were being poured overseas in every
kind OF craft that would hold them. NJ.
de Billy showed TO the correspondents
how this would eventually turn the tide
| in favor of the Allies and proved to them
that the French and British could hang
ON until that moment. =. e..
This interview, given wide promipence
tnTOusnOut tne country, uiu III
the opinion OF American officials. to put
vigor into the huge task OF Transporting
and training the American divisions
which later met and smashed the last
German wave at Chateau Thierry
France. has been counting heavily on
the development of Morocco TO aid her
out of the depression following the war.
Freed of the German influence which
kept the tribesmen stirred up cont!nu-
ally since the time Of the Algeciras con-
ference and before, she has been count
ing on a magnificent opportunity In the
two and three crops year which can
be cultivated In the rich soil and on
| the copper, iron, coal and possibly oil
whose existence in the hills has already
been determined In several places
throughout the territory which is almost
as large as France itself. Morocco APP
! pears not only as a great factor in re-
| lieving the French food and raw mate
rial market. but is tightening the huge
| financial burden which France will have
to bear despite her victory.