The Ward County independent. [volume] (Minot, Ward County, N.D.) 1902-1965, 1919-05-08

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Ward County Lad Who is With the U.
S. Forces, Writes Interesting Let
ter Describing Trip Thru Ger.
many.
David Taylor, son of Mr.. and Mrs
Chas. Taylor, from south Of the city,
has written an intensely interesting
description Of his recent trip thru pOr-
tions of the German occupied terri
tory. David, when only in his teens,
enlisted and has been with the expe-
dictionary forces in France for months
He will have had an experience by the
time he arrives home, that one could
not get for million dollars under any
other circumstances. The letter fol
lows:
G. II. O., A. E. F., France.
March 18th, 1919.
Dear Folks:
Have been intending to write YOU
a letter for some little time, but was
expecting trip into Germany, so
thought would delay writing you
until l got back from there, as |
probably would have some interest
ing things to tell you about the "Fath-
erland" as it is today. Finally we
received the word to go, so we pulled
out of Chaumont on the afternoon of
February 25th ON two Locomohile
trucks, bound for Coblenz, the head
quarters of the 3rd Army, known to
fame as the "Army of Occupation"
1t was nice weather, not very cold
and (most strange for Sunny
France") not raining. These roads
through France were once fine, de-
light to the motorist-but this part
of the country, where all the heavy
traffic to the front passed, has had its
roads ruined-constant usage for four
years by the heavy camions, etc., with
out having the time or men to spare
for the repairing always needed on
such roads has left them in terrible
shape.
We went up through this pictur-
esque and beautiful country for many
and many mile, much TO it being a
rolling, billy landscape. It is sur
prising the amount of wooded lands
over here-having always held the
idea of contested, intensively cult
waited land; but it seems the govern
ment compels the keeping Of a GER
tain portion Of the land in forests, for
the sake of needed wood. They have
a definite and successful policy on
this proposition, requiring a certain
amount of the land to be kept as
woods, and limiting the amount that
may be cut, the kind and method of
cutting. We passed many old French
chateaus-some very old, some more
recently built. The old ones in par
ticular were usually located on a very
strong defensive position-the spur
of hill, for example, with three sides
very precipitous, and the fourth with
a high, thick wall, thus setting off
the stronghold. OF course, such places
would stand poor chance with pre-
Of hand-to-hand fighting, I imagine
they served mighty well. We were
constantly going through the little
country villages-which are "pictur-
esque", but I'd hardly think them very
comfortable or sanitary. The farm
ers lover here" do not do like ours,
live each on his farm, but congregate
in little villages and go out from
there each morning to his nearby
fields to do the days work. Most Of |
the houses and barns are built of |
stone or sort of concrete stucco ma
terial, with cheap tile roofing. A
frame house is an utterly unknown |
thing. All the houses are built right |
up against the ones next door, some |
times solid front Of them for quar-
ter of mile, or so.
Both in going into Germany and |
coming back here we passed through |
much the same sort Of towns, coun-
try, and scenery, SO l shall not at
tempt any scheduled account of the
trip, but merely give an account of
the things I saw, regardless Of whe-
ther it was in going up or coming
back. A part of the return trip was
over the same roads-a part over diff
ferent country. For example, in
coming back we crossed the former
battle front at a different point, and
followed along 1.-THE trenches, No
Mans Land, etc.-for about twenty
miles, in parallel line.
In going up we passed through the
outskirts of Toul, which was imme-
diately behind the American lines, and
rather center of American activities.
You will, no doubt, recognize the
name, as the American front was COM
monty known and referred to in the
papers as the "Toul sector. From
there we went to the famous old city
Of Metz, which is quite a place, and
about the best city in the province of
Alsace. It was a pivotal point in
the German line, and at the time the
armistice had been placed within
reach Of our big guns by the Ameri-
can advance. It is very strongly for
titled, and has German barracks scat