Norwich bulletin. [volume] (Norwich, Conn.) 1895-2011, 1919-03-18

miles from here is the site of one of |
his former camps and backgrounds.
We hope to get there some day when
the mud disappears. Rain and army
trucks are not the best thing for the
proper maintenance of the French
roads. The latter are ordinarily much
better than ours, but are made of n
soft limestone which quickly gives out
under the heavy traffic.
The Americans have been given the
duty of repairing all roads in France
which they have injured. and road
gangs of engineers and labor troops
are everywhere.
Dion is a railroad, junction, and the
same methods are in vogue now that
were used when YOU were here. Turn
tables are operated by hand, and to
get a car on another track they run
it on to a movable section and pull II
to the other track by horses. II saves
switching. Here we have big Ameri-
can moguls manned by American sol
der railroad men, and the way theS
can smash up the little French box
cars when they shunt them on to an
other track is n caution The box cars
have a brake lever AT y ai1c and a
man runs alongside and ,p tho hr,tk
sometimes-generally tEcls III
bump. The other day a uu.uload OF
troops WIS llttttt up At the lIuIti u
come back TO the rear and the Amer
lean engineer wanted his few American
cars coupled i'll front back of his en-
CINE, so that he could use what air he
hadA The French officer In charge
would not allow it and put the Amer
lean cars any old place. Result:
When the engineer came suddenly on
some German engines standing on the
main line (they had just come down
from Germany he could use air only
on his engine, and there were twenty
six good Americans killed and many
wounded Cest Ia guerre.
The coal used in engines is soft coal
made into briquettes about foot
square. They load the tender by
handing the briquettes singly on to
the tender instead of dumping on a
load at once / haven't seen them fill
the tank with a bucket, but it would
not surprise me at all. OF course, it
must be better in the larger cities. l
hope to see Paris some time to take
in the main points. Had a trip planned
to Naples, Rome and Nice, but the
leave given is not long enough, and the
train service is very bad. Military
tariff is one-fourth Of the regular rate,
and so the railroads do not cater to
the military traffic. One often has to
stand from Dion to Marseilles, and
shall not go at present.
The French soldier is par excellence
and | give them credit for holding out
four long years We American SOL
diers are apt to tell how we won the
war. II must make the poilu smile,
for if he had not held the invader by
his extreme courage and tenacity we
would not have arrived in time to find
any war.
| don't know that [ can tell you
much about this war when I return.
unless you ask about something, and
my experience was limited to q small
part of the big line. We were i'll five
sectors, Argonne, Vauquois, Verdun,
| Alsace border and Champagne often
sive. Some things happened so quick
ly that I have already forgotten them,
even the scream or whine of the
shells There was so much going on
| it was impossible to take it all in at
once. Something like a Barnum &
! Bailey three-ring circus You can't
watch ell three rings at once.
! The Times picture of Ls-sur Tile
/ was taken in the village, mile and a
/ half from our quarters. l have never
visited it. Major s recognized the
picture and sent it back to his wife.
| Last night we had a big fire in one
! Of the warehouses down by the rail
road track about mile away. 1t was
quite blaze, lasted several hours, and
was a grand sight from our hill III
! here.
! viii say good night, with much love
/ TO all
JOHN.