The Emmett index. [volume] (Emmett, Idaho) 1893-1925, 1919-05-15
NEWS OF OUR SOLDIER
BOYS
Interesting Letters from Our
Boys at Home Camps
and Abroad.
From Col. B. o. Clark.

April 19.-This is real, genuine
spring day, almost bordering on sum-
mer. The sunshine is just beginning
to have some warmth in it and makes
one want to get outdoors and absorb
it all. The weather has been beauti-
full all week. The trees are budding
out and it will be summer ere long.
Went to Tours Thursday on official
business and stopped at the Chateau
of Chenonceaux on the way back. 1t
seems that in about every letter
write you (Floy) that | tell about a
visit to some chateau. Maybe | will
prepare lecture and go on a Lyceum
circuit when l get home. But this old
chateau is equally as interesting as
any of the others. 1t has been used
as a French hospital since the begin
ming of the war until very recently.
AS you will remember it is built in
the Cher river on piers. Catherine de
Medici bridged the river from the cha
teau to the opposite side and then
IdCer decided 10 Dullu d houoC O'ci
the bridge. The lower room, or gal
lery, is the full length of the bridge
and this was used as one of the wards.
1t must have made an excellent one
from all appearances. The old part
of the chateau is still furnished and
the owner is contemplating returning
to his residence. In one of the rooms
is the original furniture used by Cath
erine de Medici-her chair, table,
clothing chest, some beautiful and
very old paintings, some original Reu-
bens, and tapestries Of the 18th CEN
tury Mary, Queen of Scots, spent
her honeymoon here and her Irish
guards were stationed in the chapel.
On the wall in the chapel is the In
scription written by an Irish Guard
while stationed there, dated 1453. The
spelling is, of course, peculiar, but his
logic was not bad. He probably was |
moralizing on some of the things he
was seeing and experiencing. The in
scription was: "The ire of man work |
eth not the justice of God" This was
one of the chateaux which escaped the
ravages of the vandals during the
French Revolution because of the fact
that the countess who lived there was
a friend of the people. She was the
mother and grandmother of two very
famous French authors. Their names
just can't recall.
The first bunch of the army of occu-
patton will arrive within the next
two weeks-100O in number. 1t is
expected that we will receive about
2e00 men a week until the $4,000 have
arrived Of course this means that
we will have to handle 100000 men
through here, for the casuals will be
sent back through here that have
been released by the requirements for
the regular army.
Sanitary Squad No. 4 has received
orders to prepare for return to the !
United States. They are located at {
Contres under Lieut.. Ramsay, you will j
remember. They were short IL men 7
to make up their full strength ac- :
cording to the tables of organization !
so l transferred in six boys from the Z
hospital and five from other parts of /"
the. depot, hoping this will expedite f
their return to the U. S. Gamage, c
Burt, Foster, Parks and Harvey Smith h
are FIVE of the old crowd. q
/ went to Monthou and Montrichard E
so | again connected bust e
ness with pleasure and visited the old q
Masonic cave at Montrichard. To me $
his was one of the most interesting
hings l have ever seen. The cave
vas used for over two hundred years
IS meeting place for Masonic lodges Il
md was only abandoned some twenty "
'ears ago, when the lodge was trans 81
erred to Tours. The cave is directly A
Inder the old castle in which Richard W
he Lion Hearted was imprisoned. 1t a
ontains many things of peculiar and o
articular interest to all Masons. n
ust learned of its existence a short g,
ime ago and determined to visit it at +,
~ first opportunity. is
There are still $4,000 men in the q,
rea, but perhaps today Camp Hos RI
ital No. 26 will have only about five a,
patients, as they may get W
ospital train today. III