New-York tribune., 1919-02-23
A Journey Around
france
Dissertations of an American Woman Who
Had Exceptional Opportunities to See
IE1tracts from a prirate letter.. !

With that he vanished, leaving me with my
mouth open. Later | overheard him telling
a Freuchman, "Mme - nest pas femme"
One sees all France against background
OF khakl-~our boys are IN every town and
vlllage-homesick grumbling and sore at
everything that they idle and have
time to be. Everywhere we went they
gathered round till l was nearly smothered
always with the same excuse, "You know,
ma'am, we haven't seen an American woman
for year and it sure sounds good to hear
you talk" and then they would begin-one
crouch after another-and by no means all
imaginary, either. I always sympathized
with them and got more indignant than
they over everything they told me, till
finally they would get real cheerful. But
they are all such dears-and over here they
seem so big, and yet so young-and most of
all-so decent.
At Grenobe are the largest rest stations
we have for the privates-it is packed with
them. AS | went into the hotel there l
spoke to the porter and Immediately
heard at my elbow, "Say, maam, are you
American? ?" and there was boy who looked
sixteen, and behind him about fifty more
listening. Then he went on: 81 haven't
seen an American woman to sneak to for
ten months. | come from San Diego-that's
town in California, about 100 miles south
of Los Angeles" And when I said I had
been there he said, "You have? Say. don't
you want to see picture of my mother and
sister? and he pulled q poor little snap
shot out of his pocket. Those poor home
sick things! The men went off without me
that afternoon, while I sat in that lobby
and let them talk, and then we went for
walk and they showed me Grenoble. You
should have seen them in the art gallery.
carefully streering me away from pictures
they thought might shock me- Then we
ended at the "Y," where there were a few
hundred more, and they treated me to cocoa.
Now, there were two American women at
that "Y" selling them things, but when
spoke of it they all sniffed-I have had the
same answer all over France from men and
officers alike)-"Yes, but they are in uni
form"-as though that settled it. By the
end of the afternoon a six-footer from
Texas and another from Oklahoma each had
hold OF my elbow in firm grasp and were
saying, Look out for that STEP mother =
and | didn't know whether to laugh or cry
did neither.
To go back to the "Y," it really seems as
though the uniform our women defeats
Its own ends. One hears few good words
for the "Y''-they all place the Salvation
Army first and then the K of c., then the
Red Cross, and the "Y" last This opinion
is so universal that there must be some
reason for it. After what we have seen 7
would take nine tenths of our girls and
send them home-I doubt if they are needed
and don't believe they are getting much
good for themselves. France now is no
place for them. am very mild in nv views
compared with our men-of our party. I
mean. Travelling is much more difficult
than two years ago--really almost impos-
slbe. Without our car we couldn't have
gone anywhere. Trains and stations are
perfect mobs. Our boys on their seven-day
leave have to lie in corridors or stand up
all night, even on the best Of trains, and
one steps over them or on them in passing
through. There are almost no dining cars
and no stops for food and very little, If any,
heat. Our girls seem to be always travel
ling, too, especially in the south, and under
no better conditions. They sleep in chairs
in hotel lobbies because there are no
rooms, and the surroundings are not pleas
ant. had thought that in the Orient had
| seen things, but | have never seen condi~
] tions as sickoning as some things here, cs-