The daily star-mirror. (Moscow, Idaho) 1911-1939, 1919-05-20
OANTE'S, INFERNO
NOT IN 1T With WAR
CONGRESSMAN FRENCH THINKS
SHERMAN'S. DESCRIPTION
OF WAR TOO MILD

In MS SlXIo9AIn letter TO- Inc oIdI-
Mirror from the war one of Europe,
Congressman Burton L. French tells
of the horrors of war as he saw them
and expresses the opinion that Dante
could have secured some pointers for
his. Inferno" had he, visited Verdun.
his letter follows:
Brussels, Belgium, April 6, 1919
The Editor Star-Mirror:
If Dante could have gone through
what our boys went through in the
regions l described ear Verdun, and
if he could have gone through what
our British cousins and some of our
boys scattered among them, passed
through in the region we visited to-
day, he could have been spared draw
ing upon his imagination in writing
his Inferno"
"War is He'll"
| started to make a heading "The
Path of War" but this will not do. A
path is not wide enough. There were
three desperately bloody regions on
the western front, the Verdun re-
gion, the, Somme,, and the Epres. To-
day we travelled many miles over the
Somme battle grounds. We saw such
places as Noyan, Bad, Bapaume, Mt.
St. Quentin, Vimey Ridge and others.
Maybe | should say VIZ saw where
towns and cities had been, for all is
now one vast field of ruin and city
after city has been obliterated. A
few broken walls, a few foundations
outlined, a sign recently erected, in
dictate the place where once had been
the center of industrial life and happy
homes. In many places there was not
-xx- ~x, cd H. x,oxxy xrro1- 4LD~o
selves of stately houses had been
pounded to fragments and ground to
dust. In Noyan we found a city of
amidst ruin through what had been
overlooking the region and our in
vestigation revealed all that was left
of a house Of worship.
The enemy was driven back from this
city and before leaving, it had been
ordered that hidden mines be placed
in houses of all kinds. Here is where
the city hall was blown up when a
civilian picked up an innocent look
ing book on other objects that was
connected with a mine. Investigation
was made and mine after mine dis
covered. Orders were given that
nothing was to be touched, no build
ing entered until it had been exam
ined and approved, and on door and in
cellar way over and over, we saw the
word "Verifie" indicating that this
place and that had been made safe for
entrance.
We drove through many miles of
the Somme region, a country quite
level, yet with here and there a ridge
that helped our view. All was ruin
and desolation and death as far as eye
could see. We passed by miles of
munitions, miles of wicked barbed
wire, abandoned cannon and tanks !
that like huge monsters had plowed
their way over trenches and entan-
clements. We passed by pill boxes
from which death had been hurled
with precision against the enemy.
We saw miles on miles of trenches
and dugouts, trenches that zig tagged
back and forth, line on line of them.
And everywhere we passed by death.
Here a grave, there a grave, yonder
a cluster of them, and her a ceme-
terry where possibly a hundred or five
hundred lie buried. British, Canadi-
ans, Australian, American, German
there remained no enmity in death,
all were in one camp, and many were
the boys who had found sepulchure at
the hands of the enemy. At Mt. St.
Quentin we saw a cemetery where the
of both the Allies and the
Central Powers were resting side by |,
side. Here had been a city and the
cemetery for soldiers was in the
residential section though not a house
had been left standing. | know it had
been the part of the city devoted to
homes for here amidst the ruins, and
by the graves, flowers were blooms
the violet, and the battered lilac
was soon to be in leaf. Nature SEEM
ed to be trying to forget the sadness
Of the years just closed.
At Vimey Ridge we saw where the
Canadian boys had bought the
commanding stretch of land and paid
The price in many human lives. Here
been erected a monument to their
memory.
In the Somme two hundred thous-
and British soldiers lay down their
and one hundred and thirty
thousand soldiers of Germany. We
we're depressed as we passed through
ibis land of ruin, we did not talk
much. We seemed to be performing
funeral rite where words need not
De spoken.
In the region of the Somme and on
the English Channel, there were
American soldiers. There were regi-
nents of them, but they were merged
nto the armies of the Allies and were !
lot given a sector as on the Marine.
But here as On the Marine our soldiers
measured up to the highest demand
hat was ever made, and here as on
he Marine, they performed that i'm
,erisable service, and made the su-
irene sacrifice with such devotion
S to challenge the world and uphold
he highest traditions of the soldiers
Who have fought for American ideals