The Benson signal., 1919-04-26

great aim in life They want to get PACK
to their lands and they are willing to suHer
privation In order to get re-eStabliShed In lhelr
broken-up homes They are numerous numbering
more than two million. have and talked to
hundreds in the devastated country around Sols-
sons, where of towns are wiped Off the map
and found not single soul starting life over again
with Crouch
There is doubt that much needless suffering
was caused by the eagerness Of the peasants to
get back to their homes before the French gov
ernment had fully organized it's relief machinery.
Each peasant. however, knew that the 1919 grow
ing season, in order to be productive of fair re-
suits, must begin with the spring ploWing in FeDru-
ary with the disappearance of the SHOWS. so
each family head made great effort to get back to
his land in the bitter weather of January and early
February in order to get kind of shelter
ready in which he could sleep and eat before
his days were given over to work on the land
and the production of food.
Most of the refugees were the very old very
young. During the early weeks of the peace con-
ference there were very few soldiers returning to
the land. Eighty per cent of the French army
consisted of men from the farms, and the demObi-
lization rate comparatively slow.
At scissors an American organization, with
French name was rendering valuable assistance
to the people. This committee which was known
as the Comite American pour les Regions De
vastees de la France with Mrs. A. ri. Dixie of
New York as vice president, had branches in 20
surrounding villages where supplies were being
either given away or sold, depending on the hnan-
cia condition of the farmers. If the returning
man or woman had money with which to buy
goods charge of "cost plus 10 per cent was
made. The 10 per cent profit went to the French
man or woman running the store. Funds to con-
duct the organization from America and
raised by popular subscription
Cutry, Typical Village.
Not far from scissors, which is peppered with
machine gun fire and shattered by big shell explO
sions is the little hillside town of Cutry typical
destroyed village, with only about 10 per cent Of
the houses remaining habitable The American
women of the committee peddle supplies in Cutry
once or twice a week. Twice a week woman
doctor from the committee visits the place. In
Cury "a peasants live with the most cheerful out
look on life. Twelve of them sleep in big cave
on the hillside. Rough boards have been placed
in the cave entrance to keep out the wind Inside,
in the dark small stove serves to keep the place
fairly warm.
One old woman, one of the happest creatures in
the world apparently was living alone in one sec
ton of the cavern. Adjoining her temporary home
was an improvised stable, where she kept her
donkey and four chickens and two-wheeled cart.
She had fled before the advancing German army
with the donkey and cart and four chickens; had
kept them for four years in the south of France,
and on returning Cutry rode back in style in the
donkey cart.
Down the street, in a house that had suffered
severely from shell fire. were Mme and NJ
Blanchard. Old Blanchard a veteran of the
Crimean war, was bent and feeble. His eighty
wears of life on a small French farm had left him
almost doubled up with the intrmities of age His