The daily star-mirror. (Moscow, Idaho) 1911-1939, 1919-06-03
LEV|ATHAN CARRIES
$1,000 PERSONS
CONGRESSMAN FRENCH TELLS OF
HOMEWARD TRIP ON GREAT
AMERICAN STEAMER

The following very interesting let
ter by Hon. Burton l.. French of Mos
COW. describing his return to Amer
lea on the former German ship, the
'Vaterland" now the American trans
port, Leviathan, has just been re-
ceived Mr.. French had started to
write it when called west to speak for
the Victory soan and did not get it
finished until lie returned to Wash
ington. 1t is full of interesting facts
about our soldier boys on board ship.
The letter fellows:
On board the Leviathan, approach
ing New York, April 25, 1919.
To the Editor, The Star-Mirror
This letter will bring to a close the
series of letters that | have written
you since | left New York on March
18th for the war zone and my one
regret is that | have not been able
to indicate more clearly the conditions
that I have seen so that those condi-
tions will vividly appear to the read
,sY,
We left Brest. France, for home on
Friday, one week ago. Our ship is
carrying home more than 10000 of our
solder boys made up chiefly of the
Rainbow Division, and there are some
thing like 40 Idaho boys on board.
The soldiers together with the crew
of the ship and a limited number of
passengers bring the total on board up
to approximately 10000 people In
spite of the mammoth proportions of
the Leviathan, the ship is crowded
but everybody is happy They are go
ing home and crowded as they may be,
our soldier boys are about the happ1-
est group of people one could wish
to find
Something Doing Every Minute.
Aside from the time they spend in
their hunks, our boys are on deck and
now it is a wrestling match that en-
cages their attention now a couple
of boys are the center of a circle and
by the boxing gloves are determining
which one is master; now an Idaho
boy from Idaho county is the center
of a group, as with a rope he demon
strates his ability to lassO anybody
or anything in sight and perform
such stunts as are perfectly familiar
to the cowboy and that are the result
of years of training; and now again
the boys are lined up with their tin
plates, tin cups, and knives and forks,
and are marching to the "eats" that
are very good and yet that will in no
way compare with the good things
that the mothers will set before them
when they return home.
The Pathetic Side.
In the shell-shock ward, there are
80 soldier boys My heart goes out
to these poor fellows who have given
more even than life itself in many in
stances, for some of them maybe will
be forever bereft of that reason that
alone makes life.
In the tuberculosis ward, there are
$50 soldier boys,-boys who went
away from home in perfect health and
yet who must bear this blight during
the rest of their lives. One poor boy
from Wallace is in this ward.
Again, we see the large number OF
boys who have lost an arm or leg
or who are otherwise injured and
who with crutches or canes with d1f-
ficulty move about the decks.
All these things suggest the enorm-
Gus sacrifice that our young soldiers
were called upon to make for their
country.
Our Soldier Dead.
More than $4,000 American boys
we're killed in battle or died of wounds.
Another $4,000 died of disease, and