St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1919-01-08
LIT. THOMAS WRITES
LUNENBURG FRIENDS
Was in the City of Tours When the
Armistice Was Celebrated


aid a. Thomas, written the day after
the nrmisticc was signed:
Tour, France, Nov. IL, 1918
Dear ALI
Never before when have sat down
to write have there bccl so many
things suiging thru my mind and
never have words seemed so incap-
able of expressing the feelings that !
have as we'll as every one else. The
war is won! The nrmlsticc is signed
AL armisticc that will give US the full
tillment of our aims. Hostiiitles
have ceased! 1t means home, home
home for us; it means an end to all
this scientific killing that has been
in progress for four years OF more; 1T
means The release of thousands OF
prisoners who have endured such suf-
fering; it means the return to home
of countless of othcrs---Frcnch, Eng
lish, Belgians---who have fought
these long years; it means the return
to Franco of her loved Alsace-Lo-
raine; above all it means the end to
militaYism~ which can never again
cause such hell on earth. There
is but one regret; the orig.nators O:
it, all, the Kaiser and his son and the
junkers that he represents, are es'
Gaping with their full skin. The
worst punishment that could be de-
vised could not atone for their crimes
All these things run thru my mind
and all these things were the reasons
and the justification for the celebra-
ton that took place here yesterday
and still continues, celebration such
as ! have never seen before and ex-
pect I never will again. The spirit
Of France that we have all heard so
much about, the spirit that for four
years has been smothered and sup
pressed by the sorrows and sacritic-
cs Of war was suddenly turned loose
and We'd with American "pep" as
demonstrated by some fifteen
OF twenty thousand rcd-bloodcd AM
orleans stationed here in an exhihi-
ton of pure JOY and happiness OF the
lnbid sort that would not have be-
lieved possible were not very much
in it.
The new; that the a.nlistice had
been signed was read in the mess hall
at noon yesterday. The announce
n1cnt was greeted with cheers but it
all seemed so unreal, SO impossible,
the fact that the Germans were really
bcatcn~ months, before even soma .nfi
tic most optimistic of US dared TO !
hope for. You may be sure that
work moved at Il snail's pace the rest
of the afternoon. Bells were rung
and whistles blown. Flags appeared
everywhere and those returning from
town told of wild demonstrations that
were taking place there. Supper was
served carly that We might get down
there.
As VIC walked down the Ruc-Na- !
tionnle, now more brightly LIGHTED
than ever, We saw flags everywhere,
usually the Tri-color and Old Glory
cntwined, which in the day time prov
cd d brilliant sight. Crowds were
everywhere. Here and there Y;lnki.
Poilus, civilians and girls marched
arm in arm. eight or ten abreast. |
singing, laughing and shouting and
caring not in the lenst who was in |
the way. Lights that outlined the
massive shape Of the Hotel-dc-Ville
and the Palais-du Justice were just I,
being lit. Cafe windows were ablaze
with light, and without colored Jap
ancse lanterns We're hung every
where. On the square firecrackcls
and Roman candles, that must have
been saved for just such an occasion
as this, were being fired and the ar
was heavy with smoke and the smell
of the powder. The spray from the
fountains, caught by the breeze, was
carried over Into the street and fell !
with a refreshing GOODNESS on the !
crowd. |
AS we reached the square hun
dred or more Americans had just
started a snake dance and we could !
not resist the temptation. to ioin. !
Back and forth across the street we
went, and through cafe or two we
Went to The tune Of "'Hail, Hail, the
Gangs all Here"
Demonstrations going in the op- |
rosite' direction we met, and we 1
broke these CT were ourselves brok-
en- Through. But nobody cared. Ev-
crybody was supremacy happy. Soon
our line dissolved and we returned to
in front Of the Hotel-de-Ville Just in
time to, become mixed and mashed in
a pushing, straining mob gathered
about the point where the official pa
rade was just starting. A dozen vet.
cram French cavalry men at the head
rode their horses straight into the
crowd which somehow gave way and
created a lane THROUGH which came
first several French. British and AM
erican Generals, then a number Of
lesser officers followed by the u. S,
Marine Band stationed here which
crashed Into stirring air. The lines
were maintained by hardened Poilus
with bayonets fixed and the way
lighted 'by torches. Everyone else
that wanted to, fell in behind.
So the NIGHT went on. It was a
Fourth Of July celebration, a Carnival
demonstration, together with some
thing Of the. spirit such as we used
to display at school after q football |