Weekly Caledonian. (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1919-1920, 1919-02-12
LUNENBURG BOY
in GRAPHIC LETTER
T0FRlENDS HERE.
Describes His Second Christ
mas Spent in Tours,
France
IN VERY OLD CHATEA u
Has Kept Map with Journcyings
About France Carefully
Recorded
IN VERY OLD CHATEAU
Tours, France, Dec. %, 1918

Tours, France, Dec. %, 1918
Dear All:
My second Christmas in France!
But there's one thing certain, it is
my last. 1t is very, very mild, has
been in fact, for several weeks.
In order to be sure of Il real Christ
mas dinner, and another "shave-
tail" (as End lieutenants are com
monty known, made arrangements
to eat at the mess hail. Thus it was
that my Christmas dinner consisted
of chicken, mashed potatoes, biscuits
in gravy, bread and butter and jam,
chocolate pie and coffee. All OF
which cost me five francs, but which
I could not have secured for thrice
that down town. After dinner | went
down town and watched the mob get
ting a hand out from the Red Cross.
But / am getting ahead OF my
story. / must back to last Sunday
l wrote to auntie on Saturday night
saying that we were going up to
Blois the next day. Well, we Went
And such an experience as it was. !
had heard that it was q wonderful
place but l was scarcely prepared for
the treat that received.
The Chateau from an architectural
standpoint is interesting in that it
has five portions built in the 18th,
14th. 18th 10th and 18th centuries
respectively, and each displayed a
different style of architecture. Until
some time in the 18th century the
Chateau was the residence OF the
reipning Kings of France and as
such there is much interesting his
tory connected with it. But perhaps
the most interesting thing is that 1t
was for time the abode of Gather
ine-de- Medici of poison fame. In a
chamber or rather study she used
tn hide her poisons. The walls CT the
rooms are made up of hundreds OF
different panels and some of these
panels, skillfully camouf'agcd, open
up disclosing shelves.
On the same floor there Is dun
geon with big double iron doors and
double bars on the narrow window
and in the center there is trap n
the floor communicating by so foot
shaft with the river Loire. Thus
were her victims and those Of Others
before her disposed Of. Perhaps the
most famous murder committed there
,,;os that of Duke of Guisc of which
history tells.
The walls of the dozen upon dozens
rooms that the Chateau contains arr
painted in replica of the tapestrie
and coverings of cordovan leathc
that originally covered them, Blu
which were destroyed during the re
yolution. But the thought OF room
after room covered with those TIC
hangings impressed me. The mos
startling thing, however, was tn
Throne Room or Assembly Hall a
it is called, l believe. Here the state
of France were twice assembled
the 18th century. The acoustics G
the place are wonderful, The guild
raised his voice but slightly abov
the normal and said "o-o-h-o-o." Tn
sound echoed and re-echoed for full
30 or 40 seconds. believe that an
one could hear a pin dropped in an
mart of the room if it were still.
And this is the oldest part OF tt
Chateau, built 200 years before Co
unbus discovered America.
OF course the Chateau is the mo
interesting feature of the city, y
there are a few other points wortl
of seeing, notably grand old goth