Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1919-12-03
!. T. !. + T. j. 1. + j. j. + :.
T. SOME EXPERIENCES i.
!. IN FRANCE. \
]. X i i. i j. j. j. II i i i
Editor Keowe Courier:


ences that we veterans Of the world
war have for relating, not alone now,
when the war Is not such long
time over, but the chances are that
we will be telling them for the rest
OF our days. None Of these expert
enccs will prove more interesting, |
Observation-Disclosures to the husband
man and those others who may be
otherwise interested in farm lie
than the stories OF what we Sam
mics" saw Of farm life in France.
Saw Much OF Farm Life.
The soldier boys overseas-at
least in many cases-were billeted
sHuarely in the homes Of the in
habitants, and where, as was so
frequently the case, these inhabitants
were real French farmers, they saw
to 1T that the Sammies had not
fe" peeps at their farm lands. The
better to get the real SAVIOR Of those
days Of billeting in the French Re-
public, one needs to resort to some
letters written by the Sammies at
the time. Thus |, for one, will en-
deavor to relate some Of my expert
ences while corporal with an am
bulance company near Blais, France:
"Fall has been arriving and has
been making its coming known by
the smells arising from the hemp.
All the stagnant little pools we had
noted here and there on the farms
reminding one Of The quiet ponds
within the rock wall enclosures OF
SO many Of our own South Caro-
lima farms. are now filled with
quantities Of hemp. This is put there
to soak and. decay, and then smell
ing, rs unto heaven, it is laid out in
the field TO dry.
Being away out in the country,
with the nearest city LIE Mans. quite
so far away that one can visit il only
when one has pass for some con-
siderable length Of time, the only
new event Of real interest--aside
from actual soldering, Is our con-
triving with the farmers hereahouts
for the acquisition of a pig-a really
beautiful French pig.
"Wi,h Thanksgiving beginning to
loom on the horizon, the company
induced one Of the farmers Of our
vicinity to part with pig, for
| consideration; said porker to be fat
tened for that festal day. French
pigs, somehow, are cleaner, or at
| least look cleaner, than ours do, and
they have abnormally long ears.
The little stranger that we had was
housed In our corral and was very
generally regarded as friend, with
| whom every one shared all that he
could spare.
But we must not forget the busy
bees" as we call them-the peasant
| women. II they have no work to
do on the farms, they are indoors
in their homes making what | call
| really charming embrOidery-a sort
or dolly, or what could be used for
pillow cases or most anything-thfs
being typical, yet very different from
| the quitting ana other form" Of
nr"d'e""ik y" una going on in onr
/ own nome" on ~" farms, This IS
JN"' " F'EH tte"-.' |cND INTO %a.umy 3
! own cAh''''hSc III IL lS'"E WIN some
"Ne1'N, 'oEN" ., Counlr! ne far over.
seas, put thlnk t VIII interest
nevertheless.
Even more '""esting Is the
picture Of French an life from
within. ! remember one day in Oc-
tober 1t had turned very cold. it
was almost Ike winter. That night
with the cold wind blowing in, we
were indeed glad that the Demenceau
family, our r.letors, had Eoved
cut OF their hu,.ac proper--removin
to their beloved Compeignc, from
WI, ch the Allies had drivel &c
l|oche, and that we might move into
the real fatm dwelling rooms in a
day or two ourselves. The !ollo"ing
day rode out t. the Boussar, farm
and got the key to the residence,
and that afternoon several of our
fusilliers,' as they are called, were
busy cleaning 1t out, so that by the
next day at least we would be able
to ensconse ourselves in real high
grade French farm home I did not