The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1916-1920, 1919-05-18
BUSY YANKS NEED
HELP OF TOBACCO
Restoring Devastated France
Troops Find Comfort in
Smokes.
LETTERS TELL OF RUIN
"We Want Cheering, for Sad
Desolation Dampens Gayest,"
Soldier Writes.
LETTERS TELL OF RUIN

DOlultT NIlttS.
A strange misconception seems to pre-
vail in many circles that the American
soldiers still IN France are merely mark
ing time until they get marching orders
for the employment Of an army Of
Americans on the Rhine front but the
strangeness Of the thought that they are
merely idling in France has come from
forgetfulness OF all that was said and
written about the work the Yanks were
to do in the way of reconstruction.
In fact, they have been very busy
indeed cleaning up the valley of the
Mouse and wherever the tide of war
flowed and ebbed, leaving debris that
had to be cleared away before the coun-
try could be inhabited again. Thousands
and thousands of American soldiers and
great number of Germans who are
their prisoners for three months have
been at hard labor rolling up the barbed
wire, filling in trenches and dwelling
the chuck holes.
One OF the first things necessary to be
done was to restore the national high
ways The task OF filling up enormous
holes with crushed stone and repairing
other damage has been going on ever
since the armistice 1t is mainly in the
hands OF American soldiers.
In spite of the oceans of ink split to
tell the world about devastated France,
the quality of seeing with the eyes Of
the imagination is SO rare that only one
person in ten comprehends what desert
northern France is. Tho smoke fund
had letter only yesterday from a
Friend of the Doughboy" asking its aid
in getting his return expedited because
he was eating out his heart from loneli-
ness and having nothing to do. The ar
rival OF letters and cards from the SOL
diers almost simultaneously told a diff
ferent story. Our soldiers in tho neigh
borhood of st. Mihiel. Belleau Wood
and the Argonne have worked hard and
long at the hardest kind of road re-
pairing and apparently under disagree
able weather conditions for the most
part.
Many Billeted on Hills.
In these cards the soldiers tell of the
conditions OF their lives. a few being
billeted together of in the hills and de-
pending entirely on motor trucks that
bring supplies from distant centres.
What barracks there are are scattered
widely. The cards are usually written
for one purpose. which Is to thank q
donor for tobacco. 1t is delivered by the
same great motor truck and when be-
sides the necessaries for subsistence
along come tobacco supplies there is
great rejoicing among our exiles-
I'VE need cheering" writes a soldier
from Verdun." for the sad .desola-
ton we work in dampens the gay
est OF us. Everywhere ruined viii
lagos. everywhere great masses Of
rusty barbed wire. everywhere pools
OF stagnant water and groups OF dead
trees 1t is like an inferno. Spring did
not effect much change but as the roads
are restored and traffic OF a kind Is re-
newed there Is a brighter prospect for
the coming summer. All the same II
we are to stop hero until the work is
all done We need frequent cheering up
by the smoke fund"
About twenty-five miles northwest Of
Verdun q large cemetery for the re-
caption of American. dead is being COM
pleted. It Is located on the slope OF a
hill at Romagne. a central point selected
because here. or near Montfaucon, the
American troops met with serious
losses OF life The doughboys have to
dig the graves and bring up the bodies
for burial from isolated graves scat
tered over the shell ptted hillsides
This has been an enormous labor and
there are other cemeteries as large be-
ing constructed by our soldiers In
chosen spots. Certainly no one could
call toll like this a light thing And
the salvage squads at this work really
need the consolation OF tobacco.
The Salvage Squad No. at Sercy
la Care in the Mouse Valley had lot
of Joy out Of smoke fund gifts and they
write back TO say so through Sergeant
r. B. Frazee on the first OF May. "All
of u.s." he wanted fund donor Mrs b.
Siegel to know, "were delighted to have
some real American tobacco and we
render many thanks
W. r. Josephson wrote on May l to
donor Senator Wadsworth from Certify,
France, to this effect "On behalf of
myself and the members OF this COM
pany kindly accept our sincere thanks
for SUN Tobacco Fund smokes We
all want to go back 'toot sweet hut will
have TO admit that we are comfortable
and satisfied to be doing some serious
work"
Thanks From Gievres.
First Glass Sergeant John J. Whelan
OF Twenty eighth Transport Corps sends
this from Gievres;
MANY thanks for the smokes. OF
course the big fuss Is over Dut our work
goes on We are still hard at 1t In the
railroad game and we sure do appreciate
something to smoke"
e. w. Bell in charge OF supply and
salvage squad sends a graphic picture
of the appearance of the villages
through which he and his comrades
hiked going to Gievres. He says:
They are not really villages now. al
though they retain the name. We
stopped In one for a rest and a smoke
(SuN Tobacco Fund cigarettes) and ours
was the only smoke that rose None
came from any chimney top and there
seemed not to be a living thing in the
ruins. In fact, most of the old villages
are only phantoms now made OF walls
that a good wind blows down. The In
habitants have gone to larger places or
TO hamlets that escaped being pierced to
death by shell and bullet"
Ofher soldiers add details OF the wind