El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1920-12-03

In War Time
LEAVES FROM AN
OVERSEAS NOTEBOOK

7-lliliiill
The -Overseas Notebook" contains 3
variety OF material gathered By the editor
] Of The Herald IN Europe during the war
and after. Excerpts VIII be published IN
this column daily during the next several
months Publication OF the. Notes be-
San October e. IooHy's ingtalmenr con
tiuues the general narrative from the
diary with account OF conditions in the
training area IN northeastern France
Il Is suggested that readers clip these
articles each day and paste them n scrap
books; thsy viii not be reprinted and back
numbers cannot be supplied.
July is the best time TO visit this
part Of France, from all can hear.
Entire region Is most beautiful:
flowers and pastel colors, scented
woods, roads hard, little rain, occasion
al showers, general aspect and weather
much ike Cloudcroft, with less rain;
however the trees here are small, and
there are many sediments, connected
by parkways-
g July -Showery. People all
live comfortably and happily even if
not richly. Books, Libraries, pictures.
collections, good furniture, in small
cottages; flowers everywhere; hooks,
reviews and papers, garden life, little
tables with reading matter where peo-
pie sit and do household work and talk
and take their Light refreshment. Trade
appears TO be only a side line, family
life paramount.
"a July l9lS-Had wonderful ride in
late afternoon through part Of divi-
sional area west Of our town and
through division headquarters. Our
town the heart of a most beautiful
region. Within 20 miles west many
lovely Villages HeadWaters Of the
Seine Great fine chateaux, beautiful
forests and far views OF highly culti-
waited farms; many clear sparkling
streams and springs. Woods have
great variety Of trees. mostly de-
ciduous, IVY carpet in woods but no
flowers there Abundance Of flowers
in fields or by roadside, peoples and
eornfloWers predominant. Wheat. Gar
dens.
Did not see a single trash-p1e or
ugly thing in a 60-mile ride through
village after village. One reason, they
find use for everything we call trash.
Walls, hedges, tree-plauting, roads,
chateauZ, arches, gateWays, window
boxes, grapevines and trees trained
against walls, road metal in neat piles
every few yards along ruads every
where. excellent road drainage, roads
wonderfully kept up. artistic park
planting, culverts and bridges of stone, I
grade crossings carefully protected, ev-
erything finished perfectly and beau I
tifully. In numbering the patches Of
forest, a strip Is always left along
The roads for a screen, Tor beautv's
sake. Not a silver Of rubbish in the
woodlands, though often underbrush Is
very dense.
. July l9ls-Flowers on writing
table In ny room are changed every
day BY somebody; always a new
variety; weather superb, cool, bright. /
Officers here have little contact with
the French people but the enlisted men
mix more freely.
% July I9ls-Big milkWeed and
great stalks Of blue flowers and pink
flowers by the roadside, some Of our
old flower friends, many new ones. Alb
sence Of chocolate and sweets about the
only thing the soldiers complain Of;
do not hear nearly so much about to-
baccO as about chocolate. Manage 70
keep busy with work from g. N. TO
Q D. m and often stick to it til a. m,
but get a walk In the sun now and then
and at night read a bit; often recall I
intimate details of stories Of France /
which I read before coming over, so
country seems familiar.
p July l9l8-Cloudy, cool, shoWery. [
In early evening a thunder storm and
hard shower, flowers and leaves CLEAN
brilliantly. See pear tree inches Z
diameter trained flat against wall as
straight and trim as a music staff;
It is common IN France with fruit /
trees and vines, to get benefit Of re-
Elected light and heat from the wall.
west Of here, the vineyards are all I
walled, long and very narrow, long
side facing sun, thus conserving heat. /
Towns around here have churches |
dating back to the year 100.
lContinued tomorrow.l