Catoctin clarion. [volume] (Mechanicstown, Md.) 1871-1940, 1920-07-15


way, with an industrial population OF
few hundred souls or less, employees
of the local sawmill. pottery or tile
fabrik.
Happy Children.
1t was in such town that lived FOR
nearly five months of the spring OF 1919,
and though my main business lay
with the American army. l had an
opportunity to get at least surface
impression of the life of the village.
shall think of our little town al
ways as it appeared In the dazzling
sunshine of the first spring days. The
ugly, modern houses were in the main
gardenless and built plumb to the
street, but despite the lack Of crocus
and swelling bud, spring was there In
the tremendous hustle ~of moppings
and sweepings and drubbings that
overlooked through doors ajar and
open windows. Stills became fash
iOnable with the more. adventurous
small "squareheads." The children
swarmed on the main street (from
which they had been expressly ban
ished by the "Amerikaner" for their
own safety, playing games involving
much singing and a sort of chant
Fin. zwei. drei. vier." Occasionally,
they broke into a weird and fearful
English, overheard at the horse line
during grooming hours, or chorused
strictly phonetic renderings of XIX.
K-Kat." One little girl of or Z, cher
ishing a deep admiration for our colo
mel, waylaid him each morning on his
way to mess. to call out shyly and In
her most winning tone, Hello. chick
en!" and then rush, overcome. to shell
ter. History does not reveal the iden-
tity of the sponsor for this pretty COM
pliment. but it is rumored that the
child waS often seen conversing with
n private who had langushed over!onS
in the guardhouse. The colonel went
his way, serene and unruffled. After
all, what is one adoring feminine voice
in the life Of colonel?
American Town Major.
Life on the main street was always
full of interest. There was. for In
stance, the daily parade of the burgo-
Here was one member of the army OF
occupation who had every right In the
world to have his disposition perma-
nently soured with the assurance that
no other wearer of the American uni
form could honestly put the familiar
question. "IIow do you get that way!
He was responsible for the good be-
nf Americans
alike-the restriction Of liquor sales
to the men (Which meant that
schnapps was verboten) the closing OF
the Gasthoffe at an early hour and the
enforcement of the rule against fra
ternizing lin public). He administered
the system of fines for dirty streets
and yards. 1t was a hard life, but who
can say that he was not we'll repaid
by the sight of the local bankers wife
painstakingly brushing away the
street refuse from before her house
each day at the end of a stormy siege
of weepings, protestations and small
fines? was never privileged to ac-
company the little gray burgomeister
| and the lanky young town major, cit
| izcn from Alabama, on their daily tour
of inspection.
This village of approximately 1000
souls had lost something over 80 Of its
men In the war. yet what resentment
there might have been against the
| Yankee conqueror was too well con-
cealed to command respect.
Soldiers Become Socialists.
| :, Nk-hn
front came home Socialists. "Our
girls are crazy. They believe the
Americans will marry us. That is not
81, is il! In Germany everyone laughed
during the war when they heard how
many little German babies were born
~ France. Perhaps there will be lit
| tie American babies in this town" !
hast, ned to pi Jtest that she had an
entirely-.wrong idea of the American
soldier She shrugged her shoulders
with a cynical laugh. "Who knows,
fraulenchen? 1t is too soon to tell"
Not far up the road was the main
spring of the village, a good-sized pot
terry works presided over by three pros
porous, rotund and well-groOmed broth
ers in the neighborhood of So Chill
dran worked in their factory, not
many, it is true, but enough to ban
lsh preconceived notions of Germany
elaborate care for her common people
In this pottery works were designed
and manufactured hundreds of souve-
mir plates for the American and finally
also for the British army. The plates
were circled with a gold laurel wreath
and in the center appeared in formal
design the individual purchasers
name his regiment. division emblem
and the insignia of the army of occu'
patton, the date Of the divisions en-
try into the war, its victorious en-
gagements and November IL, 1913
The tale of Germany's humiliation was
thus voluntarily served out to her enc
mics with no thought, apparently. be
yond the harvest of marks reaped
Visitors were always cordially wei
coined to the warehouse where Ions
Lofts were lined with shelves full OF
stems and simple potteries. 'These,
the herr smilingly explained In French
will 20 to America when the peace
treaty is signed. We sell great dea
Of our goods in America"
Spring has come round again. Il
smiles upon a distraught Germany
Perhaps the fears of the burgomeistel
were well grounded, when he groanet
over the 'bolsheyistic mutterings of hi
people and prayed that the American
soldiers might never be called away