The Bamberg herald. [volume] (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, 1920-03-25
FRENCH CHILDREN
Are BECCARS
MOST OF WHOM SOLDIERS KNEW
WE'RE TOUGH LOT.
Tobacco For "Chocla. "
Lower French Regarded Soldiers AS
Natural Beasts Of Prey-En-
cOuraged to Beg.

French people lower classes
of them (the only classes of them
with whom American enlisted men
ever came in contact) always regard
ed US as legitimate beasts of prey and
themselves as leeches whose natural
duty it was to suck our financial
blood dry. They not only gouged us
and skinned us at every opportunity
when we wanted to buy anything;
but think that scores of them used
to lay awake at night devising ways
and means whereby they might in
duce us to depart from our filthy
lucre And with most of us they sue
ceeded. If there was nothing they
could sell us at ten times its worth
they would actually beg-that is
great many of them would. Some of
the hard luck stories that some of
those French men and women would
put up would make real Belgian war
sufferers look like pikers. The viii
lage of LaPallice, near which l was
stationed for several months of my
period of service overseas was far re-
moved from the war zone and the
people of that district experienced no
suffering from the viSsitudes of war
but on the other hand were as fat and
sleek and prosperous generally as
were the people of Columbia, while
Camp Jackson was at the zenith of it's
existence as the mecca for York coun-
ty lads who were caught in the draft.
Encouraged to Beg.
These Frenchmen would often use
their children to procure money from
us, and many time did the little
rascals come around the works crying
for money and food and tobacco and
candies Soldiers we're glad to have
the kiddies around at first They
didn't know them at first and the
novelty of giving presents of various
descriptions to the poor unfortunate
waits of poor France struck their
fancy at first: But they soon got over
it because they were not long in real
izing that little Trenches were like
most of their parents simply
little humbugs. They hung around the
mess halls around the machine
shops, in the barracks-they were
everywhere. They would occasional
ly swipe great pieces of meat, num-
erous loaves of bread, sugar and other
foodstuffs from the mess halls and
they put many gray hair in the
heads of the various mess sergeants.
Wrenches and screwdrivers and
pliers and other tools would disappear
and sooner or later such disappear
ance would be traced to the door of
these pesky little French kids. More
than once a Ford was missing and
several days later was traced to the
home of some Frenchman living in
the village. Orders were issued by
various commanders prohibiting the
little Trenches from coming within
the areas occupied by troops. 1t
didn't do a bit of good; because they
knew nothing except to come and go
as they pleased. Their parents were
told to keep them at home; but the
parents would only shrug their
shoulders and extend their hands as
French do.
Caused Annoyance.
Tell the kids to "beat it," in French
and they would make off, making va
riouss signs with their nose and fing-
ers as some bad little American boys
will sometimes do. Yet in a short
while they would be back again crying
for cigarettes and "chocola,' as they
call candy.
There were three of these little ur-
chins who used to cause me a great
deal of annoyance When I first got
into. LaPallice, I jayed them a great
deal of attention because ain natur-
ally fond of little children. was in
exerienced with French children
though and had I had previous ex.
perience with them l would have CIV
en- them a wide berth. These three
hung around a good deal and I spent
many franc on them for candy and
cigarettes before 1 wished 1 hadn't.
They swiped my wrenches, they swip-
ed my clothes and they made life fair
ly miserable for me. Every morning
thew would come around and there