Richmond daily register. (Richmond, Madison County, Ky.) 1917-1978, 1922-08-30
SHACKELFORD TELLS
or THINGS ABROAD
Entertsins Rotsrians With Inter
esting and Informal Descrip-
ticn of Europe rs He Saw 1t

III England and france this sum
mer was the feature of the reg
ular weekly luncheon of tht
Richmond Rotary Club at tht
Hotel Glyndon Tuesday at noon
Judge Shackelford said thaf
perhaps the club members fell
like he did, that nothing was such
a bore as fellow who had beer
somewhere, standing around anC
shooting off his mouth about
where he had been and what he
had seen upon every occasion
But ne appreciated the invitation
of the Rotarians and wouldn't
talk them to death. He spent
most of his summer at San
down in England but travelled
across the channel to the war
zone of France. He praised the
French train on which he went
from Havre to Paris and said all
French trains are running in
good shape. He went to Rheims
and saw the famous cathedral
which has not been completely
destroyed, Notwithstanding it
was under constant lombard
- ment from the Germans for four
years. He attended services in
one corner of the cathedral on
Sunday and noticed the central
arches still intact.
The Judge was impressed OF
his railway journey with tn
way the French cultivate thei
forests as American farmers dc
their crops. Trees will be Gu
out and others planted at once
to replace them. At FINES
where the American soldiers first
came in contact with the Ger
mans, he noticed the trees all de
stroyed. He noticed no farm
homes scattered about over the
country. Most OF the Frenci
farmers live in villages, sma1
cluster of stone houses, and the
60 out to their farms each day
none of them having fences. H
saw where many of these vii
lage homes had been destroyde:
in fact. in the war zone prac-
tically all had been leveled;
some localities not a stone re
naming on another. Rheims i'm
dressed him as did Pompeii. th,
famous Roman city, destroyed
by the volcano, Mt. Aetna, and
excavated centuries later.
Great holes were noticed al
over the battle area where shell
had plowed through the scan
covering of soil into tie chalk
beds which underlie all France
In some places these are being
filled. He saw the famous Aisnf
river, the site of so much fight
ing; this is about as large :;
stream. as Silver Creek, he sal,
but the French divert much
the water from their rivers int
canals. Piles of barbed wire
used for entertainments dur n:
the war interested h:m. Tl''
German wire seemed much bet
ter than the French. The French
lost many men when planting
their wire, for they used wood
en- stakes and sharpshooters
among the enemy picked off the
Frenchmen as they drove their
stakes at night, by the sound. ,
On the other hand, the Gegma'
wire was held by iron posts
with a corkscrew sort of effect
which was screwed into the
ground and make no noise.
The French roads are right
now better than here in Madison, |
Judge Shackelford said, fori
though the French have not rel
built many of their towns and
cities, they have given their
roads attention. Few are riding.
though, for much of the livestock
is gone and there is little cattle.
France seemed quite prosper
Gus, the Judge said, but Germany
IS the most prosperous country
in Europe at present. This is SO.
notwithstanding the fact that
the governments of both coun-
tries are bankrupt. The German
government takes no taxes but
prints its money as it needs it.
He believed the German govern
ment would finally go through
bankruptcy to keep from paying
its creditors and tfeSindemnities.
He said though, the entire war
indemnity, if paid, would not re-
pair the damage done to France.
He saw no beggars in France,
but England is full of them. This
is largely due to England's un-
employment pension, payment
To those 3or support who could
hot obtain lwork after the war