Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1922-05-31
PORTER's THIRD LETTER /
A Wanderers Diary III

one who can endure the mild cheaT
( cigarette smoke which one encounters
everywhere, and it is cheap. Paris te
Orleans my billet cost $1.25; Orleans
Tours S1.00; Tours-Lyon $500; Lyon
to Ayignon, a distance of 200 kllomet-
ers 81 or one u. S. cent for each kill
ometer or ss Of mile.
i April 3O-If France can transport
one for one and six tenths per mile we
ought to do better By our travelling
public than we do. A batteau line runs
from Lyon to Avignon, departing
every Tend and Dina nehe at s matin,
down the Rhone but / learned about it
at the quai only Thursday at nine and
the boat had gone. 1t was lovely rid
ing down the Loire valley but quite
cold.
| The cabbies who stand in the square
] in Orleans where they roasted Joan OF
Arc and where stands splendid eques-
trienne statue of the maid, wore their
fur coats. A sign in nice hotel read:
"Chabre sur Ia cour fir 2. Chambre sur
la Rue 8 FIR" / wrote on tablet Cham
| bre sur la eour ] mutt FIR? He COM
| pretended and wrote T. wrote din
ner". He wrote &c fr. serviz ! FIR"
/ was served bouillon, cafe au lait and
| fine fish on bread. Fine clean room.
] always prefer chamber on the
court, il is far more quiet, one can
sleep well there The manager called
up stairs, went up and three women
were in my room. One talked "passe-
partoo" and finally one said passport"
which | showed. Every hotel guest
writes out statement for the Police,
May 1--Went early to Tours, an an
eient ecclesiastical stronghold. st.
Martin lived here soon after 300 A. ID.
| He was noted priest. He was strong
on miracles. / remember Gibb0n
| quotes some early ecclesiastic, who be-
rating the priests of Egypt for never
| having performed a miracle said that
| St.Martin of Tours had performed
three miracles; had raised the dead on
three occasions. St.Martin's sister
was St.Patrick's mother. Upon h e
| little isle of Iona on the west Scottish
coast where St.Columbia established
his great monastery in 563 AID. and
where 60 Irish, Scottish, French and
| Norwegian christian kings lie buried,
there stood when, the bigoted Protest
ants took over the isle in 1917, 800
stone crosses beautifully carved. Those
bigots ordered so fthem sunk in the
sea. Only St.Martin's cross and an
other remain. | expect that thousands
of afflicted ones have gone to that far
away island and knelt before that
cross in the early centuries and pray
ed for deliverancef from their Affections
and no doubt many have arisen bene-
| fitted or cured 1t is one of the beau
tiful things about the Christian faith
but not to be relied on to cure diph-
liberia and septic diseases.
| May PIN Tours butter is 60 cents
" kilo, about rs pounds, gasoline 80
cents per gallon,a foot Deering bind
er $500 Sshoes higher than in u. S.
Had fine room in Hotel de la PAX;
clean beds so far, good linen. Had ex-
pected to see many evidences of the
war in southern France. Have seen
no beggars in France so far, very few
without arms or legs, every one dress
ed well an dlittle evidence of poverty.
Rode from 4 p. m. to 8 next day, Tours
to Lyon.
| May Slit little milk store "Lait
au book" milk by the glass, and Swiss
milk from Geneva, thank God Got
two glasses, later two more, next day
| two and soft frontage "bon" he told
4 i4lCs oOuknt ulcH VI OutNI CitCCDC
there, ate part, it tasted wrong, bitter
inside, threw it up, guess / escaped
ptomaine poison. Went to Credit Ly-
onnaise to get cooks check cashed, but
no banks would cash it. Sent me to
Cox & Co., said he was Cooks house.
| Run onto American Express, got LOT
FIR for dollar. At noon had 131 FIR
only way to keep cash account.
| May EARLY, had 81 fir. Arrived
in Avignon late. By mistake gave
guard at exit old ticket, Cherbourg to
Paris. He stopped me, took me to
Bostonian who run buffet in station,
questioned me. | examined ticket, saw
blunder, said pardon, got right billet
American directed me "Hotel Regina
Hack so plus pourboire cents; room
IS fir. Splendid, hot and cold water.
Got breakfast at Americans buffet,
eggs, butter, bread, slice fine ham,
some good coffee and good milk, SOC.
BEST meal have had in France"
told him. To Palace of the Popes, a
mighty pile of stone buildings, walls
high as southeast wall of Solomon's
enclosure but not so perfect. Strongly
fortified for its time. Lovely park up
on that hill: 300 feet below is Rhone-
| Ndic VI <hflSuOL, loNtlIs ul titS
church tower is gilded statue of Vir-
i gin, and below, the Savior on cross.
Battlemented walls all around, don't
look right.
May 6-Took train to Aries about
81 kilometers-checked grips in Con-
signeefor 6 cents. Stray through mar
row dirty streets, run onto great Col
iseum of Roman days. Paced around
outside till got tired, 5000 feet, over
half mile. Inside intact; stone seats
as of old. Arena prepared for bull
fight Lundi (Mondayl man writes me.
Prices ten to hundred frances per
seat. 10000 seats can be used. May
Ia another bull fight at Mines, IA
miles away, another ancient Roman
town Saw the big black long horned
bull down in pen by arena. Wicked
looking cuss. Horns point straight
ahead. Came from Spain, man tells
me. Aries is decorated with long, slim
poles set along streets bearing tri-col-
or of France in honor of that fight.
May 7-Clean room in Aries for 5
FIR. last night and 6 a. m. took tram to
Marseille where have fine quiet room
at IA fir. for jours. Went down near
quay to see President land on his re-
turn from Genoa. City is decorated;
beautiful curtains, maroon and gold,
hung in arches of Bourse. Stupid cab
man run his horse slowly against my
back, knocked me to the pavement
| R,-tfsSa5 nv hin St-sprod mr. Lryaa a nd