Evening star., 1927-09-25
Var Romance and Reunions Ten Years ater Are Contrast

was every reason to believe that
good many of them took the f1rst
train and then walked or 10 kilo-
meters to some village in the hills
Just to see the old folk again and
catch a glimpse of Yvonne or Maria
after all these years.
Probably it is at least six years
since they heard from the village
goddess. Immediately after the re-
turn to America there may have been
a spasmodic correspondence-in broken
French or German on his part and
broken English on her part-and an
exchange of gifts the first Christmas.
After that poor little Aurore waited
in vain until the glamour faded and
she got back into the fields once more.
But somehow at home among his
most precious souvenirs--the genuine
iron cross he bought in Coblenz for /
mark and says he stole off the corpse
Of German major, the silver belt
buckle with "Gott Nit Uns" which he
really picked up in a dugOut at Stenay
right aftSr the armistice, the watch
that never would run whinh he stole
out OF a jewelry store whi,e ne Was
A. w. o. l.. in Saarbrucke~--are her
letters and maybe her picture.
A ND now the great disill'Ision comes
to the Legionnaire. He has
thought all these years of France and
the Rhineland as fairylands unswept
by the winds Of Time. Girls age fast
in Europe. Maria, she of the fault
less figure and cheeks like Maytime
roses. who used to play the either SO
charmingly in the gasthaus at Wei
perath. now has four little Johanns
playing in the manure pile at her
door. You may remember the greasy.
scowling German farmland from some
hamlet up in the Hunsruck who used
to come calling on her Saturday eve
nings. Little Aurore-what a saucy
little prevaricator-shew who swore she
was just turning 20 when the 106th
was billeted at Alancourt. Is 40 gray
haired and wrinkled now you will not
recognize her.
Never again will there be such a.
moonlight over the Mosel. So much
OF the softness Of youth has gone out
OF 1t as the boys go back that 1t Is
Just an ordinary old moon. such as Ii
on clear evenings IN the
waters Of the Potomac
And France and Germany appear
in far different perspective TO the
returning voyageurs. The romance OF
old days has gone out of them.
~
IN France and Germany also the re-
turn has a salutatory effect, but In
an opposite direction.
Little Aurore and buxom Maria
lead restricted lives in their secluded
from which the pail OF war
tragedy has not been lifted entirely.
The most romantic spots in Europe
doubtless are dull, tiresome places to
those who must live in them all their
days. And the peasants are dull
who work from daylight to
dark TO grub a living out OF their
acres and their Nlne-
yards on the mountainsides.
So the old sweethearts of the A. h.
F. probably have been full of vague
and memories or the
rather handsome fellows who tried TO
flirt with them or 10 years ago. As
the boys come back they are without
the snappy uniforms. the erect fig
ures. the healthy faces and the square
shoulders which they developed in the
service. They are pouchy. slouchy,
.pectacled and somewhat bald.
AS Aurore and Maria see them
again. the girls lose their own illu-
lions and resign themselves more con-
entedly to 40 or so years more with
heir own people. ~ y