Evening star., 1943-06-24
Correspondent Finds
Misery and Joy in
Bivouac in the Stars
BiIIetine Officer Now
Hos Another Type Of
BeIIieerent on His Hands
BY THOMAS r. HENRY,
Star Staff Correspondent.

DlVOuac In AlglerS-a nome Ill NOFtn
Africa.
It is a bare apartment on the fifth
floor of a high building on the city's
principal street where, If one is
long -winded and tough enough to
lug a. 50-pound bedroll, suitcase and
typewriter up the long, dark, wind
ing stairs it is possible to throw
some blankets on the floor and
sleep for the night.
Strong men-sinewy second lieu
tenants just off college football
squads. burly orderlies of British
brigadiers just in from three years
In the desert. hard-boiled ofhcers of
the French Foreign Legion-are on
the verge of collapse after making
that climb. Painting, hands clutch
ed to their hearts, they throw them
selves on the floor when they reach
the bovouac.
Finally Makes 1t.
1t was the billet to which
assigned the first night I c..
here. / made it, somehow. Need
less to say, I was mad. I sat down
on the bedding roll with my head in
my hands and cuSsed.
There were two bedding rolls al
ready on the floor Darkness was
gathering fast. In the midst of my
misery arrived, one after the other,
my two roommates for the night
One was a world-famous CORE
fo hnf
from the Middle East. The other
was member of the American
economic mission.
I'm too tired to do any fighting
tonight, but I'm sure going to raise
a fuss about this tomorrow" 1 said.
They looked at me with surprise
You've got the choice billet in
Algiers," one of them told me.
Correspondent Knows How.
"1ts not that l care about COM
fort" I said 'but how can you set up
a typewriter in place like this?
Like I do said the correspond
ent, opening his portable on the floor
in demonstrating the gymnastics
necessary to operate it in such a
position.
Both had been there more than
week Both had been fighting mad
when they first arrived and vowed
10 do something about 1t" the next
morning.
After looking about the city they
had climbed the long stairs again,
thoroughly chaStened and grateful
The great advantage was that it was
possible to take bath there. The
oWner-a certain NJ GraZiani-evi-
IDENTIFY was man of taste and cul-
ture He had provided the place with
a bathtub.
There are certain crossroads OF
the earth. If you stay in any of them
long enough. they say. you will meet
sometime or other everybody you
ever read about. Such. for example,
is the Cafe de la Paix in Paris. Such
is the National Press Club in Wash
ington. Such is the Savoy Hotel in
London. Such is M. Grazianis for
mer apartment in AlgierS.
Willing to Fight for Place.
Three times in the last month I
have returned to the city dirty and
weary. Three times l have carried
all my worldly goods up the long
stairs and sank on the floor in
state of semi-collapse. I have pre-
empted billet. l have thrown my
billeung roll on the floor and sat on,
determined to defend that few feet
of sleeping space with oaths or f1sts
against all comerS.
l have cursed the billetting officer,
not for putting me there, but for
trying to get me out to make room
for persons he thinks more i'm
portaint l have held my ground.
A curious assembly have been my
fellow lodgers for the night The
last time they were British lord
and a British brigadier whose dis
cussion of the war was liberal
education in itself. I haven't seen
any Americans above the grade of
colonel Seldom does anybody less
than lieutenant colonel make the
grade.
Orderly Is BivOuac's Genius.
The genius OF the place is the or
derly-a Polish American soldier
from Chicago with passion for
mechanics They have put him
there. he says. because he got into
fights in every organization to which
he was assigned and the Army de-
cided the only place for him was
somewhere where he could work
alone. He has become the great per-
sonal friend of everybody who passes
through the bivouac. He and the
British lord spent the evening dis
cussing high International politics
after he had fixed a camera for the
nobleman.
The wierdest part of life in this
strange bivouac is reaching it at
night.
Blackout regulations are strict.
One climbs upward in total, stygian
darkness. feeling the way step by
step Finally. after an interminable
Journey, there Is flash of starlight
through the high skylieht and the
climber knows that the goal is only
another fight.
To reach this bivouac one must
climb to the stars.