Evening star., 1944-09-24

necessitate fight
James Brown. ing, and peo
pie are marvellous there. Eng
lish was spoken in all the smar
shops and hotels. Women wert
beautiful and fashionably dressed
Their clothes were of exquisite tast.
and were worn with simplicity and {
flare for smartness.
We dined on a terrace that looked
out upon sea and mountains Lunch
cost go francs. After lunch we met g
friendly French family and they
took us to their villa high over the
city. It was filled with priceless OBJ.
jects of art and was beautifully fur.
nished They had been forced tc
billet German officers there. We
spent the afternoon, they were sc
glad to have us, and asked many
questions about America.
Valuables Kept From Germans.
They went into their yard, dug ul
some 1929 champagne and insisted
we be the first to celebrate their lib
Grafton. They had buried every.
thing they were afraid the Germans
would seize. Silverware, champagne
plates, jewels, religious articles. Set
ting out to visit the city at twilight
we went to cafes where there were
dance bands that sounded like Ben
ny Goodman or Artie Shaw. They
played THE Marseillaise" and the
people stood up and sang with tears
in their eyes. 1t was the first time
in four years they had even been al
lowed to enter one of their cafes, let
alone sing their national anthem
and dance and be happy
Then they played the American
and British national anthems and
there was a lot of cheering and ap-
plause and toasting always ending
up with Viva la Americin. Every
one would smile and shake hands
and want to buy us something.
There was a dance at one of the
big hotels on the beach later. 1t
seemed like movie. dancing under
the stars on the French Riviera
with a good orchestra and moon
light.
This was all in contrast to a few
days ago when no one was allowed
on the streets. They had two cigar
cites a day per family and 1/10 of
kilogram of meat a month for "a
family They have not seen any
white bread for four years.
Hid Son Two Years.
MY hostess had hidden her son in
the basement of her home for two
years after exacuating him from
Paris with false papers. It has been
the first time in two years he has
been able to walk In the streets
without. fear of being conscripted
into German labor battanons and
shipped to Germany. She told how
people were shot in the streets for
refusing any German anything he
demanded. She told how they list
ened to the underground radio in
their cellar at the penalty of death.
How they suffered! But they con-
slider themselves fortunate in COM
parison to the rest of France.
The whole city was a sea of Allied
flags and the tri-color The people
were like birds let from their cages
and free to soar in the sun again
1t is beyond comprehension until
you see it. I asked the lady how
they were able to dress SO well and
wear such beautiful clothes. She
said the people had never worn any
thing but black OF drab clothes while
the Germans were there and that
they had Immediately bought new
clothes when the Americans landed
in Southern France, but had not
worn them until the city was
liberated She said for four years
France had given the Germans
empty stores, drab clothes and a
closed heart, but to the Americans
they wore their finery, smiled and
laughed and opened their hearts.
1 met an American lady from New
Orleans. A Mrs Eustis, a charming
woman of about 80 who had been
caught on the Riviera when war
broke out.
Southern France cities are mod
ern and busy and have a standard
of living much higher than Italy
and only one has been severely dam
aged. France is much better off
than Italy. BY that I mean there
is no great poverty among the
masses.
Stands Among Captive Nazis.
I stopped and visited a German
prison stockade where there were
thousands of prisoners. We were
driving along the road when we
saw a field stockade jammed full
with prisoners. We wanted to take
a picture as it was really an amaz-
ing sight. Acres of Germans
jammed together behind barbed
wire We stopped and asked the
guards If we could take pictures
He said certainly and led us to the
stockade gate. The first thing we
knew we were in the midst of them
They led us into the center Of the
stockade and there we were COM
pletely surrounded by Germans in
side stockade with the gate closed
What a feeling!
They asked where I was from and
If I were in the Navy. They ali
crowded around and stared and
talked at once. They were an
amazing sight, completely crushed
and beaten. They were we'll dis
ciplined and couldn't seem to under
stand why they hadn't been killed
Some were extremely young, 13 and
IA years old. Others were much
older, 58 and go. The young men
Of 20 to 80 were from the Luftwaffe
and were officers of the army. They
were poorly dressed and under
nourished.
Some looked at us as if they really
hated us, others seemed glad to be
captured.
One of the cities we visited that
day had been liberated only a few
days and over the city hung the
smell of death. In the hotels and
stores you would suddenly get a
whiff of dead bodies. If you have
ever smelled death there is no other
smell like it. 1t is one you will
never forget. I asked some French
men about it and they said, I'm the
Sauyopc ", tho hi11e orH I,,yilJsnre