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A Journey Through Francein War Time
A Journey Through Francein War Time
Member of The American Industrial Commission to France. THE PENTON PRESS CLEVELAND 1917 [Illustration: inscription by author.] Copyright, 1917, by Joseph G. Butler, Jr., Youngstown, O. One hundred copies of this edition have been printed of which this is number 39 Second Edition Dedication by author TO THE MEN AND WOMEN OF FRANCE WHO AMID INEXPRESSIBLE SORROWS AND INFINITE CARES EXTENDED A GRACIOUS WELCOME TO THE AMERICAN INDUSTRIAL COMMISSION AND TO THE AUTHOR THIS BOOK IS GRATEFULLY DEDICATED.
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FOREWORD
FOREWORD
Of all that has been written, or is to be written, by Americans concerning the tragedy overwhelming the Old World, much must naturally be descriptive of conditions in France, since that country is, among those affected by military occupation, most accessible and most closely in sympathy with American ideals and American history. While the ground covered by these pages may be, therefore, not unfamiliar, the motives prompting their preparation are probably unique. It has been undertaken at the req
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ORIGIN OF THE PURPOSE OF THE TRIP
ORIGIN OF THE PURPOSE OF THE TRIP
I N the Autumn and Winter of 1915, a body of distinguished and representative Frenchmen visited the United States, their object being to make an investigation of conditions here, having in mind the great need of France in war munitions, the steel in ingot and bar form very much needed for the manufacture of war materials, and the numerous other commodities necessary for prosecution of the war, which had been in progress more than a year. The finances of France were also very much in evidence in
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CROSSING THE ATLANTIC
CROSSING THE ATLANTIC
T HE French Line was selected by the sponsor for the trip as being the safest route and somewhat as a compliment to the French nation. Passage was engaged for the entire party on the Lafayette, booked to sail from New York, August 26th, 1916, at 3 P. M., destination, the French Port Bordeaux. I reached New York Friday morning, August 25th, and immediately set about getting my passport properly vised by the French Consul. This was accomplished with less difficulty than one would imagine and the p
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BORDEAUX AND PARIS
BORDEAUX AND PARIS
U PON going ashore, we discovered on the docks a number of stalwart laborers. We wondered why they were not in the army, but were told they were Spaniards. The docks were covered with motor trucks from Cleveland, piles of copper bars, and also very large quantities of munitions and barbed wire made by The Youngstown Sheet & Tube Company and the American Steel & Wire Company. We also saw on the docks steel bars furnished by our own Brier Hill Steel Company. We were first impressed
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MEETING ENGLAND'S PREMIER
MEETING ENGLAND'S PREMIER
O N Sunday, September 10th, I had the good fortune to meet Lloyd George. He had been paying a visit to General Joffre, and was registered at the same hotel as the Commission. Through his secretary, and through the persistence of some of the commissioners, arrangements were made to meet this celebrated man. I happened to be the first one of the commissioners introduced. During my youthful days, while a clerk in a company store at Niles, Ohio, I had learned some Welsh, and in this language I greet
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THE BIRTHPLACE OF LAFAYETTE
THE BIRTHPLACE OF LAFAYETTE
T HE question of visiting the birthplace of the immortal Lafayette came up at this time, and some of the members insisted on a trip to this historic spot. The majority carried and we made a detour of nearly one hundred miles to reach St. George's D'Aurac, near which stands the stately Chateau Chavagnac, object of our reverent curiosity. At the time of our visit it was owned by Mr. de Sahame, son of the niece of Lafayette, bearing the title of Marquis of Lafayette, and residing at Neuilly, near P
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A GREAT MUNITIONS PLANT
A GREAT MUNITIONS PLANT
W EDNESDAY, September 20th, we left St. Etienne for St. Charmond to visit the plant at which Mr. Laurent is director general. His company owns several plants, this being the most important and one of the oldest manufactories of cannons and munitions in France. We met here Colonel Rimialho, who is the inventor of the seventy-five-millimeter gun and has general charge of the artillery and munitions manufactured in France. The plant at the present time makes only cannon and munitions. There are no
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ART AND ARCHITECTURE OF ARLES
ART AND ARCHITECTURE OF ARLES
W E left Lyons for Arles, in the military automobiles, passing through and stopping for a brief time at Tarascon, made famous by Daude in his novel, "Tartarin of Tarascon". Here we were given the usual reception and pretty much the entire population of the town turned out to greet us. The following leaflet by the Arles Chamber of Commerce outlines the program: Reception of the Economical Commission of the United States At the evening banquet at the Hotel Du Nord, on my right was J. E. Agate, an
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ALONG THE MEDITERRANEAN
ALONG THE MEDITERRANEAN
A RRIVING at De Rove, the south end of the tunnel, on Saturday, September 23rd, I had my first view of the Mediterranean. It was a most beautiful sight, and the water as blue as pictured in paintings. We were rowed in a small boat across an arm of the Mediterranean to the town of Marseilles. We first visited the new part of Marseilles; then the old. Upon our arrival there was a tremendous gathering to greet us; not less than ten thousand children were shouting "Viva la Amerique". The whole city
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TOWNS IN SOUTHERN FRANCE
TOWNS IN SOUTHERN FRANCE
W E left Marseilles on Tuesday, September 26th, at 6 A. M. for Grenoble. The sunrise was very beautiful; along the way you can see trees, the tops of which have been chopped off. We were told that the annual crop of fire-wood in France is just the same as the annual crop of wheat or any other product. Fast growing trees are planted and the branches and twigs are utilized for fuel. We were met at the Grenoble station by eight entirely new Dodge automobiles. At Grenoble, we visited the glove facto
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THE CREUSOT GUN WORKS
THE CREUSOT GUN WORKS
A RRIVING in Le Creusot we stopped at the Grand Hotel Moderne and had a most enjoyable Sunday evening. It was discovered that our French secretary, Emile Garden, had quite a tenor voice. He started in to sing the Marseilles Hymn, and it was not long until all the Commission joined, and then the hotel employes. Before we got through scores of people came in from the street to see what was going on. The incident was telegraphed by the newspaper correspondents to the Paris papers, and it aided in t
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APPROACHING THE FRONT
APPROACHING THE FRONT
A FTER leaving Dole, the next stop on our itinerary was Besancon, from which we entered the zone of actual hostilities. For us this town was the gateway to "The Front" and therefore a point of more than usual interest. Here we were asked to sign the following paper, which all members of the commission did on October 4th, we having reached the town at midnight on October 2nd. Besancon, October 4, 1916. The itinerary arranged for the American Industrial Commission includes several days' sojourn
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WITHIN SOUND OF THE GUNS
WITHIN SOUND OF THE GUNS
O N Wednesday, October 4th, we left for the front in military automobiles. We passed through a farming district and through several small villages. Nearly all who were at work in the fields were women. It all seemed quite peaceful, considering that the battle fields were so near. We stopped at Monte Billiard, in the Champagne district, where we were addressed by the mayor and a response was made by Mr. Pfeiffer. Cuvier, the great French scientist, was born here in the year 1769, and died in 1832
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THE STORY OF GERBEVILLER
THE STORY OF GERBEVILLER
A FTER luncheon at Rambevillers, we drove to the famous village of Gerbeviller—or rather to what is left of it. This little town is talked of more than any other place in France, and is called the "Martyr City". Its story is one of the most interesting told us, and to me it seemed one of the most tragic, although the residents of the town all wanted to talk about it with pride. While on the way to Gerbeviller we had to show our passes, and it was lucky they were signed by General Joffre, since n
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ON THE MAIN FRONT
ON THE MAIN FRONT
W E arrived at Nancy October 7th, at six o'clock P. M. and spent the evening at a reception given by the Prefect L. Mirman. We met here Madam Mirman and her two daughters. In the entrance to the prefect's residence were several large holes which had been blown out by the German shells. During the reception we were shown an embroidered sheet, filled with holes. This was taken from the window of a hospital, fired on by the Germans, July, 1916. The name of the hospital was Point Au Mousson. The she
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REIMS AND THE TRENCHES
REIMS AND THE TRENCHES
S OME time during the forenoon of the day following our arrival at Chalons on the Marne we left in the military automobiles for Reims. This city is on the south branch of the river Aisne, on which the Germans made their stand after the battle of the Marne, and had been within reach of their guns constantly since they stopped retreating after that battle. It is about ninety miles from Paris. The city was at that time less than two miles from the actual battle line, trenches extending close up to
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BACK TO PARIS
BACK TO PARIS
W E arrived at Paris at three o'clock P.M., October 17th, and here received our first news of the submarine work off Nantucket. In the evening we met Antoine Borrel, deputy from Savoy, on six days' leave of absence from the Alsace Lorraine district. He entered the war a common soldier and now has the Legion of Honor on his breast. On Wednesday, October 11th, we visited Consul Thackara and arranged about our passports. I succeeded in securing some fine war relics and a partial line of French war
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ON THE WAY HOME—ENGLAND
ON THE WAY HOME—ENGLAND
O N this date, October 18th, the commission left Paris for Havre at 4:50 P.M., its destination being London, by way of Southampton. We boarded the boat at Havre after a very rigid inspection of passports, baggage, etc. It was a rough night and many were seasick. The boat was crowded to repletion and the trip was a very uncomfortable experience. We had been escorted from Paris to Havre by Captain Sayles, of the American Embassy. This was one of the many courtesies shown us by the American Embassy
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ON THE BROAD ATLANTIC
ON THE BROAD ATLANTIC
D URING Sunday following our sailing we passed through the Irish Sea, which was very rough. The davits were taken down and the passengers ordered below. On Monday the sea was somewhat calmer. During the day I met Dr. Lee, who had been in the service of the American Ambulance for a year and a half. He is quite familiar with and believes in the Carrel treatment. He said that nearly two million British soldiers had been innoculated against typhoid fever and only twenty-five had died out of this vas
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THE FRENCH STEEL INDUSTRY IN WAR TIME
THE FRENCH STEEL INDUSTRY IN WAR TIME
T HE individual report on the condition of the iron and steel industries in France, referred to in the proceeding chapter, together with the comments of The Iron Age thereon, were as follows: Joseph G. Butler, Jr., Youngstown, Ohio, who represented the steel trade of the country on the American Industrial Commission to France, arrived in New York on the return journey of the commission on Oct. 29. While the general report of the commission, which went out under the auspices of the American Manuf
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WHERE WAR HAS RAGED
WHERE WAR HAS RAGED
I N spite of the tremendous nature of the present war and its duration for more than two years at the time of our visit, comparatively little of France had been visited with the indescribable destruction marking the struggle. No war in history has been so intense, and few wars have been so long confined to such small areas as that on the western front. It was about the first of October that we reached Belfort, and here we saw the first signs of havoc wrought by gunfire. At Paris we had been with
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GENERAL JOFFRE
GENERAL JOFFRE
P ERHAPS no other man in France is so talked of so much as General Joffre. Certainly he is the idol of the French people. They look on him as their hero and savior, and his name is mentioned among them with a sort of half-worship. No other people have ever depended on their leaders as have the French. They believe with the right sort of leadership they can do anything. This is the impression you get in talking to them. They say that since the Franco-Prussian War they have looked forward to the t
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THE WORK OF RECONSTRUCTION
THE WORK OF RECONSTRUCTION
W HILE no estimate can be made of the cost of rebuilding the towns and cities destroyed in France until after the war is over and it is known what further damage has been done, this matter is already receiving earnest consideration. The French are confident of victory and are satisfied that they will soon be able to rebuild their cities and reorganize their industries. They are a frugal and thrifty people, and usually have more private means than the average American whose manner of living would
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FRENCH BUSINESS ORGANIZATIONS
FRENCH BUSINESS ORGANIZATIONS
T O the members of our Commission one of the most interesting things found in France was the organization of chambers of commerce, or bodies whose purpose is to promote the industrial and financial welfare of the communities where they exist. Unlike the situation in America, where chambers of commerce are purely local organizations, without power or even much prestige in the regulation of municipal affairs, the French have a system of such bodies that is probably the most important single force
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THE CARREL METHOD OF TREATING WOUNDS
THE CARREL METHOD OF TREATING WOUNDS
S O much interest has been expressed in the new method of treating wounds discovered by Dr. Carrel and bearing his name, and the subject being of such great importance to the cause of humanity and the preservation of human life, I have thought it worth while to give here the following authoritative descriptions of this new and epochal discovery in the science of medicine. It is now generally known as the Carrel-Dakin treatment. Reference has been made to meeting Dr. Sherman in London. On discove
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A CITY IN AN ARMY'S PATH
A CITY IN AN ARMY'S PATH
F EW who read this book have ever been in contact with actual war. In order that they may have an idea of what happens to a city which finds itself in the path of an irresistible enemy, some account will be given here of what happened to Reims, a city about the size of Youngstown, having a population of one hundred and twenty-five thousand and being situated on the north bank of the river Aisne, in north-eastern France. When the Germans attacked France they hurled their great armies by three rou
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SOME IMPRESSIONS OF FRANCE AND THE FRENCH
SOME IMPRESSIONS OF FRANCE AND THE FRENCH
I N closing this work it is my hope that the reader will consider that its inspiration and purpose have been stated with sufficient clearness, but in this final chapter I am venturing to record my general impressions of a truly great nation seen during a period which must be regarded as part of the most vital epoch in its history. This concluding chapter will have accomplished my purpose if it portrays the patriotic nationality of the French under existing conditions, in such manner as to be con
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