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Show Pi - W&s&sevnrs 5&2s&sr. . , ---C ? All ?! ! 3c.'sc-&. II. .- ' ' ' -S55wi54 Elaborate Plans Made To Amuse Our Soldiers On ckt- &5Cd&r?&&r3 ' ss France's Great Feast Day Many Enferlainmenis ; gife y Copyright, 191S, The Inlcrnatlonal Syndicate . IjHE DAWN of another New Year will be tho brightest for several S years past. It will find the greatest conflict of all tlmo at an end, It will And all nations with a determination to prevent, If possible, a repetition of the carnage and destruction de-struction of tho last few years and 11 will, let us all hope, And In all peoples a desire to live In pcaco and harmony , , with one another. Tho sadness caused i by tho Tar has been unmcasurablo J and tho heartaches so poignant as to k bo beyond healing; but amid them all ,. there Avlll bo rejoicing at what has ' . been achieved and tho millions' of gal-! gal-! lant sons "over there" will welcome tho coming of tho New Year destined ' v to bo tho greatest epoch-making period , ' of modern times, j Policing Europe if Many will remain in Europe for if 3omo time as different parts of the continent will need policing, 1ho effect of tho moralo of our troops will be excellent, and while the New Year will como to them in a foreign land they will havo a joyful time, for our own govornmcnt. as well as those of other lands, will shower them with favors. i Tho Freuch arc still the volatile pco-1 pie of old, and New Year's Day mor.o I than Christinas is their great festival. Of course, our troops will havo their big dinner. In some places tho food will bo-cooked In. the "goulash cannon" can-non" as the moving cooking wagon is called and while the courses may not be as many over here thcyvyill be none the less tasty and plentiful. There Is always al-ways a "Y" hut or a Salvation shelter near by and everything can bo obtained ob-tained there. Letters and boxes from home, many of which were started from thero for Christmas, will arrive j i to cheer the boys. ! Long ago it was conceded by all na- 1 tlons that the coming of the Yanks saved the world from German militarism mili-tarism and although tho peasants have-been have-been impoverished they will try in their humblo way to prove their gratitude grat-itude to the men who eamo from the United States. Tho French peasants form a largo part of the French Army and through the Yanks many of theso mon will get homo in time to spend their favorite holiday with'- their wives and children. Naturally our boys like Christmas best but they will do no little frolicing during the entire holiday week and top it qrt with a good old-fashioned New Year's Day. Baseball has become especially popular pop-ular in rural France and If it is not too cold there aro to be a number of big games. Football too will be plajed. Tho various associations have promised a large supply of cigarettes and chocolate io- tho da real Amor-lean Amor-lean cigarettes, not the ' fags" so much enjoyed by the British Tommies but those made of real tobacco. Men of all classes will be there and tho man who used to give over the day to calling and going to dances at night may bo able to do tho same things In France for tho French girls .idolize our boys. In somo of tho American camps cold weather is sure to prevail but the wet trenches aro abandoned and thoy may enjoy winter sports to their hearts delight with plenty of tho delicious French coffee to warm them at any lime. One of the things prevalent all over Franco is tho giving of New Ycar't gifts and in every small village there Is a murket at which- gifts aro sold. Our boys are great sportsmen and those whose duty Is in the country will make up parties and go hunting, for It Is said that much game is still to bo found and at one can-p tho Salvation Lassies will make rabbit pol-plo as 1 long as the rabbits hold out. Their i pics and doughnuts have long boon ifamous .tvilh the Army and although j Uncle Sam may provldo a splendid I dinner it will not be complete without the Salvation Army's. dainties. Tloso good people have the happy faculty of i mixing religion and food together and "many a man will como home a far better man through the influence of theso lassies, who all during the war havo provided something different In the way of food almost directly at the front: j At Y. M. C. A. Huts At the Y. M. C. A. huts somo of the boys who like indoor sports will play billiards and listen to tho vlctrolas The United States has many bands with their troops and if the weather !s good these bands wdl give concerts :in tho public square of the village to ! which their unit is assigned. There . , IH will be little drilling for long ago our Army officers learned that "all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy," so the soldiers are given all the holl-das's holl-das's possible. In Paris i New Y'ear's Day is one of real cn-j cn-j joyments In Paris, that beautiful city . saved from the ravishing hands of tho I Hun and tho citizens will enjoy It to tho fullest extent. The French New Year's Day Is a romnant of Paganism, for It comes from tho Druids who always al-ways held a great festival at that time. How different will be the ono this year than that of 1S71 when tho Huns were besieging Paris. It happened to bo bitter cold that year. ,Tho Seine was filled with Ico and the bodies of dead soldiers who fell In defending ! 'he city lay outside the walls unburlcd. The most hopeful dared not forecast (ho future at th.it dark hour, yet today I France has risen stronger and greater than ever and our Yanks who may be ' .'o fortunate as to spend New Year's ', Day in that city will enjoy some wonderful won-derful sights. The President and the different cabinet cab-inet ministers will hold receptions and doubtless our President and our other officials who are attending the peace congress will attend. French society i is seen hero at its best. Tho great I boulevards are always thronged and if the weather is mild, as is usually the case at that period of the year, one may dine at tho outdoor cafes and watch the world, for people of every nation seem to live in Paris. Gayety reigns supremo ,there and this year it promises io be especially gay. Tho theatres will be open and Oh! twhat stories of the French shows tho , boys will bo able to tell us when they 'return. Nothing will be too good for our boys at the splendid Y. M. C. A. I headquarters In Paris, and there will ! bo open house. Our wounded will be cheered by extra dinners and musical I entertainments by American artists j Unfortunately there are no "hostess (houses" like thoe of our cantonments and the soldier who has fallen In lovi ( 1 J with a French girl is unable to moot ';l her under such happy auspices, but as tho French girl has been so used to; jH seeing soldiers for tho last four years' I and having them billeted at her honio( a mere matter of chapcronago will uotj i J bother her to any great extent,' and our, ' boys will follow the old phrnso "when! you are in Tlomc do as tho Romans' ' do." So our customs aro not llkcly ' to mar the happiness of cither party.' i i Tho American soldier has como to be' ' , so respected in France that-he la wel- ' J come anywhere and whenovcr ho has a holiday the latch string is out for Ms; f jH entertainment. New Y'ear's day to tho j French is very- like the Saturnalia of I , the Romans and everyone goes out for" 1 a good lime. Movies Arc "Pnnnlur 1 Of course, there will be movlos ev- ! erywherc nnd the American movlo , , stars will be seen. Perhaps tho old ' Douglas Fairbanks' plcturo.left by tho! ' i Germans la their hurried retreat will i be brought out to amuse, tho crowd., One thing is certain and that 'is that' ( the boys will seo themselves for spc-cl.il. spc-cl.il. films will have been mado of their; activities for this day. Some of -our boys arc known to have fine voices well as to be able to play on string jH Instruments and concerts will bo given jH for the French in many towns. Tho Now Year's Day songs are original and will take the place of Christmas On the, whole the New Y'ear's fes-tivitics fes-tivitics "over there" will vie with tho ones of Thanksgiving and' Christmas AH America' hopes that c-rc another I 1 New Y'ear's Day rolls around nearly- , all of tho Yanks will havo returned to i our gforlous land to enjoy the day with J loved ones at home. Those who re-main re-main to assist in the duties imposed ,H by the Peace Congress and those who !H stay to help rebuild the waste places of Franco and Belgium will find con- ll ditlons still more favorable for a more . glorious celebration of the dawn of , the New Year of 10-0. ' |