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Keep Your
Darned
Rhine
ALFRED DE MUSSET lives in
literary nicmory as a pcrfumed
and languid poet; but history
ol'ten does some strange, upsct
ung things to tradition. Tlie following
poem is so far from his best known work
that merely by comparison it is interest
jng, without addirrg tlie interest attach
np to tlie events that producod it. Thc
pocins wcrc printed recently in "Thc
?oo IX cning Bulletin."
The German Rhine
By Nikolaua llcckee
\\ nfwv shall be France's,
The frrc, thc German Rhine,
raven-like s he glance
And croaks her foul design.
So long as calmly gliding
If wears its mantlc grccn,
So long as oar dividing
Its mirrored wave is seen;
It never shall bc France's,
The free. tbe German Rhine,
So long as youtb enhanccs
lli.- fcrvor with its wine.
So long as. sentry kecping.
The rocks its margin stud;
. ii long aa. spires are steeping
Their imagc in its flood;
It never shall be France's,
Thc freo, thc German Rhine,
So long as festivc dances
Its lovcr-groups combinc;
?0 long as angler bringeth
Its lusty trout to thore,
So long as minstrel singeth
Ita praise from door to door.
It never shall he France's,
Tbe free, the German Rhine,
Until its broad expanse is
Its last defender's shrine.
The Reply
By Alfred Musset
German Rhine has been ours before!
1: has served our wassail bowls to fill.
inging its praise from door to door
Kfface the boof-prints legible still,
Of our cavalry cbarge that bathed its
left bank in your gore?
German Rhine has been ours before!
On it breast the wound yet gapeth
conquering Conde made when he
3 I'C
its mantle of green to the.fur
thtr side;
?"lae the sire has ridden, shall the
?c. fot ride once more?
ir GetV.an Rhine has bee.n ours before!
Of your German virtues what remains
\V| en ai ross its flood our lcgions pour
And the Empire overclouds your
plains?
a ail your men have i'ailen, have
other men in store'.'
V" ir German Rhine has been ours before!
If ye your annals would i'ain foi'gel
Vour daughters ??emember the days of
yore,
And wish the Frenchman among the
?
? om youi vinl agi white they wei ?
always blithe to pour.
R your German Rhine lie yours om
more,
Then wash your liveries in its tide;
But pitch your arrogance somewhal
lower!
Can you recall with generous pride
Vour myriad raven-beaks that drank tha
dying Eagle*s gore?
May your German Rhine flow evermor.
In peace; and rnodestly may each pii
Be mirrored fair in its glassy floor!
But, oh, keep down your bacchanal fire
Which else may rouse to life again thc
Metor hearts of yore.
Those Devil-Dogs
YVrITH al! due honor and respect to
our other fighting forces, thc ma
f are the American favorites, and
>torieg about them are always in order.
A recent one i "Those Marines," by
G. .V. Garvin in "The National Marine."
Ibing the joyous preparations of a
coii>;ijfnment of marines to sail from
Quantico, Ya., for France, Mr. Garvin
*ays:
MSo thiy grinned and were happy. They
*ere going into danger; they only laughed
?'? it. They were a part of an organi/.aUon
itut weaklings would have feared. Their
?T.r.- i-n'j number was thirteen, and it
3 o'clock on the morniiii; of Friday,
tne XUh. Vet they had chosen this day to
??Wk on the greatcat trip of their lives!
'Juat like a bunch of Marines,' chuckled
?? onlooker. 'The only way thirteen can
??* ?? a hoodoo will be to the Kaiser. Al
r??t>y ].,,. Sften th<rn Kyta\<,nK haridM with
*?eh other thirteen times, *)apping each
?*??* ?n the back thirteen times, singing
?' wnu and 1 know of onc fi How
*^o tried lo take thirteen black cats along.
'^y're planning to make the trip in thir
w?b days and that will land them in
*<-?ace or. a da-c that's twics thirteen the
"r>^- But .?.'? just like 'em!'
'Tha blurred forms of many men were
*urrying n)or,ti now. Great fine* liad
">?'"H;d; there came the sound of harp com
""Hs. the elattering 0f the rifiea, the
"?neb|r.g 0f thouuanda of those hobnailed
r"">u npon tbe gr?v?i then the ?tordy
?*?ll ef thousands of volee,,, alnging, e|ng<
??* ln the mqenlight n% thc mm msrened
***/ to tfacir eatrainment/'
Heroes on New York's Own Chemin des Dames
Impressions From the Pencil of Nelson Greene, Reproduced From
"The Righl-AbouF\ a New Paper Published by Soldiers for
Sotdier-Palients at Debarkation Hospitals No. L No. 3 and No. 4,
New York City
50 zSHB SAYS TO Mg.
*WMCH6R MONSIEUR YAHfe,
O.GWM,
me mmz-vom rnvnf i^olow
i'THEN iauSrSRKUfTOUf (| &<*- LASTllMEvi ft* A y ^ywwi-51
?fc\A
ftuooy* PAL~^
One of the
boys who kept
Heave Ho!
e Salty Mai
Two poems by Howard Dietz from "Navy Life." The drawings are by CNeill.
The Nautical Muse
HAIL!
ERE'S to tbe gob, on land or ou sea -
Tbe sailor who's keeping the world's
waters free.
Tiie salties who peddle their sandpaper
necks
Are there with the "bright work" and swabfiing
down decks.
They've shown all their foemen the way they raise
hob;
Thcy'vc convoyed across an American mob
That made the damned Kaiser grow sick of his job ?
So here's to the gob!
Here's to the gob, abroad or at home!
He's brought about peace on a turbulent foam;
flc's served in thc trench with the. English and
i'lcnch
Wiieti lighting's the game hc is shy of the bench,
For tho sailor'a a mixer and never a snob?
He'll light witb a highbrow as well as a slob,
Especially Germans who murder and rob ?
So here's to thc gob!
Here's to the gob?whatever his rate,
Apprentice or fireman or seaman or mato;
UcV; given his trlfle to help win thc war,
. . i i ?. \i\\ i i n'i .ia,, one i torc.
So ml up your goblotfi- drink toast to the gob.
The Knight of thc Mop and thc Czar of the Swabl
Tbe time ia for luughtcr and nary a sob ?
Bo here's lo tbe gob!
Cho
W
HE food that onc gets in the army or navy- -
Tbe beans and the soup and the meat and
the gravy,
Tl.c rice and the spice and the stew nnd
the bread?
ls classiried under the general head
Of "Chow."
You quit sleep at five and you start it at nine;
You work like a Turk and you limber your spinc;
You go through tbe mill of a vigorous drill,
But though you're exhausted you still get a fil!
Of "Chow."
It sounds Oriental, but tastes very ploaeant.
You never get rilets or turkey or pheasant,
But when it comes down to the crux of the matter
Tberc's only one title that goes with a platter
Of "Chow."
What matters the dresa of the mess anyhow?
Just serve up the cabbage or serve up the cow.
The !ad in the serviee will gobble it in_
llc never holds back when it's time for tbe li
Of "Chow."
The Buzz
That
Won
HERE is a picture of home
wending British marines with
real, authentic flavor. It is
contributed by "Bish" to "The
Spectator" (London) :
What is it that No. 1 is whispering into
thc pilot'a ear. and why does No. t's scr
vant shortly after break into the marines'
mess and cause the faccs of the inhabitai ts
thereof to shine? There's no mystery
about it; it's the beginning of a buzz, and
it's just getting a really hcalthy start on it.
A buzz is a valuable thine to a ship. It's
about equal to the last edition of an even?
ing paper with a startling hit of news in
tlie stop-press. It may, and probably will,
be contradicted in the morniiiif, but it pro
v des splendid amusement while it lasta. It:
may bc about anything or nothing.
Like a rumor in an Eastern bazaar, it
travels with the speed of thc telegraph.
Anyhow, life would be a dull concern these
days without a hcalthy buzz. The ono that
No. t is promulgating this morning is thci
most popular, the most often-proved-wrong.
thc most inspiriting of all the genue.
"1 tell you it's a dead snip. pilot, a moral
ccrt. January! I've written to Gieve for n
new monkey jacket. I wonder if that show
with Elsie Janis in it will still be on"
"Steady, old dear. This is the fifth time in,
thc last three months, to my knowledi;..
that you've ordered something new for you:*
wardrobc and inquired what's on at the
Palace, and all on the strength of some roi
tcn buzz. Anyhow, what arc you going on.
this tiinc?" * Xo. l's answer almost coi,
vinces thc cynical navigator. "The boai
swain and the carpenter have been told to
get out lists of what they want done
the rcfit." This is good enough, and r>fl
go the amiable friends, not to suggest a.
rumor to their messmates, but to annoui????
a fact. "What a frowst there is in hen
Do open the scuttles, then you'll be able m
bear tlie good tidings. A drop of Iraf in
January." The paymaster, in the most com
fortable armchairs, per usual, openlng one
eye, remarked, with that innate court'
which distinguishes nic?smates of three
years' standing: -"You're a liar, No. 1, and
the Father of Lies. That buz? has goc
whiskcrs on it." Thus thc wardroom and
thc lower dock with but little differenc
No. l's scrvant, on bringing thc news to
No. 6 mess, is greeted with the remark,
"You're a ruddy liar, Alf." Only one word
different. Still, it must bc confessed in
common fairr.ess to No. 1 that he was
ncarer the mark than usual, as wc ?'?r?
ordered to our rent within three mon
of his stated time.
Speaking of Grand Opera
And Music
The scene at the station of thc God
forsaken spot where wc enlrain for our
leave is a cheery one. A long speeial ii
drawn up ready, and this is to bo ovv
home for the next twenty hours or so until
the dear west country is reached. Tlio>
matelot proceediiifr on leavi' does not leav?
himself unprovided for. Rulky packages -?''
food are placed on the raeks, tobacco
pouches rcsembling suitcases arc got ready
for use, and musical instruments i?lendedl
for lighter moments arc displayed, and b
fore leaving the station thoroughly test
Nebuchadnezzar's private orchestra would
have looked silly besid" our little lot.
countcd two cornets, threo concertinas.
banjo. two gramephones < would any onc!'
a bluejacket take a gruinophone a few !,,
dred miles on fourteen days' leave! i .
piccolo, two violins and "other music. '
mostly mouth organs. Xoticing that my
carriage was in close proximity tc the e
n-e of the musical world, I anticipatcd s.o:n<?
harmony somewherc south of Pcrth, and i
this I was not disappointed.
At the principal stations on our jour-.-? t
south we indulge in playful badinage v
the local inhabitants. Jumper Collis i.s ouH
leading hand at this and has a reputat i
to keep up. At Pcrth he entered into ant
intimate and friendly discussion of ra'i
way strikes with a uniformed official, who/
received his efforts but ill. I only cauj,:'it5
the last few words of Jumper's addre^-.
"You go 'ome and tell your old 'ooman to
have you insured, for with a face like thati
you might go off at any minute." To my
mind it seemed a little personal, but th?
train rocked with laughter, so I suppose ".
was all right. At C'arlisle pleasantri ??
were exchanged between Jumper and a faitf
malden in charge of a refreshment truck.
We had been north some time, and had not
yet got accustomed to the fair and just
prices charged for things. Jumper, allud
ing to the lady as "Sybil, dear," asked her
yfor a banana, and on being told that five ?
pence was a fair price, remarked, in what)
the Blue thinks is a Piccadilly swell's voice:
"No, dearest, you rnisunderstand me. (
wish to buy one banana, not a plantation.*'
But What Need
Of Sleep?
From what I could gather on that trip, rr.v
shipmates never slept. Thc night was mudo
hideous by "Little Gray Homes in the West"
on cornets, imitation of church bells ou tho
concertinas, and, crowning indignity.
Intermezzo from "Cavallcria Rusticana.'' by
some sportsman on a banjo. At Bri-io!
we began to lose some of our number, and
I began to thir-k we should lose more, a?
it seemed necessary for the whole trainloa-1
to get out and personally conduct thn
; twelve Bristol men to the exit. The first
big exodus was at Exeter, where w? left a
goodly number to brighten homes at Ottcrv
St. Mary, Budleigh, Exmouth, and otbeo
small places that helped to man our floeu
' At last. wcary. but happy, we steamed into
North Road Station, and as we rollcd ii?
a roar went up which shook the whole roof,
The platform was almost as packed a>. th,]
train. Women and children swarmed lis.j
locusts. Every one seemed to know oveiy
; one else. I myself saw one P. O., whom K
j had always thought of as rather a rhy main
| kias six different women. and I believe only
one belonged to him. Off they ?H went,
cheery, laughing groups, and it made my
heart all warm. 1 had lived with thos?
men for three yeari, I'd seen them in faiw
nnd foul weather, I knew nicst of tbeitf
troubles, and, above all, I loved thom. God*
speed, shipmates mine. o\i your rrov !eJ
1 diu-s of Impiiincss you've a.;i:^u U. C
