a. "Vive l'Amerique" they shouted, "La guerre
est fini." They are very emotional and demonstrative. They lined the
sidewalks of the business streets, waving their flags and shouting in
their native tongue, while an American Marine Band playing patriotic
music, marched up one street and down another. It was a general
holiday and no business was done that day, and but very little for
several days thereafter. All American soldiers in the city were
lionized. When a group of enthusiastic Frenchmen would get hold of a
buddy, they would insist on taking him to a cafe and buying the most
expensive of wines. If we could have conserved all the liquor the
French were willing to buy for us that day, dry America would not
worry us.

I was seated on a bench in one of the parks watching the demonstration
and contrasting it with the probable demonstrations in American cities
on that day, when two flags, one French and the other American,
dropped over my shoulders. I straightened up and the next thing I knew
I was strongly clasped in the arms of a beautiful young French girl,
elegantly dressed and bewitchingly charming. She kissed me fervently
on each cheek. The sensation was pleasant, but it was rather
embarrassing inasmuch as it was in full view of hundreds of people
who were celebrating. If the shades of evening had been falling, the
spot more secluded and the number reduced to two, it would have been
more to my American tastes. However, I arose, conscious that I was
blushing, and offered the beauty my hand. She could scarcely speak a
word of English and I scarcely a word of French, but we managed to
make each other understand that it was a pleasurable greeting. She was
soon on her way joyfully waving her flags, and I--well, I charged
myself up with a lost opportunity for not being more proficient in the
polite use of the French language.

We remained in the city until 9:30 that evening, and the people were
still celebrating. And they kept it up for several days and several
nights, so great was their joy in knowing that the war was over and
that the enemy had been crushed.

My stay in Tours gave me some opportunity of seeing this ancient city.
Tours lies in the heart of the Loire Valley, which is the garden of
France. It is 145 miles southwest of Paris by rail and is on the left
bank of the Loire River. It is an exceedingly old city and has an
interesting history. There are numerous castles and chateaux in the
vicinity, which in