It gave the ideals of the expedition, the current
news translated into Czechish, lessons in French for the use of the
forces on landing in France, and quotations from Professor Masaryk.
About four thousand copies of this paper were printed every day and
distributed not only among the Czechs but among many of the Austrian war
prisoners, who were thus informed of the ambitious plans these fighting
independents saw before them. Their trains showed their versatility and
love for decoration and home-making. Not only were they clean, but
hundreds of the cars were decorated with life-size drawings, and with
quaint designs in evergreens. To enable the men to find their friends, a
roster of the occupants of the car was printed on the red flanks of
their freight wagons. On the roofs, model aeroplanes and wind-mills spun
in the breeze. A Czech train reminded me of a picnic, and, aside from
the earnestness, it was.
[Sidenote: Study and athletic contests.]
For some travelers, the Trans-Siberian trip is monotonous. It was not
for the Czechs. They read and studied. They were always busy--even
before their clashes with the Bolsheviks began to take up some time. The
Y.M.C.A. had secretaries with some of the trains and sent supplies of
literature and games. The Bohemians are the champion gymnasts of the
world and athletic contests were arranged at every station, until at the
call of a bugle the train would pull out, picking up sweating, happy men
as it gathered speed.
Pages:
203
204
205
206
207
208
209
210
211
212
213
214
215
216
217
218
219
220
221
222
223
224
225
226
227