Copyright, The Forum, May, 1918.
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That portion of France in which the American army did its most active
fighting is a country filled with historic and romantic associations. It
is also a country of great scenic beauty. The following article
describes graphically the general aspect of this portion of France.
AN AMERICAN BATTLEFIELD
RAOUL BLANCHARD
[Sidenote: A glorious battlefield.]
Terrific battles, ushering in the dawn of victories which will ensure
the freedom of the world, were fought in July and August, 1918, between
the Marne and Vesle rivers, from Chateau-Thierry to Soissons and Fismes.
In this soul-stirring struggle the young American troops played a large
part, and played it with heroism and success. It has occurred to us,
therefore, that the American people will be glad to become acquainted
with the battlefield made glorious by their sons, with the soil which
will some day be a consecrated goal of pilgrimage for the entire nation.
[Sidenote: The field once the most beautiful country.]
This field of death, bristling with ruins still smouldering, was
formerly, and will soon be once more, a beautiful stretch of country.
Here we are in the heart of the Ile de France, and the countryside
displays all the gracious charm of a typical French landscape. With its
undulating plateaus, pleasant vales, broad green valleys, forests and
greensward, chateaux and villas, small towns, and dear old villages
thronged with souvenirs of the past, the district between the Marne and
the Aisne was peculiarly representative of France--the France of the
Merovingians and Capets as well as of the twentieth century.
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