bringing forth
hearty American cheers, to the bewildered amusement of the handful of
French passengers.

Rennes, the ancient capital of Brittany and haunt of the famous Du
Guesclin, held much of historic interest. Being also a wealthy city,
manufacturing and commercial, and containing at that time big hospitals,
from which convalescent Russian, Serbian, Greek and Italian, as well as
French soldiers walked about the streets, it held a great deal more of
present interest to these Americans.

Guer, with its "epiceries," which extended their stock of merchandise
according to American tastes; its cafes, and its restaurants, attracted
many visitors from camp Saturday and Sunday afternoons. St. Malo, over
the hill in the opposite direction, the "Chateau" on the way thither,
and the collection of places about the "Bellevue," at the entrance to
camp, furnished sustenance nearer at hand. Cider--2 sous a glass and 6
sous a bottle--was popular and cheap; "vin rouge" and more select and
expensive drinks were also plentiful. The meals were chiefly omelets and
French fried potatoes. One could never be sure about the meat, what it
was or whether one could eat it, although there was not the dire
scarcity or absolute lack of it that met us later near the battle front.
The bread to be had was exceedingly good, as was also the jam, which
was, however, extremely high-priced--4 or 5 francs for a large can--and
the hungry appetites that an army meal did not nearly satisfy after a
hard, cold day's work were appeased with this simple fare on many
evenings.

But the visits to these places of refreshment which the quarantine ended
were not greatly missed. For the Christmas packages had begun to arrive.
There were not so many soldiers in France then that restrictions need be
placed upon soldiers' mail. Consequently the packages from home were
many, and contained all manner of good things. They commenced to flow in
a week or two before the holiday, and continued to arrive long
afterwards. Best of all, however, on Christmas day, were the letters
from home telling that our first letters from France had been received
and read.

Christmas morning we heard, instead of the usual reveille march, a
special Christmas selection of the band, "Adeste, Fideles." After
breakfast--bacon, beans, doughnuts, bread and coffee--the battery
gathered about the Christmas tree in the mess shack. Holly and
mistletoe, from the neighboring woods, decorated the walls. A