to a German military man when he considers
military matters: "No doubt we shall adopt the notion; but we'll improve
on the pattern and the method of discharging it. The French usually
lead the way in aerial inventions, but the Germans invariably perfect
them."

The day wound up and rounded out most fittingly with a trip eastward
along the lines to the German siege investments in front of Rheims. We
ran for a while through damaged French hamlets, each with its soldier
garrison to make up for the inhabitants who had fled; and then, a little
later, through a less well-populated district. In the fields, for long
stretches, nothing stirred except pheasants, feeding on the neglected
grain, and big, noisy magpies. The roads were empty, too, except that
there were wrecked shells of automobiles and bloated carcasses of dead
troop horses. When the Germans, in their campaigning, smash up an
automobile--and traveling at the rate they do there must be many
smashed--they capsize it at the roadside, strip it of its tires, draw
off the precious gasoline, pour oil over it and touch a match to it.
What remains offers no salvage to friend, or enemy either.

The horses rot where they drop unless the country people choose to put
the bodies underground. We counted the charred cadavers of fifteen
automobiles and twice as many dead horses during that ride. The smell
of horseflesh spoiled the good air. When passing through a wood the
smell was always heavier. We hoped it was only dead horses we smelled
there.

When there has been fighting in France or Belgium, almost any thicket
will give up hideous grisly secrets to the man who goes searching there.
Men sorely wounded in the open share one trait at least with the lower
animals. The dying creature--whether man or beast--dreads to lie and
die in the naked field. It drags itself in among the trees if it has
the strength.

I believe every woodland in northern France was a poison place, and
remained so until the freezing of winter sealed up its abominations
under ice and frost.

Nearing Rheims we turned into a splendid straight highway bordered by
trees, where the late afternoon sunlight filtered through the dead
leaves, which still hung from the boughs and dappled the yellow road
with black splotches, until it made you think of jaguar pelts. Midway of
our course here we met troops moving toward us in force. First, as
usual, came scouts on bicycles and motorcycles. One young chap