itch over the rails,
with the troops aboard making the best of the situation, reclining on
straw that had been secured to partly cover the crude oil.

The route was through Dorat, Gueter, Busseau and Feletin. La Courtine
was reached at 9 o'clock. As per usual the first few sections of the
battery were left at the station as a baggage detail, while the
remainder of the battery marched through the village to the camp on
the outskirts.

The camp consisted of concrete barracks, with no lights at night and a
majority of the windows broken. The floor and ceiling, however, was
solid, which, at least, meant dry shelter during the nights of
France's rainy season, soon to be experienced.

Besides having a majority of the window panes broken, the barracks
bore marks of having been the target for machine-gun bullets. The
exterior walls were pitted with holes. Battery D was not in camp long
before the members knew the story of the Russian revolt that had been
staged at La Courtine during the days of Russia's exit from the war.
When Russia withdrew from the fighting Camp La Courtine sheltered
Russian troops. When the crash came part of the Russian army encamped
there revolted against a portion that sought to remain loyal to
France. The result was battle. The revolutionists fortified the
surrounding hills with machine-guns and opened fire on the barracks of
the camp below. Many Russians were slain in the revolt and lie buried
in a cemetery in the camp. The revolt was finally suppressed by a
detachment of French cavalry dispatched to the scene.

Sleeping quarters at Camp La Courtine contained bunks made of two-inch
plank, on which the Americans used their bed-ticks filled with straw.

Battery kitchens were set up the morning after arrival. The kitchens
were located under a tented roof. Mess was enjoyed by the soldiers out
in the open, as there was no mess hall for Battery D.

Except a slight rain the first day at Montmorillon, the four weeks
spent by the outfit in Vienne Department were weeks of sunshine
without a single day of rain, save the slight shower on the day of
arrival. It was the declining days of the French dry-season. Advent of
the outfit at La Courtine was with the rainy season. It rained the
first night in camp and it kept raining almost continuously during the
two months the battery spent at range practice.

The weather, however, affected no training schedules. The first days
at La Courtine were given over to hou