' - ' ; : 1 : ;
XTTE SUNDAY OREGONTAN. rOKTLAXD. JULT 27, 1919.
9
ST. MIHIEL GLORIOUS PILGRIMAGE FOR
AMERICAN TOURISTS SINCE WORLD WAR
Subterranean Palace of the Kronprinz
7 Vi.f
s
BT STERLING HEILIG
ST. MIHIEU France, July 4. (Spe
cial.) This picturesque hut dam
aeed town, which had 20.000 In
habitants before the war, will be a
glorious American pilgrimage for
tourists.
Everybody knows how the Germans
held St. Mihiel, in a bulge of the front
which the French could not wipe out
in four years' efforts, and how the
Americans walked into St. Mihiel in a
day.
The boys will come back to France,
with their families, pointing out their
spots, but when the war is cold and it
is hard to make civilians realize,
nothing will disclose so impressively
what we and the French were up
gainst at St. Mihiel as the subter
ranean palace of the kronprinz.
Certain war spots are predestined
how places.
Go out of St. Mihiel, eight miles. Tou
come to the village of Mont Sec, 235
inhabitants before the war and so
called because it is built against the
hill or "mountain" of that name (Mont
beo Dry Mount)?
But Dry mountain was not dry in
1914. 1915, 1916 and 1917. Champagne
popped and fiiczed. bubbled and
sparkled, in the depths of Mont Sec,
where none could see inside Mount
Sec. which looked so bare and poor
and peasant-like. Apremont-the-Forest
is a mile and a half away. Commercy
is up the line. You pass through Ailly
to come from St Mihiel. Sampigny is
this side of the river. A few miles
down is the Fort of Troyon: and then
the southern and eastern forts of Ver
dun. All through the coiossal. bloody
efforts of the kronprinz to take Ver
dun in 916. the little, bare Dry Moun
tain, innocent-appearing and escaping
notice of the allies' scout 'planes, up
St. Mihiel way. was gloriously wet.
sometimes by night, sometimes by day,
with wine, woman and song. Swift,
long,' sneaking motor cars of the kron
prinz army staff slid through the
darkness, to a door in the mountain!
Hiffh Jinx Emulated Wagrner.
It was the "Venus-Berg of the Little
Tannhaeuser." Vincent, the local baker
of Mont iee, whom they impressed into
making them crisp and luscious "creis
sants," or breakfast -rolls, at all hours.
says that they never ceased to talk
this Wagner etuff you know, the
gigantic care in the Horselberg, where
Tannhaeuser raised high jinks, while
the blooming staff which represented
his moral regeneration was blooming
at Rome, without his knowledge. ("But
our kronprinz knows!" said Colonel
Graf von Stein with unction).
And there came other times, when a
bell of French bombardment shook the
mountain, that ele&ant boche officers
4- -
"- -
Will Be Preserved as Memento of
During the War.
-
nslde it, banged on the piano and
made chamber-music. So secure did
they feel in the Venusberg that they j
sent home periodically for new dress !
uniforms, to brighten certain hours of j
lightness and leisure. Beloved Father-
and, raarst ruhig- sein; we re safe.
we re safe, and lapping good rench
wine!
Now, we are retting down to brass
tacks.
It dates from the very first day of
the war. when German cavalry and
light artillery rushed the French Basin
of Brley. while Jaures and the French
socialists kept the army eight miles
inside the frontier, "not to pour oil
on the flames. In those days, the
kronprinz was called "the .Hero of
Spincourt." He did not stay at Spin
court, nor was there any battle at
Spincourt. All the same, the kaiser de
sired his son to be hero of Spincourt
because it sounded something wonder
ful. When he broke the French fron
tier of Luxembourg, the kronprinz sat
down at Spincourt, first, to watch the
greatest booty of the German inva
sion, to send a thrill through all the
Fatherland the inexhaustible iron
mines of France, the famous Basin of
Briey. If the kronprins could hold
what he was supposed to have taken,
it would mean the everlasting pros
perity of the German iron and steel in
dustry. So. he must be hero of Spin
court, and the whole attack on Verdun
was designed to make that booty and
that glory solid.
And the kronprinx did not stay at
Spincourt.
He risked his precious skin further
south. Late in 1914, when the St
Mihiel tulge had been made impregna
ble, a vast boche engineering outfit
came to this little Mont Sec. camou
flaged itself, and began to drill into
the mountain.
Palatial DnKOWt Built.
The boche engineers dug, masoned.
cemented, floored, plastered, decorated
and furnished a palatial dugout in the
bowels of Mont Sec. of various floors.
with kitchens, steam heat, electric
light, an elevator and a secret passage
to the top of Mont Sec
In it the kronprins lived for consid
erable periods. There are several snug
dugouts of the kronprinz. well behind
the old front; but this is the Venus
Berg. To It the little Tannhaeuser and
his buddies returned, on many a gay
week-end trip, through five years of
war until the Americans one day
walked into St. Mihiel.
There was a reason.
A doughboy guide noints out the im
perial crown and "W for Willie, with
the date. 1914. on a big black and
silver-edged iron cross above the prin
cipal doorway.
'It isn't a palace entrance, says the
boy guide, "becauaa Willie's thought
Allies' Difficulties and Triumphs
was safety first; but wait till you get
inside!
Weeds grow wild. A broken plank
walk sags in the mud. Rustic garden
chairs sprawl in the shade, by rickety
beer tables; and a hand rail of sap
lings, leaning lamentably, leads to the
doorway in the mountain. All tells of
desertion. In the last days troops of
certain favored regiments were quar
tered in the theater and ballroom.
Just a doorway in the mountains;
but the masonry is massive. "Walk in!
Walk In!" calls the doughboy. "Each
of you take a candle! There's a big
electric light plant, but it is not run
ning. Same for steam heat.
Chsteas Loot TPvrTatnaea Cave.
Steam heat is not needed. From the
sultry July sunlight we change to the
mild and stuffy coolness of dark, spa-
clous hallways, like the stone ground
floor of a European palace with all
windows closed. But there are no win
dows. The candles make dancing
beams and shadows among walla still
hung with tapestries, on carved wood
hall chests, hat racks, a few grand
chairs and great buffets (all loot from
chateaux In north France).
The reception hall. explains the
doughboy as we pass on. "Here's the
private parlors, boudoir, dressing rooms
and sleeping rooms all in a bee-line
for the front door, so that Willie might
rush oat to his motor car in his pa
jamas in case of alarm."
"He should have felt safe here," ob
served a visitor.
"Huh, we took It," muttered the
doughboy. "We came up so close be
hind the barrage that we beat them to
the doorway! Otherwise he sure was
fixed for safety. These bijou apart
ments are the deepest the whole
mount is over them. Hey, there, don't
try them stairs; you'll get lost that-a-way!
This is his private dining room,
and those locked doors are to the spe
cial buttery. The French have got the
key. We handed It over. It seems that
there's a million dollars' worth of wine
there, French champagne by the hun
dreds and hundreds of cases, burgundy
and Bordeaux, the kind you read about,
which they all stole in French and Bel
gian cellars; Rhine wine even, special
choice lots, and a whooping lot of
particular Moselle which Willie's crowd
used for medicine to cool their stom
achs in the morning. That. I'm told. Is
why they kept on motoring her for
week-ends, after Verdun. This wins
stock is the pick of what they stole
in 1914, when the pickings were good.
There's real old French brandy here,
they say, worth J200 per bottle. Dis
tillers would give that for perfuming
But Willie wouldn't let m!"
In flickering candle light we wander.
All is absolutely intact down here. Ob
viously the Gwmans religiously re-
Ispected the private apartments of their I
kronprins to the last.
What labor, skill, finish, stealing!
Here we are in the bowels of the
mount. It Is a vast dugout, with ma
sonry walls, four floors, an elevator,
dumb waiters and concealed air shaft
for ventilation. Yet the walls of these
bijou rooms are plastered, painted and
wainscoted with beauttful white-lacquered
woodwork and even modern
sliding glass doors from beautiful
French country houses. Experts ripped
out ruthlessly whatever they needed,
down to polished marquetry floors, and
put them into place here. So they
looted rich French homes of furniture,
carpets, portieres and hangings. Her
s a grand piano. Here are paintings.
statuary.
In the bedrooms beautiful French
linen bears the monograms or crests
of half a dozen French families. Only
certain dress uniforms, hanging ir
closets all over the shop, were their
Vincent, the Mont Sec baker.
knows more about them than anyone...
hey always wore dress uniforms to
raise Cain," says Vincent. "The boxes
kept coming all through the war!"
And here the doughboy guide gets in
his joke. (Remember, it is but to smile;
nobody wants to slander Willie.)
The kronprinz wears corsets. Vin
cent, ain't that right? Didn't we find
six of em lying arourrtj these closets?
Vincent grins yes.
"The queer thing," goes on the Amer
ican, "is that Willie's figure must have
changed so quickly."
77? (inquire the visitors).
"Yea, five of the six corsets were all
dtfferent sizes. Some was fat (ana
here tie doughboy broke Into song)
Sorae of them was fat. ding, ding, and
some of them was thin ' "
Ctowi lrlce Had Elevator.
Climb the big stairway. In the dark.
to flickering candles. (It Is already
stuffy.) In Willie's day, there was
forced ventilation, blazing chandeliers.
and an elevator.
The theater and ballroom. Large
dining-room. Here there is confusion
of a lot of bedding those favored
regiments, in the last daj's. "They
were fat and dazed when they surren
dered." says the doughboy, "while the
other troops of St- Mihiel were rickety
and thin. They lived here discreetly.
The reception parlors are not touchexi.
1'ianos everywhere. The furniture Is
heterogeneous and rich. It is an Ali-
ficba cave, to which they dragged beau
tiful carved-wood tables, chairs, buf
fets, poufs, sofas, carpets, rugs, pic
tures, from a hundred stricken French
homes!
Climb on up. (It Is very stuffy.)
One can Imagine how this place grew.
Established originally as a safe nest
for the heir to the throne to sit and
watch his precious French iron fields.
it grew, with trench warfare, to a cel
lar for his wines and cosy-corner for
carousing "in the field." In spite of
furious French bombardments at In
frequent intervals, St. Mihiel had the
name of being a "safe sector" and im
pregnable. And Willie loaned the key
to friends. A prince does these things
princely.
(The Germans had a mania for con
crete and digging. At Lens, even the
sewers were enlarged and concreted;
and from them, by miles of .secret
ways, cellars, brewery vaults, ajid old
wine-caves hewn in the limestone were
Joined to meet abandoned coal mines-
bolstered up, all through, with ferro
concrete! There were vast troop dug
outs, 60 feet deep, where 3000 men
could live at ease, play cards, chat
over music,- take in shows, or read,
while killing time. They breathed
pure air from motor-pumped ventila
tors, while the earth above them fairly
rocked with ally shell-fire. Later, up
broad stairs, they rushed with port
able machine-guns to mow down the
Infantry of certain French and British
unsuccessful advances!)
Tourist Flood Has Begua.
Climb the stairs. It is up-side-down
house. The princely private apart
ments are at the bottom, the kitchen
at the top, the guests' rooms, offices,
ballroom and theater in the middle..
Here Is a floor of mysterious small
rooms. Many of them are locked.
There goes the famous spiral passage
to the top of Mont Sec It, too. Is
locked. We never get to the kitchens.
There are still mysteries. it would
seem, in the Venus-Garb of the Little
Tannhaeuser.
"I'm sick of that name," says the
doughboy. "It was some burg, all
right; but why should Willie be adver
tising an American brand of beer! It
ain't good sense."
The tourists will know better.
In March, 1916, it was announced
that 7000 passages had been booked by
Americans "on the first ships to leave
for Europe as soon as the war is over."
Six months later the number had
risen to 70,000 thus inscribed "and a
deposit paid on every berth retained!1
In March. 1917. the figure was put at
700,000, for which. of course. there
would not have been enough boats
the world even before submarine
crime, food shortage and the glorious
A. F. W hat was meant was that
an indefinite multitude of American
tourists must be expected In France,
to see the war aa soon as It was over.
Well, they have begun arriving.
The first tourists from America
since 1914 succeeded In disembarking
at Havre, a few weeks ago, on the
"Touralne." They related woeful tales
of difficulties thst must be surmount
ed to ohtain passports. The French
government docs not desire a large In
flux of tourists this year owing to the
shortage of food. The beer question
has nothing to do with It.
t FORTLAXD BOT CUTS AP
t POIXTJIKM TO A.VXAPOLU.
V i ,
BP',
r-''';; :r-':-i:.y-A
a- - '
Merlin F. SebaeMer.
Merlin Frederick Schneider, son
of Mr. and Mrs. W. F. Schneider
of this city and one of the four
Oregon boys to pass a recent
examination for entrance to the
naval academy at Annapolis, was
admitted to the academy July 1.
Young Schneider was born In
a suburb west of Portland, and
there finished his common school
and high school courses, receiv
ing notice of bis appointment on
the day he graduated. Before
leaving for the east he visited
with his grandparents, Mr. and
Mrs. S. C. Tichenor. ISO Kast
Thirty-second street. After three
weeks at Annapolis the future
admiral writes thst he is much
Interested In the IHe of a cadet.
Although it is vacation time, the
entering (Jam receives special
training Immediately.
JOAN HARD CASTLE, PORTLAND GIRL, WINS .
LONG CONTRACT ON VAUDEVILLE CIRCUIT
Graceful Dancer and Company Will Be Booked Under Direction of Alexander Pantages, and Plars Here
About Middle of August.
PORTLANDERS who have been fol
lowing the terpsichorean activities
of Joan Hardcaetle Harrison, a
Portland girl, will be interested to learn
that she has ju3t received a 37-week
booking as a headline act, sponsored
by Alexander Pantages qver the Pan-
ages circuit. Miss liar-least le will be
gin her engagement in Tacoma August
and will appear In Portland at Van
tages the following week.
Miss Harrison has her own company.
and besides her own individual dances
she will feature a lovely young Irish
girl. Sheila Valera, whose jazz special
ties are on the order of Lucille Kava
naugh and Muriel Worth's dancing.
Miss Valera is a former Seattle.
Wash., girl, now of Portland. Three
other young dancers, all of them Port-
and girls, appear in the company.
These are Vivian Bauff. who Is a
phenomenal toe dancer, Peggy Demare
and Nancy Reed, who is a sister of
Mrs. William Kolb of Kolb and DHL
Miss Hardcastle has originated the act
in its entirety and at a recent tryout
PRODUCER OF "MASQUERADER"
AIMS TO WRITE CLEAN PLAYS
Richard Walton Tully Tells of His Ambition to. Please American Audiences
and Maintain High Standard.
-f-T IS my chief ambition as a play-
-- Tuliy recently, "to write clean ,
plays that will please clean-minded
American audlencea." Mr. Tully la the
producer of "The Maaquersder." Iff
which Guy Bates Poat will appear at
the Helllg next week, and Is also spon
sor for "Keep Her Smiling." with Mr.
and Mrs. Sidney Drew as its stars. His
own plays include "The Rose of the
Rancho," "The Bird of Paradtae."
Omar, the Tentinaker." and "The
Flame." "When I first started to write
playa this desire was firmly fixed In
my mind, and with experience has come
an Intensification of the desire. By
clean' playa I do not mean namby-
pamby, spineless concoctions that could
only possibly Interest Sunday school
children. I mesn wholesome, virile
plays playa that contain plenty of
thrill's and episodes that stir red blood.
But I have no 'sympathy with salaclous-
nesa on the stsge, and I never could be
content to write off-color French
farces, the so-called 'bedroom type,
merely because I make more money by
so doing.
"In fact. In ail my writing and pro
ducing. I have tried to keep money In
the background- For the most part I
have backed my own plays, and while
I have had to make money In order to
live I have tried to maintain my self
respect at the same time. The success
of my three plays. The Rose of the
Rancho. The Bird of Paradise' and
'Omar, the Tentmaker. has led me to
believe that there are hundreds of theater-goers
who like dean, wholesome
drama.
"I believe that the average theater
goer fs partial to spectacular settings
and wardrobe displays. Not many spec
tacular plays are produced owing to the
great expense involved, but other
things being equal I do think that the
spectacular play has a better chance of
success than the more modestly adorned
piece. "
LOGGERS ENJOY COMFORTS
Inrnan-Fonlf-en Company Camps
Have Modern Conveniences.
KELSO. Wwh, July 2. (Special.)
The Inman-Poulsen Lumber com
pany Is completing two of the finest
l'.gging carapa In the northwest, about
a mile apart. In the district northwest
of Kelso. The company's main rail
way extends from Mt. Solo on Coal
creek slough, seven miles west of
Kelso, up Coal creek, and over the di
vide to Scant ygTease creek, to which
a railway, was built with 1600 feet of
10 per cent grade, where logs are
hauled up and the empty trucks let
down by a donkey engine. The com
pany has about four years of logging
in this district.
About 100 men are employed, getting
out approximately I60,oo0 feet of loss
dally. L. A. Young Is manager. Will
iam Senrmler camp foremsn. snd "Dan
Beck with is construction engineer.
The men sre provided with all mod
ern conveniences. The bunk houses
sre roomy, clean and well lighted, the
beds TOod the cookhouse and mesa
In Portland the beautiful scenic cur. '
tains and unusual dance numbers won
Immediate praise.
There are five dances on the pro
gramme, the first of which Is "Dawn,"
a group and number in which Miss
Hardcastle, who is an exquisite expo
nent of dance, offers a solo called "Sun
rise." The second number introduces
Vivian Bauff who is a Russian toe
dancer. This is followed by Sheila
Valera's specialty. "Vanity Fair." in
which she expresses in dance a mis
chievous sprite who would a swimming
go in the big sea.
The last number is a Javanese Jazz,
exceedingly colorful and original, de
picting a gentle argument between the
modern jazz steps and the esthetic soul
of creative dance. Mr. Pantages cre
ated some of the original steps intro
duced in this specialty.
Miss Hardcastle designed her own
curtains and with the help of Frank
HVrnic arranged the Incidental music
and also designed the costumes and
originated the dances. She Is a talented
young woman, devoted to her art. This
n
U
u i
a
a-,
i
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Post. "Tit Mm- 1
sjaerader. f
......... . a
(,7 Bates
halla Immaculately clean, and
camp has a sanitary bathhouse
hot and cold water morning and
ning for shower bath. Camp
has a large recreation hall with
Hard and pool tables, a vlrtrola a
library for recreation purposes,
camp five has s reading room,
tamps are so close together that
use the recreation hall.
each
with
bli
nd a
a nd
The
both
An English scientist asserts he per
fected a method whereby metals that
have been absorbed by human blood can
be withdrawn by electrol vti.
GIRLS! USE LEMONS
FOR SUNBURN, TAN
Try itl Make this lemon lotion
to whiten your tanned or
freckled skin.
queese the Juice of two lemons into
a bottle containing three ouncea of
Orchard White, shake well, and you
have a quarter pint of the best freckle,
sunburn and tan lotion, and complexion
whitener. at very, very small cost.
Your grocer has the lemons and any
drug store or toilet counter will sup
ply three ounces of Orchsrd White for a
few cents. Massage this aweetly fra
grant lotion Ir.to the face. neck, arms
and hands snd see how quickly the
freckles, sunburn, wlndburn and tan
disappear and how clear, soft and
white the skin bacomsa. Yea! It Is
barmleaa ii"
' is " ' & 1
Is her second season In vaudeville. A
year ago she was headllner over Pan
tages circuit as premier danseuse In
the "Garden of Roses Company." She
appeared at many patriotic benefits
during war days, and ber dancing is
widely admired for its grace and dis
tinction. Your Hair
Should Never
Become Grayl
You Can Prevent It !
I
A prominent hair and scalp rpseiaTtst
oi cnicago oaa discovered the secret !
The result, sought through 40 Ions-"
yesrs of scientific study and laboratory
research, is certain.
Co-Lo Hair Kestorer will restore the
natural color to your hair, no matter,
how gray It has become.
Harmless to hair and scalp. It en-
Ulna neither lead aor sulphur. Win
not wash or rub off has no sediment-rend
Is aa dear as water. A pleasing
and almple remedy to apply!
AC For black and all dark shades of
brown.
A7 Extra strong, for Jet black hair
only.
AS For all medium brown ahadea,
A For all very light brown, drab
and auburn shadea. .
Co-Lx Hair Restorer Is on sals at all .
stores of The Owl Drug Co.
Adler-i-ka
1 1 -e.
Again!
"Adler-l-ka Is ths only mid let ne for
gss on the stomach. 1 never had - ao '
much relief with any medicine. I would
not take $21.00 for the relief on bottle
of Adler-l-ka cave me. I cannot get
done recommundlng lu" (Signed) H. L
Hicks. Ashley. II L
Adler-l-ka expels ALL gas and sour
ness. stopping stomach distress IN
STANTLY. Empties BOTH upper and
lower bowel, flushing ENTIRJQallmen
mentary canal. Removes ALL foul mat
ter which poisons system. Often CURES
constipation. Prevents appendicitis. W
have sold Adler-l-ka many years. It Is
a mixture of buckthorn, cases ra, glyc
erine and nine other simple drugs.
Skldmore Drug company and leading
druggists. Adv.
RHEUMATISM
ACCIPK.
1 will clftdty Nnd nr rhumatlam wH-rV
Btxxipl Urb Rocpj AtMoluteijr Frmm thm
C4ifrr4iy CurtU tn of trrtbi atLtc .
i BiMouiar snd lAXiavmmsvtorjT Hmumitim
f long t&odinji miiMt vrythirxs -.
irt4 bad Xai.w-d n. I btv giv u
tMoy wiltinm &o bjUw oxl th-vir caMa
bopiM, ret vb j found reiiaf from laaur
uKoM-lnf by tak.ee UeM aimplt barba. it
atao ritaa fe iuca prempiiy aa wl u
iS aura. cia. and la a woDdvrtui blood puriftor.
Tan ara moat maJcoma to Uiia Marfc AkOripo
X jri wui aaaii lor It at oocox I buMvi
oi will con-ttuor it a Oorl-acod altr poy
bava put It to th tact- Thra la aotbtrr
lcjunoua contain oxl in it. and you a
foi vouraait utvotiy wfaat yoa ara la kin m
I wfli Kiadsy Mod tbu Racip aboiatl
It mm in any muttwr bo wi! Ms- D mi
inH -'-: i r--a p.a.n.jT wniif. M. D. MTlO-i,
ta4 liMaf"Jt' Aov lva annaioa. j aUjIoraiaa.