We left General Nivelle, as General Pétain predicted we should find
him--smiling.

We slept that night at Epernay, in the heart of the Champagne district.
The soil of France is doing its best to keep the vines in perfect
condition and to provide a good vintage to be drunk later to celebrate
the victory of France and her Allies.

The keeping of the roads in good condition is necessary for the rapid
carrying out of operations on the front, and a "marmite" hole is
promptly filled if by a lucky shot the German batteries happen to tear
up the roadway. We were proceeding casually along one road when a young
officer rode up to us and told us to put on speed because we were under
fire from a German battery which daily landed one or two shells in that
particular portion of the roadway. It is wonderful how obedient one
becomes at times! We promptly proceeded to hasten!

After visiting General Debeney and obtaining from him the necessary
authorisation and an officer-escort, we entered Rheims.

The cathedral is now the home of pigeons, and as they fly in and out of
the blackened window-frames, small pieces of the stained glass tinkle
down on to the floor. The custodian of the cathedral told us that during
the night of terror the German wounded, lying in the cathedral, not
realising the strength and beauty of the French character under
adversity, feared, seeing the cathedral in flames, that the populace
might wreak vengeance on them, and it was exceedingly difficult to get
them to leave the cathedral. Many of the prisoners fled into corners and
hid, and some of them even penetrated into the palace of the Archbishop,