Simultaneously with this display, the French were holding a commemoration of their own, of an entire ly different. character, on the battlefield of Verdun, where 400,000 French officers and men were killed.
JOne simple fact which brings home the terrible nature of the struggle round Verdun is that only 100,000 bodies were identified. The other 300,000 were simply annihilated—mingled with the soil of the battlefield or reduced to a few bones. It was decided to build an ossuary, at Douaumont, to provide these poor remains with a worthy xepulehre and memorial of their sacrifice; and the building, though still unfinished, has been inaugurated by Marshal Petain. Fifty-two coffins, contain ing the dust of nameless heroes, were brought in procession from the battlefields, in the presence "of many thousands of mourners—black-clad men and women of all ages, grizzled officers whose fighting days are over, anil priests whose red ribbons told of gallant conduct in the field. Verdun and its suburbs could not provide accommodation for all these pilgrims, and many of them spent the night, which was rainy and depressing, out of doors, rather than be late for the cere: monies in the morning.
When the coffins were brought into the ossuary, the atmosphere was as full of solemnity as if every-tone present were closely related to the dead, and no doubt many comforted themselves with the hope that some lost son or husband was exchanging a nameless drive for a dignified resting-place. At the even ing service, when the time came for Marshal Petain to turn on the lights in the tower for the first time, he left his seat and walked in dead silence to, the swi the lever,'and, as the light' stream~ fed out, returned to his place and knelt in prayer, Two Lucky Men Two Frenchmen who took part fi the frst skirmish of the grent war still are alive, and both are natives Jot the same part of France: They belonged to one of the cavalry regle rents told off to patrol six miles inside the frontier, not far from Swiso territory. The firet blow was struck a patrol of Uhlans, under Lieut, Mayer, who came into contact with a French infantry post near Joncherey, and Lieut, Mayer, drawing his revolver, shot Corporal Peugeot, who was thus singled out by Fate the first Frenchman: to fall the war. Racenet, then a sergeant in the 11th Dragoons, appeared on the scene a few minutes later, with a small party of troopers, and went in pursuit of the Unlans." He aver took Lieut. Mayer and "shot him, Continuing the pursuit, he discover-Jed the lieutenant's orderly, one Platt, in an adjoining wood," ever powered him after a severe struxkte and, with the help of a comrade, took him to Joncherey and handed him over to the colonel of the dree xoon regiment, Abut. half-an-hour later, three other dragoons, named Cheviolat, Chenept and Joseph Bey, Jeaptured another Uhlan, the rest of the patrol escaping."
Chevrolet: and Chenepi were swale lowed up in the whirlpool of war, but Joseph Bey keeps a wine-shop, Besangon and occasionally alka ver old times with hin comrade Racenet, who has a small distillery, fat Goukelans. "In the debates this small point of "history which, have appeared inthe local papers, tone clnnog help noticing the survive fal of the old racial feeling which hun its roots in the original Provine cial divisions of the country, Thg distinction of figuring inthe. firat skirmish is claimed not for inhabite ants of the department of the Doubs, but of the ancient province of Franche Comte, The Long Dogs for France: Some Quaint Early Experiences Paris, Sept, 29, The French public ly not to bd deprived of the joys of greyhound racing, but the preliminaries will take time, French legislation daed not adapt itself readily to novelties of this kind. As everyone knows, horse-racing and betti rae, erly regulated, that the State may derive revenue {from the human weakness—which prompts the risking of money on [chances of some more or leas unceliae ble animal. The State no doubt will be quite willing to accept a similar income from greyhound racing, bub the legal machinery hay not yet been Perfected, although already it is ing put together. A Bill sanctioned by the Minister of Agriculture, fauthorisinge the pari-mutuel at dog races, was voted by the Chamber of Deputies last session and probably. will become law before the end of the present year. If promoters' plang materialise, several tracks provided with elgetric hares will be ready' for greyhound racing in.the neighbour= hood of Paris, under the control of the French Greyhound Club.
Coursing with live hares, as brace tised in England, is looked upos in France as a somewhat barbarous sport, and is not likely to be permit ted. Hitherto, the only attempts og greyhound racing in France have fbcen of a primitive and rather comte ical character, The owner of each dog stood at the winning post and fealied or whistled to his faithful hound, which would gallop towards him if it felt so inclined. A mete ing of this kind was held a few days ago, on a new estate which is being developed in Chantilly Forest, and in nearly every race some of th¢ competitors declined to trouble about} Jiumping the obstacles, while others Toitered on the way to play.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.