London, Oct. 21.
and cold seem to have set in for the winter, but all is well on the British Western Front, says Reuter's Special Correspondent with the British Expeditionary Force "somewhere. in France." He quotes a high staff officer as declaring cheerfully that such weather "is just what we want," and says that the belief apparently held that bad weather and heavy going must be infinitely harder to bear for the Germans than for the field forces of the Allied army.
"I have just returned to General Headquarters," the correspondent states, "after driving and walking scores of miles over the British zone, where there was an inspection of our front-line Positions. The weather has been wretched, with heavy rains and cold winds, and in many places I saw considerable flooding. The spirit of the troops remains wonderfully high, and various units are making their own local arrangements for drying the men's wet clothing and providing the men with the baths when they come off duty.
"In cafes of towns and villages, light wine, beer and coffee, but no spirits, may be consumed. The men are entertained by radio programmes from receiving sets specially provided by the Provost-Marshal'
As a result of the rainy and cloudy weather, aerial inactivity is reported to be general among most Allied units on the Western Front, says Reuter's Special Correspondent with the R.A.F. in France. Even exercises behind the Maginot Line are infrequent, Reconnajsance flights over Germany this week were carried out from England.
The nerves of British airmen in France, the correspondent says, show no signs of cracking, however, Aider the strain of waiting and the approach of winter, with days, possibly weeks, when flying may be impossible.
Mud may be piling up in the villages where they are billeted, and their secret aerodromes are becoming sodden, but officers and men are still amazingly cheerful, and their job ever to be ready for a take-off in attack er defence is being faithfully carried out. A false alarm last week proved this—Reuter.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.