®<5K5^fi)®®®®®®®'3)®®®®l5X2>SX®)®<S‘S)®®,5)fs>aXaX2»S)'5)'S)®<SXSXsX5X2)®®'SX5),2),S),S>,5KSX5X5>®®<5*
Sydney Laurence
COMMERCIAL AND PICTORIAL
PHOTOGRAPHY
| Masonic Building. J
The Satisfy ! - and
yet theyre WILD
BEHIND THE BRITISH LINES
IN FRANCE, April 30.—When the
tide of German invasion swept
through Belgium and into France,
thousands of the inhabitants fled be
fore it, leaving their property to the
mercy of the invader. The tide was
stemmed and made to ebb, but in its
backward rush still more material
damage was done, and now, after
two xpars and more of trench war
fare, the country behind the British
lines ^onsists of a broad belt of
woods, and damaged buildings, where
once lay a region of agricultural peace
and plenty.
Yet it is surprising to find, amid
all this apparent ruin, that the popula
tion is enjoying a prosperity as great,
and in many cases, greater than in
peace times.
Many of the old inhabitants have
gone, it is true, but a large proportion
have stayed behind, in spite of the
perils and restrictions which proxim
ity to the trench area involve, and,
though the bustle of war has put an
end to many of their wonted daily avo
cations, starvation is far removed
from the door even of the nearest
dwelling places.
The vast floating population of sol
diers i^ the secret of the war zone’s
prosperity. The soldiers, men able
and willing to pay god currency for
services rendered, have provided the
remaining population with opportuni
ties of which the people have not been
slow to avail themselves. Thought at
any moment death may swoop out of
the skies, claiming as its victims sol
dier and civilian alike, there is money
to be earned by those who care to run
the risks and work is to be had for the
asking, at profits undreamed of in
peace times. Moreover, the greater
the risk the greater the profit.
Dotted all over the country and
clustering closely together in the
towns and villages, are numerous
cafes which sell the light Flemish
beer and French wines in addition to
supplying food and other forms of re
freshment. These cafes do a flourish
ing trade, and the closer to the lines
the better the trade and the higher
the prices. It is true the trade is kept
well in hand by the stringent meas
ures of Antrol enforced by the author
ities. The sale of spirits is sternly
suppressed and disobedience is pun
ished by the suppression of the house.
Anywhere in the war zone in France
a cup of coffee and an omelette can
generally be obtained at a reasonable
cost, and many of the houses have no
tices in their windows announcing
“bacon and chips” at moderate prices.
Almost every house contains some
thing fgp sale, ranging from a modest
store 9t chocolate and picture post
cards to the full stock-in-trade of a
well equipped village store.
Another very profitable occupation
in the war zone is lace-making. The
women behind the northern part of the
line make lace as good as can be
bought anywhere in the world. It can
be obtained either in lengths for trim
ming purposes or made up in the form
of dainty handkerchiefs, caps or
apron. All day they work at the win
dows of their cottages, old women and
young girls heedless of the guns which
often thunder around them. The laces
are eagerly bought by British soldiers
mindful of their women-folk at home,
and often orders have to be placed
weeks ahead. The prices charged leave
a good margin of profit.
Plenty of other means of liveli
hood are open to any who care to take
advantage of them. Road repairing
absorbs the energies of every avail
able man or boy, and for the women
there is good money in washing or
mending clothes. The British sol
dieris inclined to be particular about
his wearing apparel, and the neatness
of the French women’s mending is a
never-ending source of delight to him.
Then billetting brings in some good
returns. Thousands of soldiers are
billeted in houses and barns belonging
to the local population, and though the
presence of soldiers in their houses
causes some inconvenience, the people
are far from showing any resentment
In addition to the rent paid them, oth
er emoluments accrue from the sale of i
dainties and the performing of little !
services for the guests. The mayor of
each community superintends the bil- :
leting and secures fair compensation :
for any damage done to property in ■
the occupation of troops. That the ■
working arrangements are generally j
equitable is shown by the popularity ■
of the British soldier on all parts of j
the line.
—
While working on Cleary creek, j
near Fairbanks, several years ago, j
Manley Mayhood fell down a shaft and !
sustained severe injuries to his head, j
For some time after the accident he !
was considered metnally weak, but he i
eventually recovered. A recent letter !
from the outside, however, states that i
the mental trouble has recurred and j
that young Mayhood has been confined i
at the Stockton, California, state hos- j
| pital for the insane.
_ ■ j
Fred Carlquist, wno Is a graduate i
I optician from San Francisco, is per- j
' manently established with George Os- j
; bom, the C. St. Jeweler, ami will ex- j
1 amine eyes free. 260
_
i
Chicken Fence, Garden Fence and i
Garden Gates at Bolte Hardware Co.
Phone 90R. 46
Mixed, hot and cold drinks served
just right at Peterson’s. 2
F. A. POLLEY F. M. POLLEY
Clothing
carried in our stock is all standard
stock and includes
CLUETT & PEABODY SHIRTS
DAGGDERNEL SHIRTS,
French Cuffs
FILSON SUITS
PIG SKIN PUTTEES
WASHINGTON SHOES
HATS AND CAPS
Polley Brothers
GENERAL MERCHANDISE.
I The Price Remains The Same j
Their style, their quality, their guarantee of satisfaction has become
the new standard of value for $ 1 7 throughout the nation. Their '
achievement enables men to be well dressed without being asked i
to pay one cent more.
Style pi us <u-|7
Clothes _+il
'The some orice the nation over*
I are still $17, but the price of nearly everything else has jumped.
I When the war came everyone in the
clothing business thought that wool
would go up. The makers of Style
plus Clothes $ 1 7 on account of their
extensive advertising were duty bound
to keep on supplying the public with
"all wool fabrics, expert tailoring, the
% shill of a great designer,™ at the known
v9 price $ 17—provided there was any
« way on earth to do it.
|P What happened? These makers
| bought woolens and linings in tremen
t dous quantity. They kept on adver
tising "the price remains the same.11
Volume doubled, manufacturing costs i
dropped because of the increased pro
duction—new efficiency and new i
economies came to light through the
"necessity of the hour." ^
Incidently, the makers as well as our- {
selves have been content with a smaller
profit in order to keep your price the
same.
\
Please do not forget—w'e are the only .
Styleplus Store here. '
I
I
Brown & Hawkins
“QUALITY FIRST” 1
THE store for all the people < gj Anchorage and Seward '
I