Evening Republican, Volume 19, Number 217, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 13 September 1915 — SON OF OLD FRIEND RETURNS FROM ABROAD [ARTICLE]

SON OF OLD FRIEND RETURNS FROM ABROAD

Mrs. J. J. Montgomery Receives Interesting Account of Visit to Europe of J. R. Pauli.

(Mrs. J. J. Montgomery is in receipt of a letter from a friend in Tauton, Mass., which enclosed a long article describing the experiences and impressions of John R. Pauli during a recent visit in Europe. Mr. Pauli is a young man and a law student of Harvard University. His mother was a girlhood friend of Mrs. Montgomery at Rockford, 111. Young Pauli went abroad as a tutor with a wealthy family and was offorded an excellent opportunity to study the effects of the great war upon the nations of the continent.

He was in Paris on one occasion when German Zeppelins raided the city and when as a warning of the visit fire engines rushed through the streets all took to the basements after lights had been extinguished. After an hour the Zeppelins departed and all emerged from the basements. Several houses were destroyed by bombs and one death resulted on that visit.

Mr. Pauli made two trips to Italy during the several months spent abroad. On his first visit he found many Italians pro-German but after that country entered the war he visited it again and everywhere the people were bitter against the Germans and Austrians and confident that Italy would be victorious. In Rome and other cities in Italy business moved along serenely and was little affected by the war, but in Paris and London things were greatly upset. There were very few young-men in Taris, most all having gone to the front. Many hotels had been turned into hospitals and thousands of maimed were being treated, while almost every person wore a band of black in respect to some relative lost in the great war. Paris is no longer the gay city it was. Few of the great cases are open and are very serious and while confident of ultimate success are aware that it will take a long time. Troops are training everywhere in France and England. In London no lights are allowed at night except where jlinds are'drawn while no lights at all are allowed in coast towns.

Mr. Pauli said that he heard of few, if any, stories of German atrocities. France was grateful to England for its part in the war. Everywhere was a grave uncertainty as to the outcome. He found Italy the most fascinating of the countries and his party was granted an audience with Pope Benedict XV. Vatican rules require that all who appear before the Pope be dressed in evening costume, tall hats and white gloves. He was received mots cordially and was guided through the Vatican building and grounds, including a visit to the art museum. The sentiment in the Vatican is a great horror for war and a deep feeing of the terrible disaster that invades Europe. On the return trip made bn a French vessel no incidents were recorded, but through the war zone the port holes were stopped and the vessel was prepared for the emergency of attack. Wfiile Mr. Pauli is not known here and Mrs. Montgomery had seen him only as a little boy, the experiences he had and which ■ were so well reported in a Taunton paper, will prove very interesting, we feel sure, to all readers of The Republican.