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The village of cantonnement is pretty sure to be the usual brown-walled, red-roofed village of Lorraine clumped round its parish church or mouldering castle. In such a French village there is always a hall, usually over the largest wineshop, called the "Salle de Fêtes," and this hall serves for the concert each regiment gives while en repos.
"La lune s'est levée. Elle perce mal les feuillages denses des pruniers et le cantonnement immobile reste sombre. Ç
It was just after lunch that Amelie came running down the road to say that we were to have a cantonnement de regiment on our hill for the night and perhaps longer French reinforcements marching out from the south of Paris; that they were already coming over the crest of the hill to the south and could be seen from the road above; that the advance scouts were already here.
February 2, 1917 I had hardly sent my last letter to the post when news came that the 23d Dragoons had arrived safely at their new cantonnement, but here is the letter, which will tell the story. Sorry that you insist on having these things in English they are so very much prettier in French. With the Army, January 29 Dear Madame,
They had first withdrawn the horses to Nanteuil-le-Haudrouin a little northwest of us, about halfway between us and the trenches in the Forêt de Laigue. But that cantonnement had not been satisfactory, so they had retired here. By sundown everything was arranged four hundred horses along the hilltop, and, they tell us, over fifteen thousand along the valley.
This time the cantonnement does not come up to Huiry only to the foot of the hill at Voisins. Of course I have not seen our boys yet, but I probably shall in a few days. March 28, 1917 Well, all quiet on the hilltop again all the soldiers gone no sign of more coming for the present. We are all nervously watching the advance, but controlling our nerves.
The cavalry is not yet really mounted for action. But we hope all the same. The 118th is slowly settling down, but I'll tell you about that later. February 10, 1917 Well, the 118th has settled down to what looks like a long cantonnement. It is surely the liveliest as well as the biggest we ever had here, and every little town and village is crowded between here and Coulommier.
It was going to be pretty close quarters for one night, and the adjutant who arranged the cantonnement was rather put to it to house his men. The Captain was to be in my house, and I was asked, if, for two days perhaps less I could have an officers' kitchen in the house and let them have a place to eat. Well, there the house was they were welcome to it.
This is growing into a long letter in the quiet that has settled on us I seem to have plenty of time and the mood so, before I close, I must say something in reply to your sad sentence in your last letter the reply to mine of December regarding our first big cantonnement.
I don't know how it works behind the trenches, but here, in the cantonnement, I could set my clocks by the soup wagon a neat little cart, drawn by two sturdy little horses, which takes the hill at a fine gallop, and passes my gate at exactly twenty-five minutes past eleven, and twenty-five minutes past five every day. The men wait, with their gamelles, at the top of the hill.
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