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No wonder the Frenchmen who went thru all this agony of the war look at the present situation [[underlined]] differently than Americans [[/underlined]] or even [[underlined]] Englishmen [[/underlined]] and their impatience when economic matters are being discussed is not merely the result of academic reasoning They lost [[strikethrough]] both [[/strikethrough]] the [[underlined]] largest number of men [[/underlined]] and their property besides. The [[underlined]] Germans lost men [[/underlined]] but the [[underlined]] German people [[/underlined]] [[strikethrough]] never [[/strikethrough]] was not [[underlined]] confronted with the barbarous, merciless devastation [[/underlined]] which [[underlined]] took place here. [[/underlined]]
Drove thru [[underlined]] Arras, [[/underlined]] almost entirely restored. Even that remarkable old market place with its stone pillared galeries has been so well restored by using old pillars the old bricks, old doors and windows that it looks as if nothing had happened.
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The churches alone and some of the larger buildings are still in ruins.
Mr. [[underlined]] Mercier [[/underlined]] is giving to day a dinner to his engineering staff about 80. This is the second instalment of about 40, the dining room not being large enough to accommodate the full number All [[underlined]] these men make a very good impression. Mr. Valette [[/underlined]] is his [[underlined]] chief chemist. [[/underlined]] Young [[underlined]] Mercier [[/underlined]] who is his fathers right hand and is to succeed him is about 45 but looks more like a man of 35. and [[underlined]] makes a good impression, [[/underlined]] looking very much like his father but his hair is jet-black instead of snow-white I was invited to take young Mrs. Mercier to her seat at the table. on my left was Mr. [[underlined]] Marchand, [[/underlined]] one of the principal engineers. An excellently served dinner, informal but digni-