Tuesday July 9th, 1918
Passed through South of France. Very nice scenery.
Arriving in France
It seems a pity that the train crossed into France in the middle of the night. Lt Borgonon had a much more enthusiastic and rousing reception when crossing in the opposite direction during the daytime in January 1918:
‘Passed through Cannes at 5.30, Nice 7 o’clock, then took the Mediterranean Coast line route through Nice where we received vociferous cheering from the inhabitants, flag waving was the order of the day and every man, woman and child seemed to possess a flag of some sort.’¹
Wagon Trains
When I read that 32 other ranks were in each wagon car, I thought it sounded terrible. This short extract of film, showing US troops travelling in similar accommodation, makes it seem less so. I also understand now while Frank could comment on the passing scenery. A link to the complete film is at the foot of this post:²
13th (Service) Battalion War Diary – 9th July 1918 – Cannes, France
Arrived 09:30 hrs for breakfast. Departing 11:40 hrs. Crossed from Italy to France about 03:00 hrs. Train stopped outside Cannes giving time for a bathe and breakfast. Crossed from Italy to France about 03:00 hrs. Train stopped outside Cannes giving time for a bathe and breakfast.
References & Further Reading
¹ Salonika Diary 1918 by Lt V E Borgonon
² WWI -Troop train in Europe from WWI Railways on History Archives, may be subject to copyright.