VISITING GRAVES IN FLANDERS.
[To THE EDITOR OF THE " SPECTATOR."7 SIR,—Those proposing to visit graves in Flanders and in France may like to hear the experiences of two of our family who have lately returned. Trains were cold; fares were reasonable enough; horses seemed unobtainable, and motors scarce, with prohibitive prices, £20 being asked for a single day. But those who take out their own bicycles can make their way at little cost along the whole British front; only if they penetrate into small places in a ruined countryside they must cheerfully put up with some discomfort. The bicycles should, of course, be strong enough to stand the appalling jolting of defective pave. A machine left unattended outside a house was stolen, and there was none to hire. There was a shortage of small change, the French not taking Belgian money, and some notes for small sums being only of local currency. At some wayside stations no change was given, and to be without the exact sum might mean the loss of your train. But the Y.M.C.A. were always ready to give change and were most kind and helpful in every possible way.
Owing to the numerous murders, which were attributed to the Chinese, it was not considered advisable, at all events for women, to go about alone outside the towns. As to cemeteries and graves, the War Office information proved inadequate and inaccurate: The number on the War Office Register has no relation to the numbers in the cemetery, so before starting it is imperative to get both the number of the plot and the actual number of the grave. The official name of the cemetery may be quite unknown in the locality, but if it is near an unde- stroyed village the cure will help. It would be well to insist on getting more detailed information—say the number of 'miles from one or more points, with the compass direction, the nearest road, and some prominent feature. To find cemeteries on the battlefields themselves must always be difficult even for those who are armed with good official maps. Happy those who, when at a loss, can find a Y.M.C.A. hut near their goal! All the cemeteries seemed to be carefully tended except those that were to be moved. It would be well to defer visits now till the
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