Gentlemen, Marseilles may be somewhat ignored, but France was not forgotten by America. I need not mention the numerous proofs our country has received of your country's sympathy. But I only fulfill a duty in emphasizing the very great help we have found in America in the course of this terrible war, the greatest human cataclysm which ever stormed the human world. All of us are aware that France found in America another kind of help than material, steel and grain. France found amongst you any sort of goods, but also—and over all—kindness and pity. American ambulances, splendidly organized, afforded invaluable relief to our wounded on the front. May I mention not that American airmen rendered to our army the most useful services, and that American lives were lost for France. America helps us by sea, on land and in the air. Your country knows that France is not fighting for power or profit, but that she is pouring the best of her children's blood for Freedom and Humanity.
Gentlemen, we used to say in France that good accounts, that is good settlements of business, make good friends. I believe that the words may be reversed and that good friendship may lead to good business. I trust that after this war, trade between America and Marseilles will be largely extended. We have shown you that, notwithstanding the present worries and difficulties, we are pushing on our harbor improvements and preparing large accommodation for shipping and industry. We strongly believe that, in the near future, Marseilles must become the most important harbor and center of commerce for the whole Mediterranean Sea. We think that the American trade will find in our city the best center of distribution for your large exports of commodities such as petroleum, harvesting machinery, tobacco, and that they should be forwarded through Marseilles to all the Mediterranean shores. I have no doubt your visit in our city will allow you to observe that you can find here produce of our land or of our industry, most convenient for American requirements, and that in the mutual interest of your and our cities the trade between Marseilles and American ports will be proportionate to the friendship of the Nations.
Mr. President, Gentlemen, I propose your good health and the good health of your friends, and the prosperity of our sister Republic, The United States of America.
[Illustration: Shore of Mediterranean near Marseilles. In the Distance Chateau D'If, Made Famous by Dumas.]
There was greeting by M. Artaud, president of the Chamber of Commerce, and a response by Mr. Nichols. We were given an ovation by the most representative people of Marseilles. We met at this dinner, A. Gaulin, American Consul General, and he was most cordial.
The next day was Sunday. In the afternoon we visited the Marseilles Art Museum. We saw a bust, recently found, which dates back to the Second century; it resembles very closely the work of Rodin. In this museum we saw an old bell, labeled 1840, and an old straw hat, labeled 1820. We drove all over the city, visited the old docks and noted the cosmopolitan conglomeration of people in streets.
We were taken to the Chateau D'If, which is a quarter of a mile out at sea, made world-famous by Dumas in the noted novel "The Count of Monte Cristo". We all resolved, right then and there, that when we got home we would re-read "The Count of Monte Cristo". In our drive we saw Longchamp palace, which resembles very much the court of honor in the National McKinley Birthplace Memorial at Niles, Ohio. The entrance to the port of Marseilles resembles the Golden Gate at San Francisco. We gathered considerable information in our talks with the people we met at Marseilles, being told among other things, that all the officials of the French government are to hold over until the war is over, that is to say, elections are suspended for the time being. The efficiency and preparedness of the Germans was enlarged upon, it being stated, as is very well known, that Germany was the only country prepared at the time the war broke out.
We visited at Marseilles the birthplace of Rouget de l'Isle, the author of the Marseilles hymn. This hymn was first sung by a lady at an evening party in Straussburgh, Germany, and it was then called the "Hymn of the Soldier from Marseilles", but afterwards became known as "The Marsellaise Hymn". It is the national anthem of France; the words are inspiring and no one, whether American or French, can listen to the music of this hymn without being stirred to the depths.
We heard much of the vast stores of zinc and iron ores in Tunisia and Algeria, and were given much information about French colonies. France, including its colonies, has nearly one hundred million people. The Trans-Africa Railroad takes in a population of more than two hundred million people along the Mediterranean, including France, Spain and Italy. One of the largest dams in the world, "La Durance Dame," 429 feet across, is in France, not far from Marseilles.