SHIPPING: Legion

One week in 1927, a great number of Americans will take ship for France, and their name will be Legion—American Legionnaires, 15,000 to 50,000 strong, it is expected. The destination will be Paris for the celebration of the tenth anniversary of the U. S. entrance into the war.

In 1927 there will not—or should not be—submarines lying in wait to make the passage difficult as it was in 1917, but there will be other shipping problems. Already a committee has been at work making preparations for the pilgrimage. At first they approached the United States Lines, but found that they could not accommodate the entire sailing in such a brief space of time as was necessary according to the Legion’s plans. So the committee approached English and French lines as well. Last week it was announced that the committee had made a number of agreements calling for: 1) reduced rates; 2) no ship to be filled to more than three quarters its capacity; 3) no class barriers on the ships used.

It was reported that there was some difficulty in getting the United States Lines to agree to these terms, but that an agreement was finally made that the United States Lines should carry 4,500 of the legionnaires on the President Harding, President Roosevelt, Republic and America. Any number over that will have to travel on foreign ships, on which liquor is sold.