Page Ten
THE SUMMER DAILY
Friday, June 1, 1973
French Foreign Legion:
Romantic image fades
By MORT ROSENBLUM
Associated Press Writer
PAPEETE, Tahiti - T h e
Beau Geste generation wouldn't
believe it the French Foreign
Legion in hammocks and sar-
ongs, building roads in the
South Seas without a camel in
sight.
The legion just isn't the same
old last resort for romantics and
misfits spoiling for a fight. Here,
the main task is helping build fa-
cilities to test the nuclear wea-
pons to put their style of battle
out of fashion.
THE TAHITI contingent, offic-
ers here say, is one of the six
remaining legion regiments. On-
ly a unit in French Somaliland
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and another farther down the
east coast of Africa in Mada-
gascar are based outside - of
France.
And camels went out years
agog
"Yes, there are men who miss
a good scrap," said Lt. Col. Hen-
ri Riou, a 26-year veteran and
the top legion officer here. "To-
day we are motorized, modern-
ized. There is no more folklore."
IN TAHITI and in neighboring
Polynesian islands, about 600 le-
gionnaires work with 300 regular
army men in a mixed construc-
tion unit. Their 5th Regiment
standard, strung with ribbons
from Indochina in 1880 and lat-
er North Africa skirmishes,
hangs in the office of their com-
mander - a career army engin-
eer.
The legion left Indochina al-
most twa, decades ago, and in-
dependence in North Africa end-
ed France's role there.
"We don't want war again, but
if it's necessary, we'll be in the
first row . . ." said Riou, second
in command. "If someone said
tomorrow we're going back to In-
dochina, even as tourists, every
man. would volunteer."
HE SHRUGGED a G a l l i c
-shrug and added:
"But if there's no war, we've
got other things to do." The old
movies don' t show it, but the le-
gion's mission has always been
to build as well as fight. The le-
gion cut roads all over France's
now dwindling empire.
Legionnaires in Polynesia, be-
sides building bomb test installa-
tions, have put up an enormous
sports stadium in Papette along
with other public works projects.
THE MIXED unit here erects
and guards facilities used in the
French nuclear tests on remote
islands of Polynesia. They oper-
ate on at least 10 different is-
lands.
When they first arrived a dec-
ade ago, some Polynesians de-
cided to keep the legionnaires
away from their women. That
was the last fighting the legion
did here, and it didn't last long.
Now most men spend their lei-
sure hours under the palms fish-
ing, swimming and reminiscing
about chasing guerrillas across
deserts. Their favorite bartender
downtown is still trying to find
a way to fight in Vietnam.
AS ALWAYS since the legion
was formed in 1831, only the of-
ficers can be Frenchmen. Le-
gionnaires here have dozens of
nationalities and background and,
Riau says, the changed role
around- the world hasn't hurt re-
cruitment.
Some of the men ease right in-
to relaxed island life, and dozens
have retired early to settle down
here with their girlfriends and
wives. Tahitian families consid-
er legionnaires good catches
since they build a good house and
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"Men like to come here, but QUEEN'S COURIER:
this isn't the most sought-after
post," said Riou. "Most want to g
go to Djibouti Som aliland. TheretSsai f thXgo nU'tw p s
satisfy the legionnaire's two pus- li e x h u t n
sions - fighting and construct- By GREGORY JENSEN
ing."LONDON (UPI) - Wing Commander H. R. Allen dipped a toe into
RIOU, with obvious nostalgia the world -of James Bond and found it wholly exhausting.
playing over his severe features, Allen was anything but a spy. But he protected more state secrets
or me, I remember most than Ian Fleming's hero ever knew, and a pretty tiring business it was.
Indochina. It wasn't just the war
it was the discovery of the EVERY COUNTRY has diplomatic couriers, but England's royal
Orient, contact with the people, messenger corps goes back almost a thousand years. Its members
seeing how they believe in their simply deliver diplomatic correspondence safely, despite the other
way. Every soldier who has side's James Bonds.
been to Indochina is marked by Allen says the glamorous touches of a fictional spy's career hap-
it. pen only rarely in reality. Every precaution is taken to avoid them.
"Also, leaving Algeria, almost
the father of the legion, meant ON TRAINS in Communist countries, for instance, Queen's Mes-
so much to us . . .'sengers munch sandwiches or cook on portable stoves in their oam-
COL. ALFRED BALTZEN- partments rather than risk poison or dope in the dining car. In China
JER, the army man who com- they always travel in pairs.
mands the mixed regiment, says Even so, Allen says, there can be incidents like the one in Sofia,
he finds the legion admirably Bulgaria. There "a rare beauty" in "an ankle-length evening dress
suited to its new role here.x, of shining satin with a slit in the side of her skirt runningup to the
ceptional' is very,tvery import- level of her navel" did her persuasive best to seduce Allen. He con-
ant." sidered the possible hidden cameras and declined.
The dangers a messenger faces come more from risky flying than
from foreign agents licensed to kill. But even without thrills the job
NEXT WEEK sounds like a dream for luxury-loving adventurers.
FREE INSTRUCTIONS OUTSIDE EUROPE the 50-odd Queen's Messengers - mostly re-
P BILLIARDS tired military officers-always fly first class. They are chauffered to
POCKET and from every plane, "always the first aboard and the last to leave,"
US.- P plied wit champagne, caviar, fine hotels, VIP treatment.
But often a messenger's journey is one slogging grind. Allen gives
M~ic nUnion details of one 23-day trip from London to Peking and Ulan Bator, Mon-
ICIg9Of golia, and back; with "precious little rest" en route.
He tells of hair-raising landings at Katmandu, everything going
wrong, trips to remote Africa, the unglamorous side of a ride on the
Orient Express.
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BUT THE REAL BACK-BREAKER, Allen says, is travel itself,
"hardly bearable even in first-class seats."
He was a Queen's Messenger for 18 months. He took a year to
recover.
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