S.S.U.12—Section Sanitaire (Etats) Unis 12: Translated it reads, "American Sanitary Section Number 12. The letter "U" is rather a poor abbreviation for the word American or United States, but "A" cannot be used since it stands for Anglais, meaning English.
Soupe: simply the word soup. It has come to mean supper which usually begins with soup.
Tir de barrage: Tir means the firing of a gun. Barrage means a barrier. The phrase therefore can be translated by the expression "curtain or barrier of fire."
Tirage: meaning a drawing or dragging. A tirage at the front means a relay station or an intermediary post between the advanced postes de secours and the hospitals.
T. M.: Freely, transport of munitions. The truck sections of the Field Service were called T.M. Sections.
Vin rouge: red wine.
EXPRESSIONS IN FRENCH
Eteignez les lumières blanches: Literally, "Put out your white lights."
Ou est la rue Cherbourg? Where is Cherbourg street? We were continually asking the inhabitants "Ou est" such and such a place.
Gare du Quai d'Orsay: A railroad station in Paris called Quai d'Orsay.
N'est ce pas. Is it not so?
C'est la guerre. The Frenchman's excuse for everything. "It's the war," or "the war did it."
