“Nine Days Traveling” By: Lawrence Krumenaker

Don Noble's Book Reviews

“ Nine Days Traveling; Lafayette’s 1825 Alabama Tour; Today’s Historical Road Trip ” Author: Lawrence Krumenaker Publisher: Hermograph Press Opelika AL 2020 Pages: 141 Price: $26.95 (Paper) Following in the Steps of Lafayette in Alabama On the 4 th of July 1917 , at the Picpus cemetery in P aris , at the grave of the M arquis d e L a f ayette , Colonel Charles E. Stanton of the newly arrived American Expeditionary forces proclaimed “ L a fa yette we are here. ” ( The q uote is usually wrongly attributed to Gen John J. Pershing. ) At the time, e ver y one knew what was meant. Americans owed France, and especially L a fayette, a huge debt. In 1777 , At 19 y ears old , L a f ayette had come to America to help in the War f or I ndependence. Ben Franklin advised George Washin g to n to take Lafayette on as an aide-de-camp, whi c h he did. Lafa yette fought in a number of batt les, behaved gallantly, was wounded at B randywine and was actually present at the British surrender at Yorktown. He