From 112 Gripes About the French, a 1945 handbook for American soldiers in occupied France, edited and republished this month by the Bodleian Library.

“Why isn’t there decent plumbing in French houses? The toilet facilities are disgusting!”

They are. What should the French do about it? It takes money to have decent plumbing. That’s why so many people in France don’t have it. That’s why so many people in our own United States don’t have decent plumbing, either. The Germans have much better plumbing than the French — the Germans could afford it. Most French buildings are very old: it’s harder…