Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1916-07-06
WRITES MOTHER
FROM THE B0RDER R.
OTTUMWAN IN REGULAR ARMY
TELLS OF DoINes At DOUG
LAS AMONG THE SOLDIERS.

Camp life among the regular army
troops on the border is told of by Ell
w. Mckinney. Co. L, Fourteenth u
S. infantry, stationed at Douglas
Ariz., in letter to his mother, Mrs
Sarah Hanna of south Of the city,
The letter follows:
Douglas, Ariz., Sunday, June Is.
Dear Mother:
We were relieved at Forest Friday
and came in to Douglas. Yesterday
We pitched camp, took a bath and
washed our clothes. Today we are
mounting guard, but I am not on. We
have our old first sergeant back again
he was In Douglas when we came
In. We are all present now excepting
two men we left in the guard house
behind and two men who ARE sick
Our captain is also with us and we
are all happy at present.
We have lost over one hundred SOL
diers altogether, and If men do not
get chance to 60 into Mexico I am
afraid there Is going to be trouble.
According to reports there were fifty.
seven men lost in fights recently and
a Mexican guard shot and killed one
private, wounded one first sergeant,
one corporal and two privates, all out
Of Co F, Fourteenth infantry He said
he did not know who they were. The
story is too thin to spread. Any man
who cannot tell an American in uni
form has no business being armed.
He was half breed Mexican and en-
ployed as Waterman at pumping
OF
lieved by First Arizona volunteers.
Our two companies at Bisbee were to
be relieved but, from the looks of the
morning paper we wont be able to get
them until militia arrives from the
north. G, H, X and NJ companies were
called to Nogales the other night and
wont be able to return until other
troops arrive from the north. There
are several calls for troops in Douglas
this morning to protect threatened
points but Gen. Davis refused them as
he had no more troops to spare. In
case of Intervention Of Mexico we are
all to go into Mexico. At present we
only have band. gun company, I and L.
OF Fourteenth in Douglas but we are
expecting our other six companies to
be back in time for the big ball.
It may fall to the Fourteenth to
have to stay here in Douglas and do
police duty but we are all hoping We
will be among the first to get in
There Is going to be a number Of new
regiments organized beginning the
first of July. The Thirty-fifth infantry
will be organized here. may be trans
ferred to some new outfit. The volun-
teer army has advantages the regu-
lars do not have-when they take
notion anything ought to be done they
do 1t and talk about it afterwards. If
any man would dare to have fired in
my old Co. F., Thirty-second U. 8.
volunteers. there wouldn't have been
enough officers in the U. S. army to
have saved him. In this case I think
discipline was detrimental. Entirely
too much red tape and waiting for
orders.
do not expect to get away from
the army until August 20, 1921.
, We now have electric lights In our
tents and things are pretty good in
camp. Our men are cleaning up and
writing letters home as the majority
Of the men did not have any writing
material while we we're in camp at
Forest.
We are building a big post hospital
here to take care Of our sick, lame and |
lazy. A good many of them have al
ready shown signs Of cold feet am
in the finest of health. Barring crack. |
ed lips from alkali dust, have nothing !
to complain Of. There are only six
men in the first squad as one has been
promoted and one Is sick. My bunkie
has had twenty-four years of service
md he is private. There are forty
,hree re-enlisted men in this company
md only eighteen non-commissioned
>fficers.
In any case you do not hear from
ne do not worry We may be called
>ut any time.
From your loving son to mother.
Ell W. Mckinney,