The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1917-11-14
SOLDIERS Home
FOR CHRISTMAS
Large Number Of Soldiers From Camp
Dodge Permitted to Go Home to
Spend Christmas.
UNCLE SAM FURNISHES TURKEY
Boys at Camp Will Have Big Dinner
Training for Poisonous Gases
NeQrose Never Saw Snow

HEADQUARTERS, Eighty-Eighth
Division, Camp Dodge, Nov. lS-
Dear Mother:
81 won't be able to get away for
Thanksgiving dinner with you folks
at home, but I'll be there with bells
on Christmas!"
That's the kind of letters going, out
fisS az sbIssfs Sase saSesSssa iaey ixiIi
llet every soldier possible go home for
the Yuletide holidays.
It's one of the pleasantest words
the boys have heard.
Il was wondering how I'd spend
Christmas" said private of infant
ry, as he heard the good news from a
citation building. .f
Il got letter from mother today.
She was wondering where I'd be
Christmas. You see I never have
missed a Christmas dinner at home.
And once travelled 1900 miles just
to be with mother and Dad and my
big sister, Guess I'd better write 'enl
a letter right now and tell em to have
plenty of turkey"
And the "Bloke'' Chats the name
army "Y's'D handed over paper and
envelopes with alacrity and a smile.
Thereafter the secretary saw to it
that he passed out as much letter pa
per as possible. He made it his bust
ness 20 see that as many, Mother,
I'll be home Christmas" messages
want n,t bot dow os nCcSihlo
OF course not all soldiers at Dodge
will go. A good per cent of them
must stay to operate the great wood
en- war city. The best men will win
leave of absence. Officers have de-
cided that the men with the best rec
ords for work and behavior will find
Christmas day that it pays.
And you mothers who follow the
boys at Camp Dodge through the Re-
view, don't send your boy lot Of tur-
key for Thanksgiving. He will have
it as the guest OF his Uncle Sam. He
will have pound of turkey for him
self and every other man in camp
will have pound. He'll have mashed
potatoes and sweet potatoes and
dressing and cranberries and celery
and all the trimmings. It's part OF
Uncle Sans army regulations that
he shall have these things on the day
the nation gives thanks. For, who
ever heard of giving thanks on baked
beans!
If you want to send hip something,
send some candy or some cookies or
some cake or something extra. Do the
same thing Christmas. And above all,
General Plummer says the best thing
you can do is to send him great big,
fat, happy letter as dessert.
In the meantime, Sammy will con-
tinue training that he may be ready
to Join Black Jacks men in Flanders
next spring.
The gas houses are about ready.
Five hundred gas masks have reached
Camp Dodge. Gas experts have ar
rived to take charge of the training.
The government has even provided
medical men who are specialists in
epilepsy and similar diseases. Should
man faint in the gas house when
undergoing training, the war depart
ment wants to know whether it was
from gas or disease. 4
The plan is to send fifty men into
the gas house at the same time, with
gas masks adjusted, to remain there
for period while gases of various
kinds and strength are turned into the
air tight compartment. It's to teach
the men to have no fear of the gas
and to know when a gas attack is ap-
preaching.
Then there will be, gas drill, like
the fire drill of children in school.
Men will be given gas masks to carry
in proper position on their breasts at
all hours. At unexpected moments a
shrill whistle will signal the approach
|of an Imaginary gas wave. And it's
the job Of every man to get his gas