The Wisconsin tobacco reporter. (Edgerton, Wis.) 1877-1950, 1917-11-09
From the Southland Camp.

Dear folks: i just received the DOA
you sent and the contents all looked
good. There is nothing more welcome
to soldier than package from home.
1t surely smirks of the days before we
left for Camp Douglas days when
we had eats and sweets and smokes to
our hearts content. | am we'll and
feeling fine. as is the case with most
of the boys from home as far as |
know. Since being transferred | don't
see the boys very often. Haven't even
seen Lieut.. Wood, but probably will
see them all tonight when | go to de-
liver the package of Reporters. They
all appreciate Mr.. Coon's generosity in
furnishing the home paper each week.
1t is read line by line with great care
not to miss anything. Harvey Davis
and myself are busy learning buzzar
work, wigwag, semophone and flag
signaling. We also do line work, both
telephone and electric. Yesterday we
installed phones IN the sergeants
tents, the mess halls and the canteen.
The field signal work is to my liking,
even though l had to separate from
the home boys. My terminates now
are engineers, linemen and operators.
Harvey Davis is one tent below mine,
not so far but what we can talk across
lot to each other. We have school
work Monday, Tuesday and Thursday
nights from to O'Clock each week.
This southland may be rightly termed
sunny one, but don't forget the fact
that at times it is windy one, and
when the wind gets busy the whole
surface of the earth hereabouts IS NOV
ing in double quick order and every
thing is treated to fresh coating OF
sand and dust about an inch thick. 1t
readily finds its way into the tents.
The other morning while out on hike
was reminded of Wisconsin. AS we
rode along at good fast gait the thick
white dust on trees and plants resem-
bled frost scenes back home.
We take five mile hike nearly every
morning right after breakfast, some
times afoot, but most of the time on
horseback. The first few days riding
made US stiff and sore and we had
longing for pillow to sit on while in
quarters, but now we are used to the
game and like it very much. Word
was recently passed along the line that
we were soon to take hike to Dallas
and back, to be gone about four weeks,
doing field signal work along the way.
On our nike this morning we rode
over to Lovers Leap" That IS the
high rock from which the Jane jumped
to get away from the colored man IN
''The Birth of Nation" picture. 1t
is a scenic place and particularly inter-
esting after having seen the picture.
The cotton fields through the country
are pretty sights, especially so when IN I,
bloom. The first bloom has nearly all
I'll M
shortly. Colored people do the picking;
they have sacks eight or nine feet long
that they drag behind them and when
filled are loaded on wagons and taken
to the gin. Some work for some peo-
pie. !.
Not far from camp there are a lot of
pecan trees and the boys go after nuts
on them the same as they do after
hickory nuts in Wisconsin. The Brazos
river, rily and muddy, runs nearby the
camp grounds and it's shore is the home
of many snakes.
The aviation corps furnishes some In
teresting sights nowadays, as planes
can be seen flying in all directions.
They have been sailing over Texas
towns advertising Liberty bonds by
dropping out literature and demonstrate
| ing how bombs are dropped from the
plane. [ was over to the school few
days ago and had chance to look one
of the machines over at close range.
Great boats for high-hyers.
The city of Waco is very clean,
pretty and up-to- date place and the
people surely do all they can to make
| the soldier boy welcome there. They
treat us kindly and l guess the boys
show appreciation by putting on their
best behavior while in the city.
Talk about the soldiers mess! We
surely are getting good feed down here.
Oftentimes on week days we get pork
chops or beefsteak and on Sundays we
are sometimes served with chicken, ice
cream, pie and other good things, and
| the mess halls always look inviting.
Some Sunday when you can borrow
Henry come down and take dinner
with US.
[ bought Liberty Bond, small
one just to get in the game, and think
most of the boys did the same. DONE
pay attention to the stories that are
| going the rounds up there about our
being transferred. When the orders
come from army headquarters is the
| time TO sit up and take notice.
Hixon B., Knapp,
Co. c., 107th Field Signal,
Camp Macarthur, Texas.
November l. 1917.