Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1917-08-30

III lllS very InlQSt OF the most
war.
wagon with a cannon comes rushing
along out of the darkness and the
driver sitting on the front horse just
sees you in time to swerve and miss
you by inches. Then there's always
the danger of falling into a shell
hole or going off the road into a
ditch, etc., but somehow or other you
get away with it. Heaven only knows
how.
Our post is conceded to be the
most dangerous ambulance post in
france. We are under shell fire all
the time and the sector is always ac-
tive because the Germans want Yer
dun badly. The French are pleased
with our work and we have been
recommended for a citation, the
highest honor a section can have.
FIVE of the Oldest men will get CroiX
de Guerre. OF course there is no
cholce as far as awarding the
Crosses go, for we've all gone
through the same dangers and done
the same amount of work, but pref
erence is always given to the Oldest
men.
Great Welcome
When we are not on duty we live
In little huts and just loaf around
doing whatever we want and having
a wonderful time, because the fell
lows all are fine and get along we'll
together. As our section is the old
est, we are naturally we'll organized
and for that reason get many priv
ileges and are better off than most
OF the sections. Our food is fine
and the cook wonderful. Wherever
we go we are treated as officers and
given great welcome by the French
people. They all seem to think Unit
ed States is Frances savior and moth
ing is too good for us.
| didn't mean to worry you telling
you all about how dangerous our
post was, but if L did you don't have
to worry any more, for we've left
1t, never to go back. Last Saturday
we got orders to move so we all
packed up and put our stuff in our
cars. Monday morning we all pulled
out for trip of eighty kilometers,
little over fifty miles. Twenty-Five
ambulance F'ords, three trucks, the
kitchen on a trailer and cannon
cite all went in convoy. We went
to the southeast of France to a beau
tiful little country village, Nancois.
The trip was long and dusty and to
make matters worse l had the deuce
of time with my engine. My car
buretor got stopped up, my fan belt
broke and 1 got a bum spark plug,
and then after all that 1 got pune
ture and had to fix it in the hot sun
and dust. But the scenery was Won
derful. Beautiful green rolling hills,
picturesque little villages with red
tile roofs. white cottages and sur
rounded, by green hills and golden
brown cultivated fields. On the way
we passed soldiers, French Senegalais
and others, cannon, supply trains and
all kinds of peasants. 1t was all very
interesting and 1 enjoyed it i'm
mensely. I'm all for touring France
in my Fliver.
We are now camped here in an
open field, big, wonderfully grassy
one, and all we do is lie around and
eat. We sleep in our cars at night
and eat in the village.
Yesterday a bunch of us fellows
walked to Domremy, which is the
name of the town Jean d. Are was
born in. After walking two miles
through fields which we could
imagine Jean herded her sheep in,
we finally got to the town. In it
was a little church which had lit
tie shrine in it dedicated to the
aforesaid French wonder and on the
top of it was a statue of Jean in
armor. OF course we romantically
imagined all kinds of things and saw
visions of Jean. Then l started to
talk to some French people and they
informed me that there were about
a dozen Domremy's and that the real
one was about sixty kilometers from
there. OF course we were disap.
pointed and all that but had lots of
fun out of 1t. That was the first time
the inhabitants had even seen Amer
leans and We certainly were a curl
osity; they all tried to talk to US
at once, asking us how old we were,
etc, and all about America.
We only expect to be here a few
days and then expect to go to a place
near the Swiss border, where we
will go swimming in Lake Geneva
/ got your letter and certainly was
glad to hear from you. l hope you
will send the box soon. Please send
lots of chocolate and tobacco and
lend it care Minister of War.
There has been a rumor going
around that the American govern
ment has taken us over or is going
to, which will probably mean that
we will have to stay till the end of
the war. So if anything like that
happens why, you will be expecting
it.
am mbulance to show you what we
look like. 1t is not picture of me
or of my section, but it will give
you an idea how we look.
Don't forget to send the box with
lots of chocolate, tobacco, a muf-
fer and you might include some
large envelopes in 1t.
Lots of love to all,
FRANKLIN.