The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1917-09-12
LETTERS FROM
SOLDIER BOYS
Clarence Sehwartzenbaeh, Ray Held
en- and Earl MoeIIer Send Let
ters Telling Of their Camps
10000 TROOPS NOW At DEMINe
The Trip From Ida Grove to Deming
Interesting As Well As Tiresome
Have Many Mascots

Editor Review and. Friends:
Will write letter in regard to our
trip to Deming, N. NJ.
We left Ida Grove at $50 p. m,
Monday after a hard days work of
detail and loading and packing. Our
special consisted of one box car for
our baggage. one baggage car for our
kitchen and two day coaches. We
were Joined at Omaha by Co. E, of
Sheldon; Co. X, of LeMars; Co. NJ,
of Cherokee and Cos. II and L, OF
Sioux City.
We were transferred to sleepers
at Council Bluffs, that being the only
change we made on the long trip of
1900 miles. We. woke up Tuesday
morning in Forest City, Mo. We stop
ped at St. Joe and had breakfast in
the railroad yards. Shortly after
noon we were in the state of Kansas.
Can say the eastern part OF Kansas
is a good country, but can't say much
for the southwestern part, as it is a
very dry soil. AS we passed through
Kansas it was very evident that they
have long dry periods, for in every
back yard there was a windmill and
supply tank. Some parts of Kansas
are also characteristic of their stone
fences. Our route took us through
the extreme northwest of Oklahoma
and Texas, that part Of Texas being
the famous Texas Panhandle. 1t is
a wonderful grazing country.
n n ~
were in New Mexico. Here we saw
what we northern people see in the
movies and wonder if there is such a
country. Plains and sage brush for
miles, as far as the naked eye can
see. Some grass grows in the north
ern part Of New Mexico, much diff
ferent from the southern part where
we are located.
IN Thursday morning we woke up in
the foothills and as we passed along
sWes came into the nlOun untains. On
Thursday AFTERNOON 7we we're back in
Texas, Eel Paso being the division
point. Here is where the only sad
incident OF the trip happened. We
were marched through the streets of
Ell Paso and our Spitz dog, "Frosty,"
we had brought along from Ida Grove
got lost. But we have a mascot in
the shape of a brindle bull dog which
we were lucky enough to buy at Car
rizozo, N. w., on Thursday morning.
We named him Zozo after the town.
At 1O:45 p. m., Thursday we were
sidetracked at our future home. Most
of us were asleep at the time so did
not get u peek at our surroundings
until we awoke the next morning.
After breakfast the six companies
on our train were marched to camp
about a mile away. At noon our camp
looked like the rest who had preceded
us.
The surroundings here are some
what different than at home. The
soil, if one chooses to call it such, is
sand. Nothing but mesquite bushes.
yucca plants and cactuc can grow
here. I have seen very little cactus
to date. but everywhere you can see
mesquite bushes. We lay in a valley
with the foothills and mountains with
in from fourteen to sixty miles away.
Unlike the land at home, dotted with
hills, where one can rarely see a dis
tance OF more than two miles, If that.
Several of the boys of our company
walked to the foothills, fourteen miles
distant, yesterday. They were all
day doing it and two of them about
gave out. The hill looks to be few
feet high from camp, but they said it
was a mile high. This place is about
$500 feet above sea level. When the
sun goes down it gets dark, but the
evenings are beautiful. The moon is
wonderful in this country.
Harold Silletto and Ben Brodersen
are encamped here with the Iowa field
artillery. They were certainly glad
to see someone from Denison. Ben
has four horned toads for pets.
The camp is quite large. l don't
know how many troops are encamped
here, but new troops are coming daily.
1t is like a city. with one long regi-
mental street with cook shacks on
one side and officers tents on the 9TH
err. Back OF the cook shacks are our
tents The company streets turn off
from the regimental street.
Regards to all my friends,
Clarence Schwartzenbach,
Co. B, I'd Iowa Infantry,
Camp Cody, Deming, NJ M.