The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1917-09-20
.EATsAT BUCkIssGHAMPhLACE
Kenosha Go. Boy Somewhere in France
Tells of Great Time Enjoyed by Amer
lean Soldiers When Greeted by
King George and His Family.

The village of Pleasant Prairie may
not be a big splash on the map, but
when four thousand troops under the
Stars and Stripes marched in grand
parade in London little while ago
and were the guests of the King of
England and the royal family of Great
Britain, Pleasant Prairie was repre-
sented, for among the marching men
was Corporal Earl Yates, son of Thorn
as Yates, for many years treasurer of
Pleasant Prairie. Corporal Yates is
now in France with the Thirteenth
Engineering Corps of the United States
army and he has sent letter from
somewhere in France telling Crap
hically of the great day in London and
of the work Of the overseas army
of the United States.
In his letter Corporal Yates said:
'EIt is now over month Since we
left the states, and have been on the
go all the time, but think that at last
we are settled to stay. You may have
read in the papers that we paraded in
London, England, the first and only
armed troops to march through the
streets of London. It was an event
that will go down in history. The
English had heard that American
troops were in England but could not
believe it until they saw four thousand
of us marching, with bands roaring
down Picadilly and right up to Burk-
ingham Palace gates-and did we stop
at the gates mo! They were thrown
wide open to receive us and in we
marched over the beautiful palace
down Picadilly and right up to Buck
ington Palace, where the Royal House
Of England received the Royal Ameri-
can Soldiers. Here dainty lunch was
served and we rested for an hour as
we had paraded nearly ten miles
through the cheering crowds who yell
ed at us, <fDon It be sad, smile, y
" Hurry up and finish it. One of the
most thrilling spectacles a man may
ever hope to witness. Such hope, faith
and thankfulness that the Americans
had arrived at last. Women cheering
with the tears streaming down their
faces, for they have boys like us at the
front, maybe never to return.
y The sadness over here is awful. TIE
people have cried until they just can Il
shed any more tears, but must go on
hoping that maybe now the Americans
are here it will soon be over. When it
will end no one can tell. The opinions
of the smartest men differ.
I am just behind the firing lines and
can hear the cannons boom, and see the
flashes in tie night like lightning. AS
I sit here writing I can hear the tramp
tramp Of German prisoners, some are
going by now in groups of twenty and
forty, with French sentries behind them
with loaded rifles. They surely do stare
at me as they go by.
We haven't started to work yet, but
will soon be hauling trains of an
munition to the front, and soldiers too
The French people ale very polite and
cam do enough for US. The girls !
have met so far seem to think the
American boys are just it. 7 get out
my little French book and we have a
great time making each other under
stand. I have learned enough in a
week to buy things at the store and
count my change; also to tell little
French miss, think her very nice
Two aeroplanes are flying over now
and our shells are bursting aroU1d
them, every one is looking up at than
We can get a good meal for five francs
or one dollar, and a bottle of wine
served with it. Everything comes in
courses at the restaurants. I am go
ing out TO watch the aeroplanes."