Shoshone journal. [volume] (Shoshone, Idaho) 1884-1931, 1917-10-19
A LETTER FROM DICK vARNUM

ago no introduction is necessary. To
others this brief statement will be nee
essary to properly understand the fol-
about twenty five years. Ten years
ago his father was pastor of the Metho-
dist church in Shoshone and now re-
sides on a farm near Jerome. After
series of adventures as exciting as the
hero of a novel Dick landed as a stu
dent at Harvard University about
year ago. About the middle of last
winter he Joined the Harvard hospital
contingent and went to Europe. The
letter below was written to his old
friend Earnest Gwin, cashier of the
Lincoln County National Bank and win
be read with a great deal of interest by
a large circle of friends who feel a
personal pride in the exploits and ex
periences of Dick Varnum and predict
a career for him that will make him
much more than a usual parsonage
when he returns.
Somewhere in Serbia,
August 29, 1917
Dear Earnie:
Was it really ten years ago that l
first came to Shoshone, and got acq
TAINTED with all you chaps? Just think
ing it over this morning I can hardly
realize that it was in September, 1907.
that actually ten years had gone by.
Gee, those were great old days when
we were first learning how to throw
curves, forming our first team. getting |
on to the mysteries of basket ball. Do
you remember Prof. Thompson's first |
scientific division of the fellows into |
teams according to size? Those were |
great days. Then our first ball team, |
our trip to Haley. That was some
team. You and Walt pitching and short |
stop, old Dugan catching; Jack Nc
Mahon on first, Pete Murrey on End,
lever hear of him now?), Rex Barstow
on 3rd and old Terry Thatcher Prize"
Fuller and I in the outfield; our glor-
ious defeat at HALEY, 1911; but of cou
rse that was only prelude to our ach-
ievements next year, with a slightly
changed lineup, Russell at short, I
at 3rd and Jack in the old center gar
den; our riumphs over Gooding, Jer-
ONE and Rupert; our first defeat at
the hands of Gooding, 6-5, when Dugan
was out of the game and 1 had to catch
They won I remember, on Hugh's
timely hit off Walt in the 7th Great
days and still better ones at old A. I.
Well, that's ten years ago and a long
TIME to look back to, and quite mat
ter for cogitation. What changes and
what have we done? Guess Hugh and
Walt are married-even my oldest sis
ter is and has a baby. Just think of
me as Uncle Dick Sure would like
see you again. AS for me, 10 years
ago I thought I'd about be taking my
Pm. D. last June. Well, I'm still long
way from that tho I'm getting close,
but I rekon I've gained mint of ex-
perience out in the world, that should
make me a far better, sore useful man
than ever the bookest Phi d I'd have ,
been otherwise could ever have hoped T
to be. And now, too, 1 can be both.
And, best of all, it has been a lot of fun
all the way. l am certainly in love A
with life. 1t seems to offer me just
about all that I ever hoped or imagined
I might enjoy in it. G
And here 1 am squatted on my bunk ,,
in my dug out on this Macedonian hill I,
side a war-plane is whirring overhead
the big guns are popping death and de- n
struction in visible quantities if 1 care =
10 walk so yards up the hill and watch /.
while of course 1 hear them continually. 9
saw a Bosche plane brought down by Y
IN anti-air- craft gun the other morning
Struck, it topled over swirling round
wing only of course, more slowly and
more stately in its fall as BELTS the
yiant bird it is. l went right over got t'
ome wonderful pictures of it. (Wiil b
end you some as soon as get back to O.
Paris and can have them developed) Il
lot piece of the green and chestnut s.
olored linen that forms the wings. En- &C
rmous engine for 80 IT. spread planes NJ
well made. Neither of the
occupants killed; one broken leg the 7
ther merely cut over the eye. Ma
hines are sure stable these days.
Terrific bombardment of our "much
e-shelled city in Reconquered Serbia" u
rom which we did our evacuating last
yeek. Laid whole eastern half of town u
q ruins. Thorough. systematic work
n part of Boche. is shells per minute 'i'
sll for hours, each shell marking
mother house destroyed in the parallel n
mes of destruction they had charted
ut over that part of the city. Hun