Putnam patriot., 1917-10-12
SOLDIERS LETTERS
REACH HOME
Word from Men in Camps and Abroad
All Active In the Service

tNpeNlltthg OF sergeant HYDE Snllth,
now at division headquarters at Camp
Deyesn, Aver Guided by has nlmble
digits the keys paint a graphic picture
of camp life, including eats. Here is
the Sergeant 5 message:
Again let me thank You for kind
consideration. Your paper is an oasis in
rather busy routine. | hope TO see
you here, personally soon. as my faith
er tells me he plans to take a crowd of
you fellows down here
The day threatens to be fair. Its
rather mirky FER head - and a most
beautiful morning to sleep late.-never.
theless clock found me up and out,
and surprisingly energetic in the set.
ting-up exercises we are blessed with
every morning
1t Is hard TO determine what might
be of interest to you, which makes let
ter writing here more or less an impo-
sition on the recipient Nevertheless,
there are a few things which might be
of interest. Here is Yesterdays com
plete menu: Breakfast. oatmeal and
milk, cream clipped beef, potatoes,
slice of French toast coffee, bread and
SYRUP rather tasty and assuedly nour-
ishing; Dinner, rice soup, meat loaf, rice
and tomatoes, sweet potatoes. chocolate
pudding. bread and black coffee (demi-
tassef) Supper: beef pie apple sauce,
apricot pudding and Johnny cake. The
service here is table hote. no tips
| suppose it is comparatively easy
matter to make friends with warm
comfortable bed. but to be on friendly
terms with an Army cot seems out of
reason to the uninitiated. 50 | suppose
you viii be surprised when tell you
that this Army cot is much more com
Portable than one usually gets at school
1t Is an iron spring single cot and highly
satisfactory.
| suppose you think | am painting
an unusually rosy picture of a place
that was TO rival Dante : Inferno. and
neither am | recruiting officer. am
telling you frankly my experience with
the institution, for undoubtedly that
is what it really is.
A highly surprising thing is the kind
ly way in which the drafted men are
taking to it. | suppose the usual inn
preston of these new men here is
lot of disgruntled. grumbling uniformed
men, but it seems that in a week at the
most, with rare exception. every man is
can possible be- This does not mean
that | think they feel they are in their
chosen work or expect to be soldiers
their remaining days, but it does mean
a spirit of cheerfulness and making the
most of a trying proposition, which is
fostered by the care and generally good
conditions at the camp.
think the people that come here
Sunday and visit carry away too many
malignant and unfounded rumors. which
is really unfair to those at the camp
and especially to those who have sent
boys to the camp or expect to send
some
| wish you would ask some of those
young fellows that are trying to end
this war around the stove up at the
Arcanum Club, to knit some of the
boys down here some pretty sweaters.
The Masons in Aver are having open
house all the time for all of us who
ever took a backward step. There are
also things of interest in the Eastern
Star
One of the big difficulties in letter
writing is to end a letter after YOU have
once begun it.
Remember me to all the folks, -
Sgt HYDE Smith.
The following is an extract from a
letter from Arthur Maloney, engineers
corps, somewhere in France:
~ never felt better and | like this
kind of life very much but | can I say
that for the country. When they take
the tents of this big show down | will
be somewhere in the line when they call
Maloney. and will answer here. and
il 3 going to be in America, SO don I
worry about me.
For enjoyment there are all kinds of
sports but | don t take much interest
in them for prefer to see the country,
much of which has been destroyed and
is being destroyed | went to large
city short distance from here to see
how badly it had been damaged by the
Germans. The city ycu have read about
for some of the great battles of the war
took place there not very long ago. Two
things which T found most interesting
were the cathedral and a place called
Barbed Wire Square. 1t was plainly
seen that the cathedral WAS once beau
tiful I went into the ruins to try and
get souvenirs All 7 could find was a
shell from an English rife. I suppose
there were MANY things of value buried
under the ruins There were tons of
stones in piles from a foot to twenty
five feet high. Tell Andy Donovan that
was the only thing that prevented me
getting the organ for him
Barbed Wire Square il surrounded by
buildings, considered large over here.
of the old fashioned type They were
built of stone and bags Of sand about
four feet thick, eight feet high and
about fifteen feet out from the face
of the building. making il about $50
feet from the wall to the opposite side
of the street. In between was covered
with baFbed wire from which the place
gets its name. The right hand was oe-
c1pied by the British and French. the
left by the Germans, which goes to
show how close the men get at times.
can not write too much or it won {
get by the censors But the censors
can not blot out Of my mind the views
of these cities and towns which / have
seen and win never forget.
take great delight in watching the
British she'll the Germans. | haven I
seen either side bring machine down
/ but I expect to see a German come down
some dav for the British are good shots
/ ard make il warm for the German air
/ men coming over our lines
onr company has been split up
| am in the one with Glen Dow and Red
I Packer. James and Lizard we're togeth-
= for while but Leard was transfer
red leaving Howard with bunch he
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