Connecticut western news., 1917-11-29
VIM. BLAss WRITES
Canaan Boys Healthy and Camp Lie
 . Not All Bad.

November 26, 1917. To the editor of The News:-
 receive a copy of the News every week but never run across letter frorxs any of the boys up here at Camp Devens so l thought maybe the folks back home might like to know just how we get along and how we live. i In the first place its a great life. Everyone is getting fat and husky ana ] are in better health than they ever were in their life. The food is very good down where am don't know about where the rest of the boys ares but we have steak once in a while. cereals every morning with real cows milk on 1t and fruit once in while. We even have chocolate cake. So yuu see person can't kick on the grub. You people back home needn't get the idea we have it soft up here, however. for we work harder thar we ever dia in civilian life and we gre always glad to see Saturday and sunday come around. Once in while we have 10 do guard duty. It lasts for twenty four hours. Two hours on duty and four hours of. We have to sleep In the guard house then but there isn't much sleep as there is always lot of noise from reliefs coming in and going out. Then sometimes we have to be Kitchen police. We consider ourselves out of luck when we land that job.
 | We have nice warm barracks to sleep in and plenty of bedclothes. We have to open our windows every night before we 70 to bed though SO one of those fresh air fiends would be in heaven up here. We diill about four hours day up here besides going on long hikes. Our regiment takes the longest hikes of any up here. We have been as tar as twenty-two miles in five hours which is pretty fair time if you figure 1t up. The infantry has riffe practice every day now and there arc some good shots up there according Go all reports.
 We, the engineers, recently finished & bridge across the Nassau river. H took us just eighteen hours. It was about eighty feet long and twelve feet wide. Everything was cut in the woods and 1t was estimated that 1t woufd hold five tons A detail of men from every company up here Is building hand grenade field under the direction of French officer. There are two of them up here fresh from the trenches lover there". They are pretty classy and can tell some great stories. read in one of the copies of the News re- gently letter from one of the bows who has gone across saying he was glad he wasn't drafted but believe me 1t is no disgrace to be in the National army. Some of our greatest athletes are up here and when they start out O get material for something or another 1t isn't much of a joh.
 Two weeks ago our regiment didn't have any band. They hunted thro' the regiment and now we have just as good band as any one would want tv hear. don't get much chance to see any of the boys from home but once in a while l run across me of them and they look the picture of health. Yon got that wrong in the Honor Roll about me being corporal. was, for while when l was in the Infantry but now I'm just common buck private. Once in & while the fire whistle blows up here and then there Is general rush for formation with fire buckets and apparatus. The other night about 1 80 the siren sounded and crawled out and got my clothes on and was just tying my shoe string when the fellows came back in and maybe they didn't kid me. But they didn't fool me any more thas night as l crawled back into bed shoes and all. have only seen Howard Brewster once since came up here and then he didn't recognize me. We'll I guess this is about all for this time but you can tell the world we are nos ! getting treated as bad as people think. IT was very glad 70 see that the Canaan people came across SO fine for the Y. M. O. A. They certainly do lot of good up here and without them we would all go drown ourselves when we are off duty. Things are all right when one Is working but afterward fellow has got to let loose little bit and the Red triangle boys are right there. We have all sorts of boxing matches and amateur shows.
 Respectfully
 Bill Blasm
 II Nmmn TAawaxw