Perth Amboy evening news., 1918-09-19

major L sent you a letter describing
| the way the Americans set UP their
camns here. I did it knowing you
desire to Civ the public some news OF
| our BOYS over here. 1 am sorry fnat
II can't write you news of others OF
our boys as / LAY e met up Wath
lany and also that I can't give you
ANY real war new as you well Know
THAT, even II I knew some l couion.t
get it to you on time were l allowed
But a description OF how our AM
lerican boys put themselves into the
game in the branch of the service 4
am Acquainted with, without a
! thought as to their personal feelings
in the way of being tired, worn out or
hungry, I think. would be some rrult
flor thought. Those at home should
do all in their power TO help speed up
whatever they are working az mere
and never think of the lumber OF
! hours they are putting In on the Do
I am positive that there are no grum-
bIers in our city but some may not
know where they are laying down on
the Job while getting away with II
until caught mapping So a gentle re-
mfnder in time may save them.
I cannot point out the exact dihi-
cuIties and hardships q motor dis
patch bearer or courier has to under
20, not being one. ! am at present
on detached service with the railway
transportation and motor ~transporta-
ton officers and once In a while 4
come In for a trip. This last trip 1
just finished after driving wenty
eight hours-was a corker as 1t brought
me right to where h a
can be heard very plainly. 1t is i'm
~1-~l4AfA e. ~ - afxrr xrnF4 nnU InFgf
color because I did not think of my
surroundings. All 1 could think OF
was how to keep from skidding from
side to side. how best to make a turn
while sliding and trusting to luck
while jumping a gully. In fact, all
drivers and motorcycle riders trust to
fortune when In such straits. There
Is nothing else to do.
The roads hero at their best are no
fhoroughfares to travel over at the
rate of forty miles In hour and since
we are having six hours OF rain out OF
every twenty-four and at such inter-
walls as to not give the suns rays q
chance to dry the roads you can just
about imagine what a chauffeur is up
against when he has 10 v 900 kill
ometers (about $50 miles).
These roads aren't like the Lincoln
Highway. They are covered with a
coat of rock dust which when wet is
like grease. They are also camou-
Ilaged in places to misiead enemy avn
ator raiders.
A sharp turn here and a little fur
ther on another that leads you into a
dense forest. After zigzagging through
the woods for five or six kilometers
you again emerge into the opel only
to buck up against a steep. long
grade. You reach the summit of the
hill skidding on all four, hardly able
to display you relief by emitting a
sigh when you see the downgrade and
you know that somewhere along that
incline Is a sharp turn that leads
through a tunnel and then again q
dense forest or thicket.
It is not like speeding over a high
way with the only dangers being an
other machine. a person or a blow
out. Nor is it like driving through a
city, where you have to be on the
alert, where there are no traffic OIL
GERS for each west. east. north or
Isouthbound traffic, whichever the
case may be.
Even the ~overcrowded streets of
New York's east side with it's entire
population in the road and its many
other obstacles and impediments TO
traffic is nothing TO the trip>I COM
pleted and 10 those which thousands
of dispatchers and couriers are sub
jected TO daily.
Here the twists. turns. up and down
grades and forest roads would be easy
land no cause for getting n fellows
nerves strung up IL 1t were not for
the fact that now and then you come
to q hole the width or the road and
how deep you do not know. Here you
have to swing sharply TO the left or
bright for they loom up suddenly be-
fore you, over bitches and gullies and
sometimes over creeks. and you force
your car on and on for you have to
reach your destination regardless OF
conditions caused By damage through
enemy air raids.
You are practically always In the
dark and relying upon your sense OF
direction and sheer luck, especially
during night driving. You put your
lights on only once in a while. getting
your bearings as best you can between
flashes for when you come this far
you can hardly discern the sound of
an enemy airplane from all the
sounds about you. You hit a hole
and your helmet glides over your
eyes and at least a minute elapses be-
fore you think IL expedient enough to
fix your steel cap. So between one
of your best friends (your steel he'll
metz and the fact that you cannot
have your headlights on you are
practically at all times in the dark.
You have onerconsolation. however,
and hat is hat there is someone in
your car Even though he never ut
tiers a word you know OF his presence
and you feel that your confidence
never viii leave you. I think you
would rather have II that he utters
no word. for II he should and were
lyou able to hear him above the boom
ing of the guns. I think his voice
would be so full OF feeling that you
would lose control OF your nerves en-
tireiy and then you are surely out OF
luck.
Your destination Il reached and
Iyou deliver your orders or your high
i~oficer safely. Do you think OF a rest
Yes. You get out. swallow a cup OF
I~coffee. IL hat is available. n not then
some Vim Blanc or Vim Rouge. &c
back to YOU car. give her the once
over and ascertain whether she Is @
X. get gas and OH and start on tbs
return journey.
You see we are in n q here
and the fact that there Is sim some
thing TO be done causes yo1 to forge
lyour person and you think ina
lit should be otherwise. should ms
lofncar say anything but Il have M
R.wh.~ -. For The rnrn Won would