The Wheeling intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1903-1961, 1918-11-12
SHERRARD SOLDIER
WRITES TO MOTHER
TOLLS Some Interesting Things About
The Wal And Customs In Far
Away France.

The following letter received by Mrs.
J. j. KE"r. from her son. Lieutenant i.
A. kigcr. who is with tho fighting forces
III France. will BE- of special interest 10
all his friends He resided here when IN
the Shcrrard. Marshill county district
and is very we'll known in that district.
France. Oct. S. 1915.
Dear Mother:
There is Il shortage OF black ink In
this town now. so ! am writing you IN
red. 1t Is the fourth start / have nlhnc
in the last few days. II seems !lmPoSsl-
bic to ret more than five minutes NJ
time between eight Il. m. ami midnight
The army docs not recognize the exist.
cncc of such n thing rs night am sun
in the map business and most III the
reports of the activities OF the day come
IN at night and sketches ana maps must
be made up. and sometimes pr'h.'n' ~,
army now uses more mans In n day than
were used in the whole civil war. L
never leave tho work until my chle1' n
Colonel leaves. nj ten In Twelve Elorh.
Night before last I went 10 he'd Al lou,
a. m. and got UP nj $50. VIC don't nina
hard work though. for things are gong
50 good. Things ara happening so last
thai il is hard to toll what may trans
! n: re- before this reaches yon.
When 7 wrote YOU before / tnouGnL
7 was settled for awhile. hut I have
! moved and am just getting settled again
! / was quartrrcd in mn abandoned nous
where. contrary to the usual. / hau
| n,ruIy Of room. There were only three
nflirr2s in = whole house. or course 1t
was nAiirely bar" hut We carry win us
oll equipment even canvas buckets ana
wash ha aims. In our prcScht Ioc'it',ts
| there IS Il scarcity nf buildings ana
some sleep III offices and others IN
pun tents. have my cot in a corner
| or thr map room and slocp just as Wei
as in the Finest 7arlor he'd room Inc
map room itself ia rough wnouGn
| shorl; Our inconvenience is thai therH
| is no water near. and ever night l carry
water about half q mil" in my canvas
| bucket Ia wash myself tn" next morn
| ing. some ono has "hTnoth"calcd my
rubber basin. so | wash WIN W..
/ tnrol Our mess shack is situated on
I = side hill, so We prop up our mess KIT
IN one side 10 keep things from r'innin,
| out We've been eating from mess XII
lately. Sometimes We have table ana
I sonnet ines we line up at the field kitc!Tsn
! and get our chow ana SIT Oh "'i'
ground to- eat IT. .;aor
We have very good food here CONSIDER
! ing tho distance things arc earned ana
tho difficulties. Plenty Of canned meat
pota1oe canned vegetables, cheese. MA
! aroni and bread. sometimes butter chn-
nod lam and occn Sinnally w" can buy
! frcsli fruit We arc e little out 81 iurH
| ahont any kind of s"rri'r. Ny ,"'Ih hre
| in had shnpc but no possibility or Er'-
ting dental work. and I'm almost on inc
- is rojnv now and MI France has
'apparrntly turned 10 mud. They Ind
wonderfully good system or rohoS hu !
about fifteen or twenty million men ana
! vehicles and animals using them con,
| stantlv for four years has made oil nut
thc hcst ones bail Tou can't imagine
Ihn amour, Of traffic. Traffic men are
posted at every road forks Leading up 10
the front. On one Of my trips viSl'" e,
! the birthplace of Joan Of Arc. which IS
| in Franc" the equivalent Of NJ. vernon
| in America The house is 500 or GnD
years old hut the timber beams are ~
sound a$ eyer.
are n great many NOR" Of us than thefn
! wcro last winter. and good quarters and
! fuel will he scarce.
From what I have soon 7 figure that
by next spring our army Will hr strong
! enough Ia 80 through and finish tht
thing as II should be done. Germany
wants ;cacr now. hut that would, he the
most fatal mistake tho allies could MAKE.
We must not stop Will" there rs p.W"i
enough In the CcntraY EmpirrS-to repeat
their dastnrdly r"rfnrmanccs. !
could live a thousand years | could NOT
forget the scenes Of desnlation and de-
struction that have hecn wrought here
al. delights in murder. rapine and DC;
structinn. The most savage ana cru"i
rorc Of people eyer known hcfor" Were
gentle compared Ia tho Prussians
hope T may stay in it till III" cnd
: can hardly ina sinc n greater mi5f"r-
iunr thnn 10 Eayr to leave it (aft"r go
fng through months Of ANXIETY hnu
douht) when the tide has turned and
things are going rs they arc now u
Write often. cnnw ~ c 1rSr Ecr T." , G""
forward to th" mail and 'd"r"ur" it rs n
hungry dog 4 h"~f steak. Send now,
Clippings. too. about local or national
happenings. But omit anything, about
nFD, W