Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1918-10-10
Letter From Sergeant Earl A. Mcdonald.
Camp de Grasse,
ST. Pierre deS Corps, lndre-et-Loire,
Tours, France,


Tours, France,
lst Sept, 1918.
Dear Papa-You've been writing to
me pretty often, so while | have the
machine III try and get you few lines.
The tobacco came, also the papers, and
all in good shape. I've had the tobacco,
the first package for several days now
and il will save me some francs, for |
won't have TO buy any for awhile. We
can get most any kind at the Y. M. I. A.
here and also at the government COM
missary in Tours, so with yours and
what is issued to me once week from
the army | keep pretty we'll supplied.
Today is the lst Of September, and II
has been cloudy and sort of cool all day,
lust like fall setting in, for it feels like
il. But the winters in this locality
never get extremely cold, for the engines
don't even freeze up the least, from
what I've been able TO find out. have
plenty OF warm clothes, though no
matter if the whole of next winter is
blizzard. don't know if shall have
outside work by that time or not, or
where will be, but am well prepared
already. | only wish you could see my
barrack bag-it's stuffed full. | have
a black leather coat, lined with felt, that
comes down to my hips, that goes on
underneath my coat and overcoat, and
with heavy wool socks, big shoes,
wrapped leggins and heavy undercloth-
ine there is no chance of me freezing
at all. lis quite wonderful how well
we are equipped, and there's plenty OF
clothing to 90 around-no scarcity OF
anything we need.
| expect to 60 to the Railway Trans
portation Office school at Anglers,
short distance from here, inside OF a
a week or so. | have been recommended
for it and appointed, so will 60 as soon
as another class starts. | hope ! can
make something out OF it, but cannot
say if shall be sent back here or not,
doubt very much if | will, though. |
think there is a number of B. & .. men
in the D. C. T. department in Paris. In
fact, I've heard some familiar names
already, because we work in conjunction
with them and have charge Of the Amer
lean railway lines here. Paris isn't so
far from here, as you can see by the
map, so if ever get the time and can
arrange for the transportation, which
is the hardest thing to do, ! am going to
slip up there for a day, but think III
do more sightseeing than looking up
B. & o. men.
| think told mama that We have one
B. & o. man in this company named
Carvey, from Bloomington, who fired
On the 17-mile hill out Of Piedmont and
knows Marshall Elliott real we'll, and
since Thompson left I've been running
around with a youngster named Turvey,
who used to be chief clerk TO the train
master on the Staten Island Rapid Tran
sit, but that's the way it goes. Turvey
is leaving shortly with Lieutenant
Murphy, who is appointed terminal train
master at LeMans, so I'll have to look
up another bud, and just about the time
| find another I'll be going somewhere
myself. Railroading here is great, on
the French roads. They are oh, so far
behind us.
We have lots of u. S. A. engines that
haul about thousand tons usually and
lots of French jacks that haul even less.
The box cars have a capacity OF about
10 tons, only four wheels and some
thing like buggy springs on them. But
we get along pretty well, and some OF
our men now have regular passenger
and freight runs between here and diff
erent points. Sometimes, though, when
they 20 out they don't get back for
several days. They send them every
where. and one fireman came in the
other day who had been out for SIX
DAYS. They have bunk-houses along
the route. and before the trainmen leave
they give them money to buy rations
wherever they are. There is no such
thing as an 8-hour law here. A fellow
came in this morning off Of 24-hour
trip, in which he had gotten about
hours rest, and was called out again in
5 hours. I'd surely like TO see some OF
those brakemen, etc, that I've heard
cuss a blue streak around Shenandoah
Junction because they were on the To-
hour law over here called out again for
a run even before they had gotten wash
ed up, after coming in of 2-day trip.
We have quite big yard here, with
two humps. When switching cars over
the hump brakemen do not ride the cars,
they Just shove them over. An office Is
at the bottom to rhrow the electric
switches for the right track, and let
them roll until they hit All the cars,
as you know, are equipped with the
spring buffers, doing away with any
slack there might be, and when they hit
the buffers there is no damage done to
the cars, as they use chain and hook
for couplers with a tightening arrange
ment, that all hangs down when not in
use. The spring buffer is rather good
idea, though, especially on a passenger
trains. as it does away with all jerks
and Jars, that is caused by the slack
when starting and stopping, and would
make riding more comfortable.
We handle a lot OF traffic here in
day, but about all | have TO do is to look