Belding banner. (Belding, Mich.) 1889-1918, 1918-01-23
PACKAGES REACH
FRANCE SAFELY.
CHILDREN ARE HAPPY
CLARENCE BAILEY TELLS OF
CHRISTMAS DAY THERE AND
CHILDRENS CONDITION

Clarence Bailey, who is with the
American armies in France says he
would feel lost without mud. Here
is what he has written to his parents
here about life in camp:
On Active Service
with the
American Expeditionary Force
Somewhere i'm France"
January l, 1918.
| am going to start the new year
by writing a letter home. Perhaps
you are anxious to know about my
Christmas in France.
Well, the night before Christmas
we had a show at the Y and it was
good and at the end they gave each
soldier few small presents to give to
the little French children and in the
morning we gave them our presents.
| believe that was all the Christmas
that these little fellows over here had,
but they are happy and don't mind it.
The little folks at home should be
very glad they are not over here.
At six o'clock Christmas eve we
thought that we were going to have
Christmas without snow, but at bed
time snow began to fall and by morn
ing everything had white cap on and
the hills were beautiful, and it sure
did look like Christmas morning.
We had a good Christmas dinner
and all we wanted to eat. We had
turkey, mashed potatoes, pie, cake and
other things to go with it, so taken
altogether we did not have such a
bad time. l got some nice boxes from
home and my friends and / want to
thank them all. If fellow ever
wants friends its when he is away and
can't get home. Dana sure did re-
member her brother with that big
box of candy and the boys and / can
assure her that it was good. / got
boxes from Arnold Schmidt and wife,
and the Y. p. S. c.. E., one from
Florence Smith of Portland, Lillian
Harrington, and two from mother and
they were all in good condition. There
is more mail yet that we have not
got but 1T will get to US in due time.
We are having some cold weather
now and quite a lot of snow. The hills
are beautiful with their whipe caps
on. We still keep drilling every day.
We have first call at 600 a. M, and it
is as dark there as at midnight. Re-
treat at 400 p. m, and it gets dark
then, so you see the days are short
here. L will be glad when summer
comes again.. and the. days are long
so we can see to read or write until
eleven o'clock.
i don't find time to answer half of
the letters / get / want to send
home some things from here, but
there is so much red tape to go
through that it takes long time to
get started before it can leave this
place.
Mother said in her letter that it
could not be very pleasant drilling in
mud and rain. Well after a fellow
puts in about five months over here
he gets used to it and is lonesome if
he is not in it.
The band is playing here at the Y
and they are good. / wish you could
hear them.
/ suppose there has a good many of
the boys joined the army and gone. /
am always on the watch for some one
/ know. They'll get over here after
awhile.
Well, / guess / will have to stop and
go to bunk, but will write you again
in few days. So once more thank
ing you all and my friends for your
Christmas to your Sammy-"Some-
where in France remain your
Corporal Clarence G.. Bailey.
III Machine Gun Co., 28th Inf. Ameri-
can Expeditionary Force, France.
p. ST. divided my Christmas with
the rest of the boys and they enjoy
ed it as much as l did. so you see it
made more than myself happy.