The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1918-11-16

after dinner with Edna Hopkins.
Betty Mills and Helen Crawford and
later some of us went up town again
to see the finish. We walked up and
down Broadway and a maudlin Broad
way it was now. Every one was mad
and, sad to say, many drunk, men and
women alike. All of the eating places
were closed. We finally went into
Murray's quite late after they were
supposed to be closed.
1.-The crowd was very thick and
thick headed as we'll, in fact they had
denials had come out and been disre
garded. A crowd believes what it
wants to believe and discards the
other always. All of New York had
suddenly melted into one mass;
might say mess too. Almost as one
man they let their imaginations run
riot, had ceased to think and became
an unmanageable mob.
1T was quite a night, you see, and
while 1 wouldn't have missed it for
anything, I am glad people aren't al
ways like that. Now when real peace
is declared the combustion will not be
SO spontaneous, because that will be
only an anticlimaX. 1t seems too bad
to have the real thing be an anticli-
max. Now just let your imaginations
upon them indefinitely. and then they
will be a bit nearer the facts as they
were. but as I can't describe them"
X 4 X
A Kansas City paper contains the
following article of interest to the
friends of Mr.. J. C. Letter, who for
merly lived in Topeka and has many
\ friends here, where he was connected
with the Central National bank:
"One of the sights which it does one
good to see these days of wholesome
discipline and conservation is Jim
Letter, of the Peck Dry Goods company
| carrying his tray at luncheon time in
| Baltimore avenue cafeteria. Mr..
Letter. as we all know, is a man of
means who belongs to the exclusive
clubs and could eat in them, but he
prefers the more public places and
often as not seats himself down at the
same table as one of the saleswomen
and is as chatty and honey as you
please. Mr.. Letter is confirmed old
bachelor, at least it looks that way,
and every one knows it, so he can be
as friendly as he pleases with women
| in general and no one mistakes his in
| tentions.'
The following extracts are from a
letter which Sergt. George D. Rees
| wrote to his father, MIR. G. F. Rees, on
October 6:
1--WE went over the top one morning
| in September and kept going into the
month of October and the boches, but
there weren't many boches to go into.
I'VE say 'Heinie' and he was -ourn'
Stormed some of the best built
trenches I ever hope to see, and 1 tell
you that no living army in this world
or the other could ever put Americans
out of such strongholds as they had.
However, we put over a barrage that
made 'em all back-track. i. e., all that
I n h ND no IL
| oners or killed.
| I'VE ran up against scads of ma
| chine gunners which we mopped up
on and 1 want to tell you that bullets
| don't sing, nor hum, nor whine-they
pop when they go by. 1 stood up and
had them pop around me, past my
ears and over my head till my he'll
met gang like bell. Once I thought
of lying down but just as 1 started to
flop about Six popped between my
legs, and-well, 1 didn't duck right
| then. We were in the first wave of
| infantry, cutting wire and clearing the
| way for machines, etc, and our bunch
behaved like the vets they are. Not
| one faltered, not one ran and not one
was killed-that time.
| Later on we went out to dig some
| trenches and found that we must dig
in and quick. because they caught US
under cross-fire from several different
directions, but never a man quit I'M
less he was killed, which happened
quite regularly for a while. We are
now so per cent short in our company,
but only twelve are known to be dead,
the rest wounded or gassed or both,
but most of them will be back again.
THE infantry didn't think much of
the engineers before, but now they do,
anc they think that Captain Hudson is
some man-and SO do we. He said.
Boys. hold this line and we held her
to man. The boches tried a counter
attack and what few were left ran
back into the woods like the towards
they are.
1T may please you to know that ]
am now first class sergeant in Com
pany A, and I'm sure proud to be ir
Company A, 10 Engineers"
4
THE LETTER OF A DEBUTANTE.
Dear S. r.: There isn't anythine
funny about it this time.-the wal
is actually over and so is the hilarious
celebration, but the rejoicing grow:
and grows, as the truth of the fac
| becomes more real. To think that we
| do not need to make any more tan
pons'' or ton pans" or whatever you
call them. ard that the appIicator. too
FOLDS 20
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