The Mellette County pioneer. [volume] (Wood, Mellette County, S.D.) 19??-1971, 1918-11-08
LETTERS FROM OUR SOLDIER
BOYS.

Suhip II uiioOoiI, iNoi'oNSt
To Mellette County Friends:
There a number of you whom ]
ha We not been able to write to indivi-
dually, and owing to recent orders my
time in Camp Funston Is very limited
and perhaps in the United States un-
til the close Of the war which we all
hope will be at an early date.
Army life, though quite different
from civil life, l like fine, and heard
one or two of the boys say here that
the first seven years were the worst.
A vetian sol.iier of the civil war told
ne that parting from home and friends
was the worst part of army life, 80
/ have found that very true.
You boys who anticipate entering
the service soon, will say that you
will find the Detention Camps and
Depot Brigade by far the worst places
The officers there are, more or less,
rough and ready fellows. After you
yet into your regular company, al
though some Of the officers may seem
a little hard boiled at first, as you get
acquainted with with them; you'll
find them to be just as human as you
are, and If you treat them right they
will sure treat you right. Do not
worry about the vaccinations or In.
EQUATIONS; they are seldom serious at
all.
Well, / never felt better In my life
than l do today. Weighed It's pounds
before dinner. Had all the chicken
| could eat for dinner and was not
X. p. either.
l have been quite busy here for the
most part; have never had or called
for a pass or furlough since l came
here, dut / had the pleasure Of visit
ing the Base Hospital at FIT. Riley a.
bout six weeks ago. The Spanish Flu
and Bronchitis went with me. The
people seemed to like me pretty well
down there. The first thing they
did was to take of my clothes and
hide them, t..ok what little money /
had, wrote my name on a cloth band
and pasted it around my leg $50 II !
died they'd know my name and where
to send me toy and put me to bed.
Then the doctor said 1t would be a
pretty good plan for me to stick a.
round there cl bse for a few days; and
as obedience is first, last and all the
time in the army, l obeyed him, Il
stuck around there right close for 20
days. | took four doces of the medi-
cine they gave ne to break up my
fever and everyone of them made me
sick enough to die; so ! asked the
ward boy TO send the doctor in, he
so and told the doctor II he did not
want to lose one Of his best men; not
to give me any more OF that medicine
Why, he says, what's the matter, boyp
l told him the medicine made me so
sick everytime, 1t was worse than the
Flu itself. alright, he said, no more
nedicine for you and l did not take
any more either. Three 1r four Of
the nurses got my name on their nice
little book and were going to feed me
the medicine, but / ia ked them out
Of the notion, except one. She was
Irom Michigan, and l remember her
quite we'll. She said 1t seemed very
that she got my name for
that medicine e~yerytime. l told her
there was no fun about 1t on my part
She replied that she had orders to
rive me the medicine and was going
o do 1t whether I wanted 1t or not
sure admired her grit then; and felt
'orry for her that she could not wear
soldiers uniform; and told her to
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