The Yale expositor. (Yale, St. Clair County, Mich.) 1894-current, 1918-12-05
OUR SOLDIER BOYS.
Letters From and Items Concerning Yale
Boys Who are in the Service of
Their Country

November 0tn, 1918
Somewhere in No Mans Land
My Dear Folks:
Just note to let you know I'm
alive and well iu spite of all the rain
and mud. Neare right up behind the
front lines where the Germans were
just short time ago. The Americans
can hardly keep up with them, they are
going 30 fast. The Germans sure had
this place well dag up, there are trench
es and dugouts galore, 40 to 80 feet be-
low the surface. We were down in
several of them. They had been vacat'
ed in a hurry as there was ammunition
and equipment of all kinds left behind.
We were in town yesterday which
was shelled-it was quite interesting
while it lasted. The shells burst about
Is a mile from us. All around us there
are air raids, planes being shot at and
planes shooting.
The mud around here is fierce. AS
one of the fellows said this morning
when another was washing his feet in
a puddle of water right where we were
sleeping, "why in h are you wash
ing your feet in the water we sleep in."
It's sacrilege TO take a bath here, so
we save the water to drink.
Just this minute got thru watching
big air fight in which one German
plane was brought down by five Amer
lean planes.
This life is sure exciting while it
lasts.
Must close. Don't worry as every
thing is going along fine. Lots of love
to all. Your loving SOD,
sgt. l.. j. Menzies,
Bat. G, 329th +. A.
Am. f. f., France, via New York
In a card written Nov. llth, he says.
"Plenty of work and excitement. See
you soon, maybe"
Extracts from the letters Of Albert
Menerey who is stationed near Bor-
deau, in the southern and western part
of France, written to his mother:
! October l5, 1918
We are now in French town billet
ed among the people. They treat us
fine and want to do all they can for US
1t is very hard to know what they mean
by the motions they go thru trying to
make us understand, and when we do
get it they are very much pleased. Their
customs are so different from any [
have ever seen before. 1t is really
amusing to watch them. Nearly all wear
the wooden shoes, don't know whether
leather or wood is most scarce, but
both are hard TO get. Nearly everyone
who can afford it rides bicycle and it
Is a common occurrence to see four or
five girls going thru town on their bi
cycles. Oxen seem to be the chief means
of transportation and tilling the soil,
although there are horses here and all
have seen are certainly fine. guess
about all they raise here is grapes as
that is about all one sees as far as one
looks. The French people are great
for their wine and the larger part of
the grapes are made into wine. We
are having a great time cooking our
own meals. We have bacon and coffee
for breakfast and it all tastes good.
They claim France has about the same
climate as California. Not having
been in California 1 can't say, but it's
certainly good healthy climate here.
It's hard to write letters here as one
can't write much that would be news
to you.
| am feeling fine and believe me
when l get back you will have to hire
an extra cook as l sure can eat now
and eat everything.
October %, 1918
am keeping in the best Of health
and feeling better each day, don't know
what il is unless it's the climate, we do
have swell weather here. We eat our
meals out around under the trees and
you can't do that in Michigan at this
time of year.
October 26, 1918
This certainly is one grand day and
l am sitting out in the sun with board
across my knee writing. We were
able to buy some candy the other day
and believe me 1t tasted good. The
Chaplain went to q nearby town and
guess he nearly bought out the town of
everything he could get. Never had a
hankering for candy until got some
where where we couldn't get it. Am
in the best of health, and eating like q
horse. When get back home you will
have to stock up. have an awful
time with the French money over here.
Everything is based upon a franc, zoe,
/ A ~ ~