The West Virginian. [volume] (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1914-1974, 1918-08-13
THE DAILY
SHORT STORY
"A LETTER TO Mr..
SOMEBODY"
BY LOUISE OLIVER
Copyright, 1918, By the :;cClurs
NoVEn0peF Syndicate

German HuskstPy had ceased for
the tine and all was quiet along the
line. Three Of the men in his platoon
had been wounded and taken back %
the fiPBtaid stations behind the lines.
But he hadn't a scratch.
Beside him. crouchinE IN variety
Of attitudes, were five OF the boys
playing cards. Someone had product
Z dOfeaFed, muddy pack and now tnsy
were having a round OF jack pots. The
6ntlFe crowd had an aggregate OF less
thar a dollar. ali told.
Come on IN. Pearson. the betting
fine," called D0rRan. "Sky'S the lIm''
But Philip shook his head. ut trrt'
NY finer feelings 10 see ny fellow b..
ingS YiSking their immortal souls.
cant be 4 party 10 the outrage. y
sides. I'm broke"
Poor Phil Dorgan drew tsIt'
cards. Lonely again
"Wh6's he got to be lonely for
KOaFney, new 10 the company, didni
know Pills history.
Nobody That's the trouble. "
euSseS here think we're killed becaus
We can't see cur folks But did yoc
ever think what It meant not 70 have
ouy home folks 10 get homesick TO-
that's Pills trouble. He Just natural
~ hasn't got anybody. That's VIVA.
h0'S thinking this minute. I'll be: a
iltney. Never gets any mail-nCyer
hears from anyone. BY George. hero
comes Bandy now with letters Hurrah'
The nails in. Jimmy! All those foI
ne, chaplain! Well, this is my day. ~
Philip sat stolidly on the iire-step
without moving. He knew the chap.
lain I'd no mail for him. All the other
boys were buSily tearing open letters
and papers end hungrily devouring
every word.
Then the chaplain stopped in front
Of him and pu: a hand on his shoulder.
my boy, I wonder If" He put his
other hand IN his pocket and drew out
. letter. IL don't approve o: this
much. I don't have any idea what's
inside, but I'm going tn leave it with
you"
Philip took the letter eagerly and
scanned the address. II was written in
rather angular feminine hand on
! plain white paper and directed to:
Mr.. SOMEBODY,
American Expeditionary Forces,
France.
Puzzled, he slid his trench knife up.
der the flap and drew out the closely
written folded pages. The letter be.
gan: Dear Mr.. neutrality-suspicious.
you read my letter I'm going 10 ask
whether or not you are getting mail
from home and friends. II you are.
will you please give this to someone
who ls not, for this is not your letter,
then, but his. am writing to a lonely
man who has no one to care about him
not TO you"
Philip paused. Strange that the
chaplain had followed the directions so
closely without divining the contents.
He turned again 10 the letter. Surely
the letter had reached its intended
destination. Who else had a better
right 10 Il than he? Then suddenly
fovulsion OF feeling seized him. He
didn't want sympathy. he didn't want
b read q lot Of Sunday School stuff
about patiently bearing ones lot and
being sustained BY pride in what he
was doing.
His eyes ran rebelliously over the
next few words, then he read more
eagerly aud before he knew it-but let
us read the letter.
First Of ALL" 1t ran, I'm going 20
wish q family onto you, Mr., Somebody
my family. And I'm going to tell
you all about what we've been doing
Maybe you'll want to hear about them
ana maybe you won't, but absolutely
refuse to sympathise with your loneli
Aess and write consoling things like
that. And ~ I have to have something
% put into 2 letter, Il will Just have
% be the family, so you'll have to be
patient. And I'm not going to intro
dnee them. / will speak OF them as
though you'd known US all forever.
TO begin, Mr.. Peabody finally came
across and gavo Dad the position as
department head that he should have
had years ago. Oh. you don't know
What It meant to us! Or. forget, you
do know, OF course. When Dad came
home that night and told US, Buddy
stood Tight up in the middle Of the din.
ing.roOm table and started 10 recit9
Webster's GRAFTON, knocking over my
vase OF Glove shrub, the first out OF the
garden, and running bran clean table
cloth that had taken me fOrty.seven
minutes 10 iron. But | was in q for.
giving humoT. Of course. and merely
kissed him and ordered him down.
Lefty gave Dad a hug that nearly
stfangled him and marched right up.
stairs and returned with every one
every ohe-miud you, Of her old dress
q over her arm"
Now, Sis she demanded. can't
glVe these to the poor Harbinsons right
away ana get that pink embroidered
Voile and the Feter Tom suit tomoT.
row."
i was ready TO promise anything.
ny dear cir, but all the while was
thinking how fine Il would be to have
the money for the gas and milk and
butcher and grocery man without
Dada having to cit up TIL midnight
AguFing how TO make the money
stretch.
well, that's that. Already Dad
looks ten years younger, and last night
When he was shaving l heard him
VhiStling. wasn't II wonderful!
The EmeTys next door are having
their house painted with mahogany
trimming. Il was q dear Of q house
before they bought It and looked 20
lovely white. But Mr.. Emery had made
4 fortune 10 munitions and he's build.
Ing Z ttuaO addition 10 IL Fma0tnaI