The Alaska daily empire., 1918-02-14
ABOUT EXPERIENCE
 ON THE FRONT Was Wounded at Ypres and While with the
 Fighting Forces
 in France. DESCRIBES THE w A R Letter Was Received by Rev. Buchanan and
 Sent to Rev.
 Waggoner.
DESCRIBES THE w A R

R. A. Buchanan, of Sitka, and sent by him to Rev. David Waggoner of Juneau, gives some personal note. and sidelights on the war "ovel there"
 Liverpool, Dec 9th, 1917.
 Dear Mother:
 Have not heard from home for some time now, but have not re eived any of my mail since leaving France. suppose it is delayed somewhere on account of having to be returned here.
 am feeling fine and my foot is doing nicely, so there is no danger whatever, but I think it is going to be rather slow healing, as the nurse told me this morning that it would be a few weeks yet before I would be allowed to even get out of bed
 We were up at Ypres in Belgium when I got wounded, and it surely was hot spot. We were about two miles nearer the front than the most advanced dressing station when Noo hit anu ouI party hdu liO stretchers with them, so we had quite an experience getting out. My right foot was useless, so two of the boys were sent with me to help me They would each take one of my arms and drag me through the mud, and slush and water until they were tired out, then would crawl along on my hands and knees until I got stuck in the mud or was exhausted so exhausted that l could go no further, then they would get my arms again; and all the time the Germans were sweeping the ground thoroughly with every size and kind of shell fire. Several times we had to put on our gas masks and then our progress was even slower, until we finally decided tC leave them off and take a chance or the consequences rather than be de layed any longer than necessary un der the terrible shell fire. We near fumes of the gas but suffered nc serious results from it.
 After four hours of struggling through shell holes, mud, water, ga and darkness (thank heaven it wa' good and darE) with shells bursting all around us every minute of the four hours, we succeeded in reach ing the advanced dressing station We had covered a distance of about two miles then. I was given a drink of tea and a doctor dressed my wound He told me had lost an awful lot of blood and I sure felt as though l had. He also told me that there was no doubt that would be sent to England with such a wound and that made me feel some better.
 was then carried on a stretcher four miles further back, to the most advanced point that the motor am balances dared go Every inch oi the six miles that had travelled l is absolutely covered with shell holes The soil has all been churned and rechurned, torn and retorn l was loaded into a motor ambulance along with three other stretcher patients
 just as dawn was breaking, and we were taken to a hospital away in the rear When we arrived there, tive of my fellow passengers were dead and the other, who had concussion i of the brain, was raving mad. A nice little pleasure tour
 was taken from there to a hos pital still further back, operated on kept there for four days until l was 1 fit to send over, and was then sent over here, but came all the way ly' | ing on my back, so did not see much.
 You have often asked me to tell you something of my experiences Well, dear mother, this is pooi
 account of one of many such exper
 fences in which someone else was the wounded party. The reason l an telling you now is because l am ou | of danger for quite a long time al
 least, and it is possible that m!
 foot will never be fit for line dut.
 again. l am well cared for here ant
 am getting reconciled to lying in bed although for the first week or twt was very restless.
 sincerely trust that you are feel
 ing better than you were and tha all at home are well, and wishlnl you very merry Christmas. Your ever loving son,
 PETE.