Audubon County journal. (Exira, Iowa) 1884-1993, 1918-05-02
JACK HENSLEY
An Interesting Letter From An Extra Boy
In The Trenches.

|can speak quite a bit of French and
understand more. The French draft.
horses are splendid, big square-built
fellows with short backs, fine legs and
feet and with their legs placed well
under them. In fact of all the horses
I've seen in the agricultural district OF
France have never yet seen one with
blemishes on his legs. Some of the
very best horses. that ever saw were
at the sale held yesterday The cat
tie here are something like the Swiss
dairy breed but a little rougher; they
have big heads and such a heavy dew
law that the milch cows heads and
necks look like our bulls. The hogs
that I've seen were all white, were
long bodied like some of our bacon
breeds with hugs fiappy ears that
come down almost to the end of thei;
uoses. There's quite bit of fruit
raised around here but it is mostly a
dairy country. 1t is probably also
quite grain country judging from
the wheat straw we have bought for
our bed ticks, for it is exceedingly
long and coarse.
The French locomotives and trains
q rca
car, but the trains start and stop very
easily. They can run fast even if
they are small, but when they whistle
| it sounds like Chinese pheasant, or
tomcat that is fast in trap. There's
very little machinery used here; With
the exception of cranes and clamssell
buckets for unloading coal from the
barges that saw in the harbor where
we landed haven't seen. as much as a
| grindstone or buzz saw. don't
| know whether they have any binders,
mowers, discs, ETC., such as you use,
nor have / been up close to the local
lplows although can see lots of farm
ers plowing around here. The land is
plowed in strips 60 to 100 feet wide
and 80 rods or more long. Horses are
hitched tandem fashion mostly and as
many as six to one load, controlled
by jerk line just as they drive out
west. Many of the vehicles are two
wheeled ,or rather / should say that
the great majority of them are around
there.
We have lots of fun over here but
still keep mighty busy too. In my
roamings around have been close
! enough to the front to hear the big
guns; have also been through sever
al air raids which found amusing but
not very dangerous. All the boys who
have beento the front prefer the front
| line to the work behind the line, they
say it isn't SO very dangerous and
there is always enough to do to have
1 lots of fun. We live well over here;
the food is good, so are our quarters
most of the time. This war game has
been worked down to science SO
! that man can live in pretty coed
shape over here. We get paid in
French money. which is just as easy
tc spend here asa Yankee coin is on
that side or nearly so.
| i have a leave of absence coming up
| in the not too distant future and hope
i to gosto Paris, where have not yet
Ebeen. If they won't give me per1nis-
sion to go there then wish to go to
Nice down on the Mediterranean.
Some Of my friends just got back from
trip down to the French Alps fright
close to Switzerland; they reported
having lots of fun and seeing some
grand scenery.
How did you come out on the farm
hope you cleaned up $4,000 but of
course am sure you went considerably
under that. Is Harry still with you,
or did he get place for himself this
year? If you get time drop me line.
If you go to war bring plenty of mon
ey along with you, load up on candy to
Feat on the ship, bring two or three
Apairs. of extra good quality work
gloves along, and buy some extra rus;
fset shoes as they're unobtainable over
there. Also bring along plenty OF
razor blades and all kinds of soaps as
well as bug powder and ointments,
Don't be afraid to put any of your per
sonal stun in your pack it all comes
handy.
Give my regards to any of my
friends you see-the Wiggesses. Tom
lmy M, Hans R. and any of the rest Of
them you see. Take care of yourself
Yours,
JACK HENSLEY, Sgt. Major.
4 APO ia Post Commandant's Office
i France.
II eoco.