Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1918-02-23
Somewhere in France,
Jan. 6. 1918.

Jan. o, 1913.
Dear Mother:
Started a letter to you, this morn
ing at the hangers. but it was so un-
satisfactory that I threw it away.
Was expecting to go on protection,
but low, fieecy clouds prevented, as
it's impossible to take pictures in
such weather. Sitting around like
that all morning is very tiring, and
one could not go far from the fire,
for it sure is cold. Just a promen-
ade of about ten feet and those hob
nail conductors in my shoes made my
tootsies tires froid" Ha! ha!
fear if | keep on springing French
words on you, you will have to learn
French. | only hope you don't have
as much trouble as l, for it sure is
difficult, and these Frenchmen are
often quite amused at my eonstruc-
tion of sentences. However. their
use of English is just as amusing.
Somebody taught one of these
Frenchmen rooming with me an
English cuss word, and you never
saw anyone so proud of his command
OF the language, as he uses it on all
occasions. It's a cinch that the first
time he springs it on girl. as he
surely will, somebody's going to get
shocked. The fact that l told him it
was never used in good society made
no difference, for he continues
springing it.
The French Comedian
Had to stop for dinner-no, it
didn't take me two days to eat it,
but we have one Frenchman here
that is so amusing that one cannot
write when he is around. l nearly
laughed myself to death at him yes
terday. lie has a comical face to
begin with and now that he has a
bealed tooth and his lip has swollen
to abnormal size, he is funny even
to look at. It's his little manner
isms that are so funny, so l can't
very well explain them. 1t was rain
ing all day yesterday and we all sat
around the fire, trying to write let
ters; he among us. Only he was
gravely pulling the hobnails out OF
his shoes and filling up the holes
made thereby by pounding in matches
with the heads out. When someone
asked him why he did this he an
swered in his droll way: ITO light
the way as | walk"
Then his cigarets were nearly ALL
and to prevent passing them around
as etiquette demanded, he goes out
in the hall to light up and comes
back wearing his usual innocent Il
didn't do anything" expression
Pretty soon he and another French
man began a duet, each one singing
in different key. | suppose now
YOU begin to understand why l stop
ped writing.
Some Bath
NV taking bath in the morning
caused quite a lot of amusement also
for, aside from it being a rare treat
u mean the bath, not the fgure-
If was rather difficult, since only a
washbasin was available, which
would not even hold my small foot
Therefore, / had to stand on a chunk
OF oilcloth, which just about ruined
nv feet. Golly! but it was cold.
Imagine taking bath with a wash
rag which was frozen stiff and you
will understand why it takes cour-
age to be a soldier. 1t just took one
hour to warm my feet again, and 1t
Just occurred to me that the twenty
days' coat of dirt must have had a
warming effect, for 1 never had cold
feet before.
Plenty of Snow in France
After the rain had melted all the
snow it began showing again and
continued thus off and on all last
night and to-day. Which sure makes
it look wintry around here, there be-
ing some seven inches of snow on
the ground, and still she falls.
Walked to L'epine to-day to buy
some socks, all mine being out i'm
the heels and toes. That kind are all
right in the summer, but in winter