The Raymer enterprise., 1918-04-25


unnecessary. They came a week
apart. The first was bad, the second
worse and the third was easy. When
you take about four billion little ty-
phus germs and let them ramble
around here and there, prying into
the corners Of your soul, as 1t were
we'll, 'tis bound to cause a Billy Sun
day excitement of some kind
we had to shovel coal, snow, cinders
and more coal every day. and when
we weren't doing that we were work.
ing in the mess galley peeling spuds
or onios or gettig our turn at wash
ing dishes, pots and kettles and pol
ishing copper kettles and stoves. All
in all we spent pretty busy time In
detention, drilling and studying the
Blue Jackets Manual. This little
book contains as many poges as the
Bible nearly and we are supposed to
learn 1t backwards ad forwards in
three weeks.
While | was still in detention some
one was kind enough to send or have
sent me The Havelock Post, and l
wish you would thank them for me.
will you? sure enjoyed 1t. An
other thing: | wish you would tell
every one there you can, II they have
a son or brother in training, to sed
candy, cake or eats like that II they
can or want to, but to write often
and regular. A letter is worth four
pounds of candy, especially at first.
I've seen fellows rush to the mail
man when he delivers mail and then
turn disappointedly away and stare
at nothing for an hour and q half,
just because sometimes the folks at
home are thoughtless. One thing II is
to do. That is to write
Jack Tar or Sammy too many letters.
is news, from the dogs and
cats to who's getting passes and why
and where.
To go on with my letter. After
the detention period we were sent to
Camp Farragut, which is holdover
camp. | was there a week. Every
day drill. In our company were avi-
alton mechanics, radio and hospital
men and two c. p. o., or chief petty
officers, one OF whom Is chief car
penter's :iate and the other chief
lectrician, and both fine fellows. The
latter has charge OF the radio school
now in Camp Perry, while the first
has charge Of maintenance work in
camps Dewey and Perry.
| am in camp Paul Jones now,
full-fledge member OF the power
house machine shop. There are
twelve machinists in the shop and
eight in the fire room. We do every
thing from overhaul motorcycles and
gas engines to babbit bearings for
electric motors and fix garbage cans
The power house is a great deal like
the one at home only of course not
as large, II pumps water for all the
camps and also furnishes light. 1t Is
right on the edge of the lake and
when the lake is wild the spray dash
es up nearly half way to the top OF
the house. ! enjoy my work all right
but am just like 10000 other jacks
here--crazy to get to sea or oversee
If we can. We are really q reserve
force here, but are leaving rapidly.
An enormous bunch has left for SER
vice In France.
This letter is sure rambling and
inconsequential, but that seems to be
my style in other things besides let
ter writing, so ! guess you are to be
he goat this time. Our barracks here
are different than other camps. Here
there are two companies or 288 men
to barracks, with a mss hall to a
barrack, while before we only had
As men to barrack and the grub
was brought to us in cans. It's more
civilized here. We have regulation
chow drill here every meal. Tn drill
chief gives us drill something like
this;
Beans are eaten in 5 counts"
The preparatory command Of
Of execution. No. is balance beans
on your knife, No. 2 swallow, No. 3
pick up stragglers, Nos 4, s, 6, Z are
chew counts and No. s is sollow.
Spuds come next with IL counts.
meat takes either 323 or 6S7 chew
counts, whatever the case may be-
1923 for cold meat and 6S7 for gentle
man COW. This insures a good diges-
ton OF grub which might otherwise
be wasted and also is designed to i'm
prove our tempers so when we see 9
German we bite off the spik on his
helmet. r..
The military operations are open.
ing up here for the spring drive
Tents are springing up for rocks Il
occupy after April 1st. New barrack
10, o,;asgo,. ,a.n~n . " n n -, an,