Belding banner. (Belding, Mich.) 1889-1918, 1918-05-15
SERG. ALLEN LEWIS
WRITES WHILE IN
CRAMPED Up BUNK
SAYS FIGHTING AT THE FRONT
is SAFER THAN AUTO ACCI-
DENTS IN THE STATES

A letter from Sergeant Allan G.
Lewis, Familiarity known as "Chubb":
Somewhere in France,
March 3. 1918.
Dear Folks:
If we could stay at the front this
war would not be so bad. That old
English joke of going to the front to
keep out of danger and away from
war talk is not so much Of q joke.
My hardest job has been to take q
walk to the village to get hot show
er bath. Back at camp never put a
foot out of the place for nearly two
months, but we are getting rested up
now, and expect to go back to the bill
lets in few days, where l presume
we will have to work again. Here's
hoping in the interim.
wish you could see the place am
writing in. It's my bunk, an upper,
about two feet wide with a post run
ming up one side taking up at least
six precious inches. Can curve
around it now in great shape. Have
three shelves, a box and two stands
for candles, and nails from which
hang my steel helmet and two gas
close to the ceiling that i can't sit
up straight in it. Just figure out
how much room there is left for me.
Once you get in it is just as hard to
get out of it as it was to get in.
| wish the pessimistic Americans
could see these boys work. The spirit
is wonderful. For instance one night
this week they started just at dark to
unload some 1900 rounds of ammuni-
tion before mess. 1t is no great fun
carrying shells down a muddy wind
ing trench in the dark when it is
raining, but you might have thought
they were playing football. At ten
o'clock we had to fire for half an hour,
then finish the ammunition, and got
mess about III p. M, and when we
turned in at 1880 everyone was sing
ing, although three or four from each
gun crew had to get up at five o'clock
which they all did without a single
complaint. The regiment has been
complimented by all the French of
ficers around, and / guess we have
earned it.
One evening just as we were turn
ing in we got a signal calling for
help from the infantry, and in just
two and half minutes every gun in
our battery was at full speed as were
a lot of other batteries near US. We
were told next morning that we had
wiped put one Boche company prac-
tically by being on the job. The men
go about their work as though they
had been at it all their lives and with
about as much nervousness as they
go about digging a ditch.
We are quite a distance from the
German lines and out of reach of their
light artillery, so there is really moth
ing to be nervous about. One French
battery near US had been in every
big battle of the war and have only
lost four men. To lose four men in
four years out of 200 is little above
the average in civil life. / am glad
I joined the artillery, and came over.
Too many auto accident in the States.
Got box of cigars and a big bunch
of cigarettes from Mr.. Converse
again; also got the gloves and socks
from you. They are great. BY this
time / should think you would have
lot of letters. They were held up
some time in December because we
had few cases of measles in camp.
We are surely well looked after over
here. Even had roast turkey up here