Morris tribune. [volume] (Morris, Minn.) 1880-2000, 1918-08-30
O'BRIEN WRITES ABOUT
LIFE in THE TRENCHES
Was in Dugout When Captain and
Three Men Were Killed-Gas
is the Worst Thing

Oh lie III Tie tTeuCucS, duu III ACtICi .
to his father, VIM. O'Brien, he tells
of having been in Baccarat, and en-
: closes the silk from a German flare,
and also sent the letter of thanks
which General Duport sent to the
42nd Division whom it left to fight
''a great ways from there and north. /"
In the letter to his sister he says
Somewhere in France, July II, 1918
Dear Sister,
1--WE expect 'boco' (French for a
great deaD of mail tonight, but I
got to write before it gets dark for
/ have no candle.
ri saw some pretty good movies
tonight. It's the first time since I
was in the last sector.
t'I think we are now able to tell
what region of the country we were
in before. It's Mr.. Treinen's old
home Lorraine He will undoubted-
ly remember Baccarat. I don't think
I should say any more about it.
81 don't know whether I ever told
you any thing about life in the
trenches so here goes little yarn.
One goes in always at night and
tries to get his bearings in the dark.
Tho it is very hard. The kitchens
go right up to the second line with
us and our chow is carried to us in
pals and cans. Our water is very
carefully sterilized. Beds are fairly
good but often over thirty foot in
the ground and holding fifteen or
twenty men. OF course we get the
walking itch and have lots of rats,
unless the gas kills them off. The
attacks and raids are always launch
ed just at dusk OF early in the NOR
ming so the biggest share of the
sleeping is done in the day time and
they fight at night.
''They shoot artillery here that
can tear UP dugout that is only
ten foot under the ground.
81 was in one with a captain the
. first time we went in and he and
three men we're killed and here I
am without a scratch.
''I've met several fellows in the
same service as Lem and they al
ways SCI IuC1I uuO dUOuC COA IIll1CS
from the line and five so it is not
often they are bothered unless by a
bombing plane, one of the most
dangerous enemies of real heavy
artillery and massed troops in rest
camps. Gas is the worst thing that
ever went thru. They launch an
attack of gas not known until it is
too late, what it is. There's phosgene
gas that makes you sick and you
have to vomit, you remove your
mask to vomit and it's got you. Mus
tard gas is very bad; it will blind
one and if much is inhaled it will
gradually eat ones lungs up.
"Well Mary this is an unusually
long letter for me but you have al
ways asked me so much and I never
answered so here it is. 1t may be
cut up but I don't think I have said
anything in violation of rules.
"Best regards to all.
Robert O'Brien,
"Hdq. Co. 1853 Inf,
"a. P. o. 715."
In letter to his father on July
II, he writes:-"I am enclosing a
card of thanks sent to us by Gen.
Duport in command of the Sixth
Army Corps of the French, under
which we have fought, but are now
in different one under the Ameri-
can outfit.
'"This 'Baccarat sector is just the
name of the closest big town near
the line. Don't think we are still
there for we are great ways from
there and north.
1--WE are all very proud of the
Italians now and we surely ought to
be. Austria had them five miles
from Venice; now they're pushed
clear across the Piave river and I
am nearly certain they will never
cross it again.
1.-THE weather here has been quite
favorable of late with just enough
rain to make crops good. They are
going to have wonderful crop here
this year unless a miracle happens.
Zone Of my old friends is over here
and his outfit relieved us in one
sector but I didn't get to see him-a
big Irishman from Texas"
Again on July 18th, he writes -
eve received large amount of Sec
ond class mail last night and / got
several copies of the Daily News, al
so one Herald and a Tribune. I got
the little bottle of ink and it sure
came in handy just now for nearly
every one is out. We are quite a
distance now from any town where
we can get anything like that.
II am enclosing the silk from
German parachute. 1t came from
rocket. The strings cut off on ac-
count of weight and size. There's a
flare or white light tied onto it and
it is fired from big barrelled re-
volver The parachute holds the
flares in the air for some time" The
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