Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1918-03-01
NEWFANE
SHOOTING FROM .A1RPLANEs.
Raymond L. Brown Writes His Sister
From Camp Hicks, Texas.

Raymond L. Brown Writes His Sister
From Camp Hicks, Texas.
The following is a part of u letter
received by Mrs. Karl Il. Maher from
her brother, Raymond L. Brown, former
ly of this town and now of Brattleboro,
who is in the naval aviation detach-
ment, royal flying corps, school of aerial
gunnery, Camp Hicks, Fort Worth, Tex
as.
Dear Mary
AS have not heard from you or any
one else from home have wondered if
you got my cards, also the oranges and
grapefruit, ] got them the night be-
fore i left Miami. Thought you would
like some just as they grow in Florida,
The morning | left l picked grapefruit
and cocoanuts, and believe me the grape
fruit ripencd on the trees is some diff
ferent from that which we get up North.
1t is sweet and pleasant to eat without
any sugar. | could see very little diff
ference in the cocoanuts. They grow
oranges and bananas there, too, but l
did not seen any of the banana groves
as they are farther inland.
The climate is wonderful. The tenn
perature usually around 80, was not un.
comfortably warm as there was always
fresh breeze blowing. The air was
soft and balmy like June weather at
home. The headquarters were on the
shore and faced green in front of the
Royal Palms hotel. This was one of
the exclusive hotels of the city, patro-
nizcd by millionaires mostly. Rooms
at So per day up, way up, too. The
green was surrounded by drive which
was bordered by cocoanut palm trees.
On the green was band stand and they
gave concerts afternoons and evenings.
1t was wonderfully picturesque listen
ing to the music by one of the finest
bands and watching the moon rise on
the water through the palms. 1t fully
came up to everything you read about
the sunny South. When 1 get rich |
am going to spend my winters south,
boating, bathing, tennis, golf, every
thing that warm weather offers.
II seems long time since I feft
Tech-Jan. 2l-going by rail to Provi-
dence, then taking a boat to New York
where we stayed one day, and l had a
chance to look up some friends, then
sailed on the City of Montgomery, one
of the best passenger boats of the Sa-
Vannah lines, to Savannah, Ga, spend
ing three days at sea. We went by rail
from there to Miami, via Jacksonville
which is a very pretty city Stayed
several hours there, which gave an OPP
portunity to see the city, taking a
sleeper ont and getting into Miami the
next morning.
W. were thcro three days, stavng
at the now barracks that they are build
ing for the flying school but which were
not quite completed. The day we got
there they announced they wished 40
men weighing under 100 pounds to &c
to Fort Worth. They would not say
what for but informed us it was for
something good. I was lucky enough
to get in the draft. We left the 30th
and came by train to Jacksonville again
then 20 pirmineham. Nomrhis, Little
Rock and Dallas TO Fort Worth
When we got here we found number
of itneys Waiting to take lis to camp
which is situated II miles from town
We landed in here at 10 clock with
nothing but our suit cases and found
we were to sleep in tents.
It is quite cold and we had to draw
beds, mattresses and blankets. We arc
five in a trnt, the same kind used by the
army, which Won have probably seen.
They arc four sided with wooden floor
and little stove in the center by which
we can make it very comfortable. ever
when we are having very cold weather
and it is cold here sometimes. The
water ripes froze in the wash house
last night. Tomorrow or next day il
will be as warm as June at home. Tha'
is the way the weather is here, first ont
extreme and then the other. Day be
fore yesterday it must have been W
to so or more. Take it all round it il
very comfortable hero.
We have been supplied with leathe
coats, helmets and gloves for flying
One of the fellows took my picture II
full regala. l will send you one as sool
as he gets the prints. Our course her
is gunnery, machine guns. We spen
the first week in the class room, tn
next on the ranges and now we shoe
from airplanes 400 or 500 feet in all
1t is great sport. and like it yer,
much. We finish here in a week.
How are you all? I can hardly realiz
the cold weather you have been having
for while it gets cold here 1t of cours
is nothing like 10 below and only last
about a day or until the wind shift
out of north and west.
RAYMOND.