The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1918-01-23
HARD FIGHT AHEAD
Writes Barre Boy Now in Uncle Sans
Service in France.

ocfVict IN rlaHVc
From Somewhere in France" Russell
II. Allen of the l.. =. aviation service
writes j. Edward Ward OF this city n,
folowsi
"My dear Mr.. Wardi You will no doubt
be surprised TO hear from me over here
but am safe and sound right here where
the excitement begins. II was a pretty
long, hard trip before we finally reached
our stopping place. l would like TO tell
You all the interesting places ! have seen,
but as you know. we have to be particu-
lar what we say. Ii not, the censor takes
the liberty TO make our letters according
to his liking. III tell you straight, Ed,
this is no place for man who is not
willing to put up with hardships and eat
bareback. He will also make up his
mind that war is surely all that Sherman
said II was and then some.
II believe that we have hard fight
ahead of us still ii the war is won. Food
conditions in Germany are about the only
chance for an early peace, in my judg.
ment, England and France hardly know
what butter, sugar and rich foods are and
IL you go TO hotel here in France all
you have for breakfast is some hard
bread and something like coffee, The
French people are very good to all the
L. S. boys and ] shall be glad when get
so l can talk French some. We have
quite a time now making them under
stand us, and sometimes | have TO stop
and laugh TO see some Americans trying
to make them understand what they
want.
"As for the weather here it is pretty
rainy damp and cold just now, although
have plenty of clothes and keep warm
myself. France is beautiful country
and do not blame the French people for
fighting for their country. ! surely hope
that we can drive the Germans out of |
France, and in fact | would like TO drive |
some of them off the map. According |
to what | am told, in few days / will |
be where the Germans come over and /
drop shells and bombs on the buildings |
nearly every day. The fellows there
have TO 90 down in dug-outs and stay /
for two or three days at a time. II will
be great when we get equipped well
enough so we can go up and shoot the
devil out of them.
Il have seen several German prisoners,
and as the L. S. boys go by lots of them
be over here wasting our time. You can
bet. though, before the e. $. gets through
with them they will be laughing out the
other corner of their mouths. Another
funny thing to me is the fact that these
German prisoners get nearly three times
IS much pay as the soldiers in England
" France.
"A fellow soon sees the horrors of war
Is soon as he lands over here, as it is {
'ery common to see soldiers with one 4,
eg, one arm. and Just day before yester
Law ! saw French soldier who had been I
hot in the face losing his nose and jaw $
zone. They had taken the jaw bone OF a a
ead soldier and had wired il in, while '
or nose he had two little rubber pipes !
o breathe through He was still glad 9
e had been wounded and said he would q
Ike to go back to the trenches If he a
ould That il the kind of men the L. s.
ovs are fighting with, and the people a
ack in America who do not realize what
his war really is had better wake up. /
believe that thousands of our soldiers {
ave got to go through the same thing
nd when President Wilson calls for {
lore money and when Hoover says save s
he food they are only asking the Amer
AN people to do very small part, vet
may be saving the life of some good h
Dldier or person who is doing his best TO
clip end the war over here.
well Ed, / can think of many things :.
, write. but | believe | have said more -
nw than the censor wants to read, so ] :
i'll say goodbye to you for while. +
ish when you see any of my friends
,ck there i'm America that you would
member me to them. Tell them
ould like to see them all, and ] wish
Du and the others a merry Christmas
I'd happy New Year"