The Oskaloosa herald. (Oskaloosa, Mahaska County, Iowa) 1885-1919, 1918-10-17
|DETRCT CANPA|GNS SAILING THE SEAS SEES BIG CHANGES
FRED BEARD HAS SEEN SIGHTS
SINCE HE LEFT

Mrs. c. c. Beard of Vananda, Mon
tana, sent the Herald the following
letters from her son Fred who has
Oeen in the navy since a year age
last April:
Honolulu, Aug. 27.-Dear Folks at
home: The weather is fine here, and
everything is going kippy. This is
certainly a pretty place. Flowers
bloom the year round, and you can
! look across the country and see acre
after acre of nothing put pineapples.
We can eat all we want, just so we
don't waste any. They raise lots of
sugar cane here, too, and there are
great droVes of the latest cattle
have ever seen. This is one of the
main pleasure resorts on the island,
and many tourists come out here to
see the big volcano. 1t sure is a sight.
There is a large crater, several feet
across, in the top of mountain about
$4,000 feet high. The mountains are
about five miles from here.
Some Of us thought we would take
/ ramble the other day, to look around
he mountains. We enjoyed it al
though we had a little exciting eX'
perience. When we got up about five
miles we spied a little hut so thought
we would see who lived there. We
found an old man living there alone.
He invited us in and treated us TO
fine lunch, and when we were ready
to leave he asked where We were go
ing. On being told that we were just
sight seeing he advised us not TO go
any farther. as there were some wild
hogs in the hills. A soldier is Suppos-
ed to face anything, so We hiked, and
pretty soon, oh my! We stopped, ana
no one said word until finally one
fellow said, Give me club" and
another said Hit him over the nose"
And then Mr.. Hog and our crowd
started on five mile race. When we
came to a wire fence we had no
trouble getting over. One long legged
fellow stepped over the top wire and
never touched it. We haven't gone
back TO display our bravery since,
Have also seen a sugar mill. lhe
largest machinery | ever saw. The
farmers mere are nearly all Japs, and
do their work nearly altogether with
gasoline and steam traction engines.
- - -
Sept. 49, am at the Y. NJ. c. A.
now. Ii sure is fine place here in
Honolulu. Plenty of scenery and eV-
erything pleasant.
am now radio operator. Can re.
ceive 80 words a minute, and send %.
It's sure a good job. Am second class
now, and will try for first class. Two
of US have a little radio room where
we stay and keep all our belongings.
. | surely have seen some sights, be-
ing in the navy. Have been to Spain,
Japan, China, North Islands, and to
every port in the Philippines, and this
is our second trip to Honolulu. They
have said before that they would send
US TO the war zone, and all we hope
is that they will not back cut this
time, but will let us go.
This vessel am on is battle ship
and is sure monster, and fine one
too. Believe me, if | ever get home,
I'll be willing to take little fatherly
and motherly advice. The navy is
good place to be as long as you can
obey orders and act like a man. The
work is not hard, and you have plenty
of time to do it, They are strict, but
where there are so many to look after
they have to be.
AS ever, your son,
Fred c. Beard.