Belding banner. (Belding, Mich.) 1889-1918, 1918-02-13
HOB NAILS ARE
COLD THINGS EARLY
IN MORNING BAILEY
PLENTY OF COLD WEATHER, ICE
4 AND SNOW OVER IN
FRANCE
On Active Service
with the


American Expeditionary Force
January IL, 1918.
Dear Mother and All:
Here l am at the Y trying to think
of enough to make letter. II is a
hard job but when fellow is writing
home he can find few things to tell.
1t is the same every day-drill-- so /
need not tell you again about it.
Today has been the best day that
we have had in a long time. The sun
has been shining and plenty of ice
and snow. The weather that we
have been having was enough to make
any soldier down-hearted. One day
the snow would be up to our necks
and the next day It would rain and
then is when all of the boys woulo
talk French, but what's the use, they
would say at 500 bells you will hear
drill call and then we will be out in it.
You should hear them talk when they
hear that rise and shine" in the
morning at six bells. We reach for
the hob nails and try to pull them on,
for some nights the degrees go down
pretty low in this country, and if
there is anything that is colder than
pair of those hob nails, show me.
But it can't be helped. Were in the
army now"
I'VE had one of the coldest morn
ings that l ever saw in all my life a
few days ago. When we got up the
frost was about an inch thick on the
trees and when we turned in that
night the frost was still there and the
sun had shown also.
/ must tell you that / got my share
of the Christmas presents that came
over here. You should have seen the
boxes. They all came o. k. and es-
pecially the candy. We were eating
candy for quite few days after
wards. You know how / like it and
coming from home and friends it sure
did taste good to US. / am writing
this letter with the pen the Y. p. S.
c. +. sent me and it comes handy for
some one helped themselves to my
pen and | believe | could shoot the
person that took it; | got four
sweaters in all and they are all in
use. The one you sent is used by No.
l and the others by my friends that
did not have any and we all appreci-
ate them and thank you and my
friends who were so kind in remem-
bering me. / would write to each of
them, but don't have the time now.
I'm on the job over here.
What kind of Christmas did YOU
have in the States? You would have
been surprised to see the kind they
had here. You would think that they
had one, but they did not, and it look
ed strange to US. We had big din
ner and passed the time as best we
could.
My birthday, December IL, was
nearly passed when | was thinking
what could happen and what had hap
pened in year to me. have been
away now about nine months and /
must say it has been the shortest nine
months that have spent in my whole
life, and want it to be that way with
the rest of you at home and hope
that some day | can tell you of my
army life in France. 1t is great stuff
and | am making good.
How are my friends in Belding?
Tell them hello for me. / am still
keeping an eagle eye out for some of
the boys and may run across them
yet. | think / will take one of my
mules and hunt them up. Well, be
sure and get this change in my ad-
dress. / think | will have to go to
bunk and give the hob nails rest, so
with love to you all, / will bid you
good night.
Your son,
Corporal Clarence C. Bailey.
Co. A., End Brigade, M. c., Bu..
American Expeditionary Forces,
France.