The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1918-02-04
TURNER SAYS
CAMP is GOOD
kahoka Boy Writing Home, Praises
Conditions and Reports
Comfortable Fight
ing Men.

Ben E. Turner of Kahoka, Mo-,
writing from Camp Doniphan to
George V. Calvert of Kahoka, cor
reefs widespread impression that
life in the training camps is a hard
ship. According to Mr.. Turner's let
ter, which follows, he seems to be
enjoying soldier life:
CAMP DONIPHAN, Dec. 27, 1917.
Mr.. George v. Calvert, Kahoka, Mo.
Your letter. just received and / am
answering it Immediately, and have
a double purpose in mind. First l
want to express my appreciation to
the lodge of their kind consideration
and well wishes and also to give you
the necessary information. My age
is rs years. l am with Co. G, 139th
U. S. infantry. My rank is sergeant,
my promotion came on August 16,
1917, and l enlisted on May IS, 1917.
guess that covers it all.
In the second place l want to raise
vigorous protest about the way
some people in Kahoka-as every
where-are weeping and wailing over
the manner in which we are being
handled. Newspapers and rumors
seem to compete with one another
in the matter of wild yarns of in
efficiency in the Quartermaster's de-
partment, of soldiers freezing for
lack of proper clothing, for want of
blankets, dying from horrible dis
eases and lack of medical attention,
until the folks at home are fairly
swapping the postoffice and tele-
graph Office with letters and wires
asking all about it. Judging from
such of these as l have seen,
imagine that these home folks think
that military training camp is a
combination of No-man's land, pest
house and a cemetery.
However, / am going to tell you
and you may pass it along, that all
that is wild, wild talk. Personally,
and my case is very typical of all,
l am well, unusually well equipped.
am covered at night by four great
big wooden blankets, as is every man
in the regiment. ! have been given
plete allowance of heavy stuffs, in
Guiding three suits Of thick under
wear. | have been given an overcoat
heavier than anything you have in
stock, and no reflection on Worm
Mounts, either. I sight these simply
as examples that you may under
stand how we are fixed.
AS to our medical facilities, we
have a base hospital here in camp
and it isn't half full and hasn't been
at any time this winter. All cpl
denies such as one may find in any
town of the size of this camp, about
10000 men, are promptly acted upon
by giving those actually i'll hospital
confinement and all those exposed
quarantine confinement. For example
in our company spinal meningitis
broke out in one tent and two men
died in two days. But even though
they had such terrible and con-
tagious disease as that, the trouble
was stopped right there and every
one is clear now.
1 am telling you this, George. sim
ply to show you how very well we
are being cared for. We have plenty
to eat and it Is well cooked. We
have plenty of clothes and they are
good. We are cared for as well as
any of us were cared for at home,
and lots better than most of us.
Thus far we haven't seen anything
that looks like. hardship, and serv-
ing Uncle Sam is not only duty
but pleasure as well.
Give my best regards to all my
friends at home.
Sincerely,
BEN E. TURNER.