The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1918-05-17
Somewhere in France.
April 21, 1918.

Somewhere in France.
April II, 1918.
Dearest Mother:
After very diligent and patient
search I have managtd to scrape up
those three sheets of paper and pen
Gil. For the past month these articles
have been unobtainanje.
There are Y. NJ. c. A. "huts all
over France but none near me. You
saa we are moving so much--back
and forth. A part of the time on the
front another back to a different rest
ing Dlace-always moving Think OF
all these things and the many other
difficulties in my way-thlngs are
very different with me from r. Z. and
Jvles and the others. you know. Re-
,ren,5er T have not slept in bed since
7 left the United States. [ have not
aatan neal from the table except
once in "est amurets.' You Will
understand knowing the nature ol
,he work of this regiment, that llfs
is rot q rosy dream. There's always
mud and sweat and dark nights
everything contributing to make
man too tired to write when the
chance comes. Don't worry when m!'
letters fail to come. If anything nap
,ar, vou will be notified at once
50 don't worry. dear mother.
May Perry sent me, several weeks
ago, big WOODEN sleeping bag that
has been a wonderful luxury. even
IN the face Of the difficulty of trans
norting It On my back; in addltloh
70 the 70 lbs Of the necessary PACK
Tie nights are cold and damp-and
q, the 10Th Of april we had snow,
a,d the wind is sharp and cutting.
But ! am becoming accustomed To
such cond;t;ons-and with the DeG
rag and woo}en sleeping boots you
san-. have survived. II has aco:,
ir2oss;5le to write to MaE. 3t
was great in her and / want you &c
write and tell her so, and that | shaiI
write as soon as possible. l do not
know how long we shall be here a.
this new place-possibly monta-
II IS soHp di,tl~oa back Of the lines,
almost hayos3 !:e?Tin- CT the guns
of the E,.ns. We Ii"e in an enormous
5arr-larger than any | have ever
seen. The straw we have to sleep
on is quite a luxury.
Our last trip in the line was a"-
eu1 strenuous. and we deserve this
rest. Our work was in the front line
trouches-only co yards from Fritz,
That sounds hazardous. but N real
-. t,,a da.~e- from shell fire is less
t:,s, further back-that is when there
j; no caiding in progress and there
IS no t'barrage" up. The fact IS
the best feeling place I've found Is
right in the front line. 1t is not filled
with grim looking men with fixed
bayoaets standing ready.-One may
waud his way in ard out along the
trench for hundreds of yards without
seeing any one, when suddenly con-
.frortad by a sentry standing in d
firms bay, peering immovably thru
the banbed wire into "No Mans
Land" Occasionally a machine gun
vii! crack, or a shell drive by-bound
for more fertile ground than the
front line, or very light shoot up,
lingering at the apex of its flight
changing the darkness into ghost!y
brightness.
I saw a clipping from a Z. S. paper
tnaf packages sent to soldiers must
be accompanied by his own letter ex-
plicitIy requesting the articles. Well.
I explicitly request some hard candy,
sugar and even a half pound of good
coffee. Coffee IS a consummation de-
voutly 10 he wished for over here.
It is best to send everything in a
wooden or tin box. A few days age
had box from Isabel (ciearettsj
and a box Of peanut brittle and
He-gchey bark frcm XII brt box so