The Delta independent., 1918-04-26
foLEN BALL WRITES TO HOME
FOLKS FROM THE EAST
April 10. 1918.

April ~, 1918.
Dear Folks
i We are in town today on twenty
four hour leave from Camp Merritt.
1t is about twenty-six miles.
My, such a time as the boys are
having; subways. elevateds. express
es and all that and more. They sure
use lot Of speed.
This hotel Is some place. We
have all the beer that we want. May
be you don't think it was a treat to
have few bottles OF beer.
Twenty four hours isn't enough to
get anywhere. When we get ont of
the army will spend two weeks in
New York, just to take q look at the
place. We saw the Statue OF Liber-
ty, woolworth building sixty stories
high; cost IS cents to ride the ex-
press elevator. AS there was q big
hail storm, could not see very well.
We got off the cars and walked across
the Brooklyn bridge. 1t is q real
bridge. Saw warships and all kinds
Of boats.
There are so many twenty-story
buildings, and higher, everywhere,
that the streets look just like a big
canon. The subways have four
trains on each level and there are
three levels. There are two express,
one up town and one down town; two
local trains the same. Then on the
street is four tracks and then four
tracks on the elevated, so you may
know going down these streets there
of any kind in sight. All the subway
trains are run by third rail. The sur
face cars are just like the old cable
cars, only instead of buried cable it
is a trolley wire. We made Fourth.
Fifth and Sixth avenue.
You ought to see the "eat Joints"
Most all the people are Jews. Nearly
everything is Jewish. We made sew
eral cabarets. They will sell us soft
drinks only.
We made the winter gardens.
There they have everything. New
York is really a closed town to us
soldiers.
We went to see the Midnight
Follies" These shows start at 11:30
p. m. and run all night. Most of these
people work shifts so that they make
the night shows or none. New York
is big place. but I would not want
to stay there long.
Frisco. or even Seattle, has it all
over New York as far as a good town
is concerned.
People, notice, do not smoke very
much; not half SO much as they do
in the West 1 wonder why
just think! All my curly locks
are gone. The camp order reads:
Hair to be no more than an inch
long in 'front.'" SO we have It all cut
off. l really should have my picture
taken. just to let you see how much
Of a monkey look. Some Of the
boys had beautiful heads OF hair
They sure were mad about this hair
cutting contest The barber said that
This order pertains only to the fellows
who are going across soon. Four new
fellows came into "E" Company to-
day, so now we are full up on men.
as well as everything else. We made
big change Of clothes. We receiv-
ed, in addition to the stuff that we
| already had, one heavy wool cap,
more socks, one pair pants. one pair
leggings. trench mirror and case, a
safety razor and case, one shaving
brush, one cartridge belt. Our guns
Colts automatic In the morning we
have inspection of our clothes and
equipment again. We sure like these
doings We have everything all o. X,
and the captain must see II My.
this is a hard boiled camp for sure.
You ought to see some of our fellows
who never in their whole life said
as much as "Boo!" even. trying to-
be hard boiled. 1t is too funny
Seeing SO much killing and rum
ming all kinds of risks, I often won
der Just how we will feel when we
return.
1t is sleeting hard today. The wind
is blowing SO hard ones face feels
a-fire when we step outside.
We got back to camp this noon.
We had six miles to go when tire
blew up. We had only ten minutes.
SO the driver brought US In anyway
We came by the guard just at IL
noon. We lose all passes II we are
fifteen minutes late. Anyway, we got
here on time. As our time in New
York was SO short, will finish this
letter in camp.
We left camp on Packard auto:
some class to us: rode about thirty
minutes for 81. then transferred to
another bus line. rode about ten min
utes for ten cents. then made the
ferry for five cents, then made ele-
| Yated train for a spasm for five cents.