The Lexington progress. (Lexington, Tenn.) 1884-current, 1918-07-19
Interesting Letter
From Soldier Boy.
Fort Brady, SauIt Snte Marie, Mich
June 80, 1918.
Editor Progress,
Lexington Tenn.
Dear Sir:


that fear nearly everybody evel
knew down there have forgotten al
about me, On the chance, though
that there may still be a few thai
still remember me, | have been
thinking for some time of writing
you a short letter in hopes that you
will find it convenient to find q
place for it in your paper which
know has a large circulation in Sal
tillo, where | am from.
Since joining the army a year
ago have almost completely lost
touch with all my old friends down
there with the exception of my fam
lily and a few others. | suppose
that by this time many Of my old
friends have either joined the army,
moved out or are dead.
When | enlisted on the 18th of
last June was sent first to Jeffer-
son Barracks, st. Louis, where all
recruits of the regulars in Tennes-
see were then sent. After remain
ing there about ID week was as
signed to the Forty-hrst Infantry
and sent to Fort Smelling St. Paul,
Minnesota, and there mustered into
Company H. After training there
until Oct. 9th, my company, togeth-
er with companies f. +. and 6.
forming the second battalion of the
regiment, were sent up here to this
little fort to do guard duty on the
government locks of the st. Mary's
Falls canal Generally known as the
500" Canal,) and here we have
been ever since.
AT various times we have had
unofficial reports that we would soon
60 across for active service in
France, but each time nothing came
of it, and. so far as we know, we are
settled here indefinitely. OF course
all the boys here, and there are sew
eral hundred of us, have always
felt that we would like to get in a
few ticks of real warfare on the
Western front before the Kaiser is
completely knocked out, but at the
same time we realize that interior
guard duty is very important just
now.
1t was a hard winter here for a
lot of us as many of the men are
natives of the south and knew
nothing of such cold weather. We
had more snow than you can mag
inc and in fact we have to still
wear our overcoatS once In a while.
The weather, however, during the
past two weeks has been about like
late fall weather in Tennessee, with
bright sunlight but with cold nights.
There are many cold, rainy days, of
which to-day happens to be one
Fort Brady is small fort but is
one of the prettiest in the country.
1t is upon a high hill overlooking
the St. Mary river and 500 canal.
The little town of Sault Ste. Marie
lies under the hill between the fort
and the river. From the fort par
ade ground one can see miles
across the river into the neiehbor-
ing hills of Canada.
The town is small and there is
little in the way of pastime or
amusement for US soldiers Moth
ing whatever to do on Sundays ex-
cept sometimes a ball game We
have good ball team at the fort
but so many of the civilians in the
town have gone to war that it is
hard to get a bunch together that
can play with us.
The 500 canal is one of the most
important canals in the world and
the locks constructed many years
ago by the government to allow the
big Great Lake steamers to pass
through are the finest in the world.
The canal really is the waterway
connecting Lake Superior on the
west to Lake Huron on the East
Well, | guess that's enough about
what we have up here. What | am