Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1918-06-25
OUR BOYS
OUR C0uN7RY'S SERVICE

Clement II. Leavitt, Company c,
103d Infantry, writes to Miss Marion
Fisher, formerly of Augusta. now of
Portland as follows.
France, April 81, 1918.
Ny dear Marian:
Received a dandy letter from you
yesterday here in the trenches and
was surely some pleased TO get it.
Although this is a difficult pace t. do
much writing, shall endeavor to write
YOU few lines today as it is rather
quiet here on our front this morning.
| haven't written to you for some
time Bud and am really ashamed of
the fact, but you are not the only one
that have neglected writing to late
ly, for, to tell the truth. it has been
rather hard for any Of US boys to do
much writing for the past two
months, as our regiment has been on
the go about all the time. There has
| been times that we could have writ
| ten. but could not mail our letters end
other times had we not been so tired
or lazy we could have written and
got the letters censored and mailed.
We have surely been on the go
some since February, took quite
long trip in box cars to one front that
the French occupied: done two quite
long bitches on different sectors;
finally got out OF there, went back to
our old training ground at ---,
! part of the distance by train then
| hiked the rest of the way
1t was about the first of April when
we got back to our old home" as We
called it. We expected to have a
! little rest there and then go into
training again; but had not been
! there only a few days before the or
der came down to pack up again and
be ready 10 move orCe more in
another direction, so tho next morn
ing, "a bonnie heure," we were packed
into auto trucks and on our way.
That afternoon we landed in little
town which we found to he behind
the American front. stayed there SOW
eral days in reserve for our sister
regiment than came in here and re-
lieved them. | don't know how long
we will be In here but think it will be
quite few days. ] have an idea this
will be our permanent front, spending
part OF our time here in the front line
and support the rest oe the time in
the third line or reserve.
| am glad that we are on the
American front now instead of being
in with any other soldiers. like the
French very much and admire their
ability as soldiers. When we were
on the front with them they used us
fine and showed US a whole lot. We
still have a whole lot to learn but can
learn things much faster when p'aced
entirely upon our own responsibility.
Some Of the knowledge obtained here
may be quite costly for us but we
will be all the better for it in the end
and become a real fighting unit all
the sooner We are lot better than
the Huns who oppose US here now,
but we want to be an awful lot bet
ter pretty soon.
April 81, 1918
My dear Bud:
commenced this letter. as you will
see. about week ago while up in the
trenches, but il began to get rather
noisy after ! had been writing a few
minutes and had som sthing to do to
keep track of the nice little missiles
the boches ser:t ever to us for the rest
of the day. | think that | told YOU
In one of my other letters that | was
in our Battalion Intelligence outft,
not because l am extraordinarily in
telligent I guess. but just happened
to be elected for the Job. 1t is very in
teresting work and I like it very
much. When at the front I have sew
eral men with me on observation. We
generally have post on high ground
where we can observe, with powerful
glasses, the enemies lines AMI have
to write down everything seen there
which may be valuable information
to our commanders sooner or later
Oh. we have whole lot to do hut
can't bother to tell you: furthermore
it would not interest you but lust
thought l would give you an idea of
what ] was doing in our outfit at
present.
AS you can see I am out Of the
Have been in three times and haven't
received scratch as yet. Maybe T
haven't had any close calls but on
one or two different occasions those
noisy packages" sent over By tho
Huns have come plenty near enough
to suit me, and. as some the fellows
says, The noise of some of the hio
ones striking real close will start
man to thinking some and it is
about as bad to be killed as scared
to death Sometimes think that
am getting used to the noises of the
big shells. then again | know that
will never get used to them. Whom
In England / asked some English
soldiers if they got used to the hir
shells after awhile, and they said