The Record-courier. [volume] (Gardnerville, Nev.) 1904-current, 1918-12-27
WRITES FROM
LUXfNBuRC


Christmas day. He gives great credit
to the fighting qualities of the An.eri-
can soldiers, and although in terri
tory heavily sheted by the German }
While he was furr ishing shells and
emiaunition to the artillery, ha
laments the fact that he was not Civ
en- a charcc TO do something worth
wrlc. His ne .csty is purely chart.
ctfristic of tie american soldier. who.
no matter what part he played in
stopping the German advance, gives
credit to his fellows. The letter fol-
November 26, 1918.
Now that the censorship is off, we
may write letters to some of our
friends. Besides, the strenuous days
are over and we have "beauchoup"
time on cur hands.
This is being written from Dude.
lange, small city in Luxenburg. We
have been delayed here for some
days, but hope soon to resume the
march. to Mainz or Cobleutz,-we do
NOT know here which 1t is that the
American Army of occupation is to
nola.
] am now with Park Battery of the
Atm Corps Artillery Park, 3rd Army.
have been with the 1st Corps, 1st
Army, also with the 9Th Corps, End
Army. Have been over all the Amer
ican front, except from Argonne west
ward. was on the way to the Agron
ne, but was sent back because there
were not ammunition officers enough
in the St. Mihiel sector | was in the
st. Mihiel offensive in September,
ther In minor operations between
Nancy, Paut-aMusson, Thiacourt and
Verdun. During the last week before
the signing of the armistice, while the
tremendous offensive planned by Gen.
eral Foch to break through to Hol-
land was getting under way, | had my
little part to play at ammunition
dumps and on ammunition trucks and
'caiesons making deliveries TO the bat
teries. II certainly was exciting to be
under shell fire while on the road to
the 75s. These many weeks of bomb
ing and shelling and machine gun fire
had a peculiar effect on me, for, now
that 1t is all over | occasionally pinch
mysAf to make sure that ] am not
guns. And now and then my eyes
turn skyward in search for airplanes
and balloons. 1t is the strangest
thing in the world to be sleeping in a
reel bed, insted of on the dirt of dug
uot or shell-proof, where rats and
"cocties" scamper and make merry.
With 1t all, | miss the excitement and
the dangers and hair-rNising experien-
ces, which because | am only an am
munition man, were not nearly so
numerous as those to which dough
boys" were subjected. Hats off to the
dough-boys! My only regret is that
| have not done anything big or worth
while. Dammit, | tried hard enough
bu. did not have a chance.
! have seen much of everything
even some funny things as we'll as
pitiful sights, such as mangled men,
men suffering from shell shock, and
dead men lying for weeks unburied
And now We are having the interest
ing experience Of seeing just what are
the conditions in the territory held by
the Germans before the armistice was
signed. Everywhere the people are
wonderfully glad. We can have any,
thing-if we have money enough!
Although they tell us they have SUI
fered much and that many of them
have starved, we really have not seen
much evidence of 1t. 1t seems that
the real suffering was in the heart Of
Germany, and that the Germans
strained every effort during the spring
and summer When the collapse came,
they we're short on cannon, short on
ammunition, short on men, short on
supplies and on food. 1t was like the
bursting of a bubble blown to the full
limit. And. don't ever forget that it
was the Americans who turned the
tide towards the allies.
II seems strange that the only Ne
vada man | saw in France was young
Brown from Deeth. Never a word Of
information concerning Carson Valley
boys have | had. Perhaps they were
in divisions or brigades which served
from the Argonne westward, where |
did not go. Or perhaps they were in
the infantry, of whom ! did not see
much, because, although we dealt in
small arms ammunition and pyrotech-
MICS, our trucks did not deliver; in
stead, the infantry trucks called for
the material.
When we reach our destination, If II
10 worth while. perhaps | will write