New Ulm review. (New Ulm, Brown County, Minn.) 1892-1961, 1919-02-05
able to replace other companies IN place
OF those who leave. FL I.


OF those who leave. 3
Our present work at this camp will |
take us until the latter part of January
TO finish up. They gave us another
tract of timber to cut and it will take
until then to finish it. From here we |
are sehe duied to 60 to another camp
and finish up work there This is about
another two months job so I think we
will be kept busy until our turn comes to
go home. figure about April will be
the time that we are to leave"
A letter written by Jacob on the 18th
OF January said he was just leaving on
furlough and would go to place near
the Pyrenees on the Spanish border.
a group Of two dozen of the boys were
going together and he expected to have
plenty to write about on his return to-
camp. In the pictures of the camp
given in this, issue, Jacob has marked
the Bird hut on the right as his particular
abiding place for the time being, but.
it is so like all the rest we are sure he
must need to keep some sort of sign UP
to tell it from the others.
The next letter is one from Frank
Niemann who writes from Tours.
II have been getting so much mail
lately that have altogether forgotten to
write. As you notice am again at
Tours. We got here Friday and l have
been having my Christmas celebration
ever since. But to tell you about our
last job. The days around Christmas
and New Years were certainly busy ones
for us. Working out of Bordeaux we
travelled south toward the Spanish
border. In that part of the country the
Americans have big lumber can ps and
saw-mills. The region is heavily COW
cred with jack pine altho there are many
big areas covered with cork oak trees
which are grown for the cork. At one
place, Minizan, we were quartered in
cottages on the seaside. I had real
mattress to sleep on and immensely
enjoyed being sung. to sleep by the roar
of the ocean. Minizan must be lively
place in summer time for there are quite
a number Of cottages there. 81
while here saw how turpentine is
obtained. The pine trees are slashed
on one side and little earthenware pot,
very much the size and shape Of q flower
pot. is hung on a little tin trough,
fastened at the lower end Of the cash on
the tree. 1.-The sap of the tree oozes
from the cut it runs down into the trough
and from there into the pot. The sap
S thick and white. From these pots
the sap is collected and hauled to the
distillery in order to get the turpentine
out of it. The average tree produces
about two quarts of turpentine.
| From Minizan we went on farther
to Doz. OF course we hit bunch of
smaller places all thru the country. On
Christmas Eve we travelled late at night
| in order to get back to Bordeaux for
Christmas. We did not meet Santa
Claus on the way. I suppose there are
too many Christmas trees around so he
steers clear Of that part Of the country.
Anyhow in France the time for giving
I is New Years so Santa Claus does not
make much difference.
"On Christmas day we had a good
dinner at headquarters in Bordeaux.
We had turkey, Il think it was) cranberry
sauce, mashed potatoes and a good many
other good things. The Y. M. C. "A.
gave us each small package containing
candy and tobacco from the folks at
home. The X. Of C. donated tobacco
and corncob pipes. The turkey was
furnished by the Red Cross.
''The day after Christmas we went
up to Perigieux, not returning till New
Years Eve. At Perigieux tried to find
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