Audubon Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Iowa) 1894-1925, 1919-06-26
WILL ROTH WRITES
INTERESTING LETTER
INFORMS RELATIVES ABOUT HIS
ACTIVITIES In THE GREAT
WORLD WAR

TO let you know that i am nne and
hope you are the same. Was Just
talking with my buddy about where
we were a year ago today. / guess
that would make good letter II
wrote and told you everything that
/ did through year of hell, so here
goes. If get any dates mixed just
pass them over.
After an all day and night hike
we came up to quaint little French
village. Everybody was sleepy,
tired and thirsty as water was scarce
along the road. II was not loug un-
til -yerybody had drank a good
quantity of water, then layed down
any place they could find room and
at eight o'clock the next morning we
were called up to get good hot
meal, the first one WI mad mad for
about five days and sure tasted good.
/ got to roaming around and found
the name of the town was CourcheiIs,
not far from Paris. was here about
week and on May Both we got or
ders to pack up and stand by TO load
into camerons. We stood around In
the road five or six hours and no
trucks came so we got orders TO go
back and sleep as 1t would be morn
ing before we would go. so we went
back.
The next morning we were up
early and then were loaded INTO the
trucks and started of for an un-i
known place which ended up on the
front line trenches. We got there
on the second day of May and re-
liqved the French who were fall
ing back all the time but when we
got there we stopped the Germans
and there is where hell commenced.
We held the line against several
counter attacks and on the 10th or
June went over the top and killed a
lot of Germans and taking a number
of prisoners. We got our objective
and held it against lot more coun-
ter attacks and the Germans LOSING
lot more men. We kept fighting
and holding our ground until the
18th of June, then went over the
top at them which proved another
victory for the Marines. Belleau
Woods was ours and the Germans
stopped. We also suffered very
heavy losses but we kept on going.
We lstayed in the edge of our woods
and beat off every attack that the
Germans made until the morning of
the 18th of June and went back to
small village named Mary. We had
our first hot chow since we iert Cour-
chells. We cleaned up. took good
swim in the Marine river and had a
good rest. In couple of days we
got some requirements but still our
company looked awful small but
game, and on the 22nd of June went
back to the trenches tina ia certain
outfit lost but we had only two or
Z three casuals and stayed there for a
few days, then got relieved again and
went back into support In some
woods and here we were on the 4th
OF July and will never forget the
beans we got for dinner and on the
5th of July started out hiking to
some place and landed in small
town by the name of Villars. We
were there a week or ten days. On
the 18th of July we loaded into the
trucks and started OFF again for
some place and this ended up at Sois-
sonss. After we got out of the
trucks we had to hike and that was
the worst hike ever had in my
life.
We went over the top at $3.50 on
the 18th of July and again on the
18th. Just got started good when
got hit with a machine gun bullet
but did not do me much damage but
was sent back to the rear and from
there went to the hospital on the
English Channel. Was there for a
while and then went to clasifica-
tion camp. Was there day and
was sent back to my company and
found them at Grouillers near the st.
Mihiel sector and the next day we
started out hiking again ana come
up on the st. Mihiel front We went
in and stayed day and night and
ON the 18th of September at 4:30 We
went over the top and was not long
until we had prisoners going back
we were not having any losses at all.
We got our objective that was laid
out and they thought II would take
us two days to get 1t but it was 1850
in the afternoon and we dug in for
the night The next day we were
relieved and started to hiking again.
We hiked for a couple of days and
nights and came to Blendloch lie
Toul and enjoyed hot chow and a
good cleaning up again. We were
here until the goth of September and
got on a train and ended up on the
Champagne front. We went over
the top here on the LIST of October
and everything we gained and kept
right after them attacking on the
End and 5th of October and gained
ground every time. The iast one
was the capture of the Mont Sec In
which the French lost so many men
trying to get and never could get IT
but we got 1t but wit ha very lot OF
hard fighting and held 1t. We were
relieved on the 9th and came back to
a French camp and stayed a few
days then moved over to the right
and supported the French. We had
another very long hike back and we
ended up on the Argonne Mouse
front This is the front that GER
tain division could not make good
but they finally called on the second
and we went over the 4th OF Novem-
Der and we sure did go fast. We
went over again on the 9Th of Mo-
yember and captured the main rail-
road leading into Metz. We held
the line against a heavy shell IRE
and counter attack and on the 10th
of November We crossed the Mouse
river on pontoon bridges thar the I'd
engineers put across bnv losing quite
a few men and we all got across and
dug In and on the 18th of November
the armistice was signed and we
ceased firing and 1t did seem awfus
funny not to- hear a single gun go
ing off as things were going along