Connecticut western news., 1919-01-30
PVT. T. w. MORRIS
 NOW AT CAMP MEADE
Was One of Contingent of Ex- pert Gun Fixers in
 France

;! The following letter was received by J. W. Morris from his brother, who has been in France as a mem Der of the Second Heavy Mobile Ordnance Repair Shop. a
 Camp Meade, Md.
 Jan. 25, 1919. Dear Brother:
 Just line to let you know where am located. l came to this camp Wednesday and expect to be out of here some time next week. We took our physical examination this morn- ing, turned in all our equipment aI.1 they are filling out our discharge papers this afternoon. So by the looks of things I will be up that way by week from today.
 1 am sending you a clipping from one of the papers which gives Q little history while in France.
 ] It is fine weather down here, nice and warm today. Will close for this time hoping to see you soon.
 , With love to all,
 Conspicuous as the only contin- gent from the First American Army yet to return to the United States, the Second Heavy Mobile Ordnance Repair Shop, of two officers and 131 men, arrived at Camp Meade late Wednesday night for demobilization late next week.
 i The comDany repaired heavy ar tillery on the battlefield under fire of the Germans during the thunder ing of the Hindenburg line, which finally broke at St. Quentin.
 The unit also is probably the first to return to America with the same personnel and command with which it went over. It is headed by Cap tain W. T. W. Underwood, of Read ing, Mass, and is intact except for the loss of 43 men and an officer Re- pair and mGinteD2n2c Of the big French "Hcw.t2er5" and large rail. road mount guns va9 the conpany's assignment ard every man in the o1'ga nizaticn Is a specialist in his iine-expert electrical engineers, ,nachinists, mechanical engineers and even mathematicians fill the ranks. A number are college men and joirl- cd the company when it was organ ized at Camp Hancock, Auguste ;. Ga. All are picked men and were called for this unit after they had enlisted. .r - The unit sailed for France July 1, and from Anger, where the com pany overhauled for action a number of eight-inch howitzers, it was as- signed immediately to the First and Second American Armies, though detached. It later concentrated with the Second Army and put into ac-I tion tractors captured from the Ger mans and French tanks which had been through the mill. This was done at Foul, where the Germans were reuplsing Allied attacks with much effect, and the company often worked day and night fixing guns on the battle field, in range of the enemy, and repairing artillery put out of commission.
 Later assigned as the Second American Corps with the Fourth British Army, the unit took part in all artillery actions north of St. ! Quentin and, after putting up" the heaviest artillery concentration dur ing the war, they hammered the Hin denburg line on September 29 at St. Quentin tunnel with the German rail road center at Le Cateau as their The Twenty seventh and | Thirtieth American divisions were in ! this battle and were badly mutilated i After days of gripping struggle, the German line gave way and the boche |, in that sector commenced his never E ending retreat"