The Emmett index. [volume] (Emmett, Idaho) 1893-1925, 1919-05-29
NEWS OF OUR SOLDIER
BOYS
I4terrfting Letters from Our
Boys at Home Camps
and Abroad.

i A recett issue Of the Pioneer, pub
lished at Smith Center, Kan, contained
the following letter from Nerl Dillon,
son of Mr.. and Mrs L N Dillon of
this city, who is in the American army
of occupation in Germany. From the
tone of his letter one would judge he
has not a very high opinion of the Y.
NJ. c. AS war work The billions liv-
ed at Smith Center previous to coming
to Emmett:
Seveng, Germany, April We'll,
today is FOOLS day. We are still out
here in no-mAn's land and every time
we hear each other speak Dutch we
feel the part. The man that invent
ed this Language must surely have
had the heayes or the asthma "Ich bin
lrunk und Ich wunche der arcti-"
means Il am sick and | want the doc
tor" Now wouldn't any ordinary per-
son die before he could get that out Of
| his system. | hope you will excuse
this paper for the Y. VI. c. A never
gets this far into the country. They
like the cities and right lights You
know the many trying places we have
been-and never, in all our career IN
this war, has the 7. VI. C. A. given US
a thing, not even little box of match
es or package of cigarettes. If our
uncle had failed to pay as for long
time it made no difference for the Y.
NJ. C. A. would not give away one Gig
arctic They do give away paper IN
the cities, and why, Because the boys
write home on that paper to their low
ed ones and they in turn donate money
to keep the Y. and help them in every
way possible. The money goes to keep
dance halls going in Paris and for the
thousands of non-combatAnts who JOIN
ed the Y to get out of this war and to
live and enjoy themselves IN Pans,
lAn-les-Bains, Coblenz and real towns.
A doughboy gets paper from the I by
i = ration truck sometimes, then he
writes home, but he knows his mail IS
censored Also he ix Used TO endur-
ing hardships and does not want to be
the one to kick, so that IS the reason
for q doughboy's long silence IN regard
to the Y But know just what every
doughboy has in his mind when the
great day. comes and he gets to tell
the folks NJ home about how many
times we have seen a Y NJ C. A man.
Never has this all-kansas regiment
seen one within shelling distance OF
the front lines, and you know we were
under shellfire from August until
November IL, except when We moved
from the old St Mihiel front to the
Meuse- Argonne front, which was
matter of a few hours The h OF T.
got 70 US in the front lines or support
or reserve and gave US elgarets ana
newspapers sometimes, but not the l.
Never have we received one little
thing from the Y While We were IN
line we had the money to buy tnelr
stuff but they could sell 1t back IN the
S. o. Sand their lives were IN muen
less danger. Even the Red Cross, with
thousands of wounded TO care Tor, g1t
TO US once in a while, and neItaer thci 1
nor the K. of c. ever sell anything
They gave it to US with their best
wishes. Gen. Summeral came to US /
on October 29th, before we came TO the
last drive and told US We were gong
to go over the top again and that II
was up to US what success we were 70
have. Every officer and every private
will 90 forward He said that was ~!
that would win the war We know ano
the world knows that this Is the truth 1
and we believe that is the American
men or will 10 go forward that dId
win the war, and in which We dough-
bovs had a part We had no clgarets
and few of US had Durham And
those who did could not roll one Tor
we did not have time during drive
It was always raining. The folks al
home gave money to the \. TO WIN the
war. Did the Y help win by the
dances in Paris, Aix-les-Bains and
places where a soldier did not need the
help to win the war, by selling every
thing to the s. o. S. five miles behind
the battle lines and never during the
whole war sending a thing up TO the
front to the doughboyss | notice u
the home papers that they like to use
the doughboys' pictures. In one paper
We have here it shows a doughooy
with bayonet fixed and legglns torn
bv the wire. and it says, Your boy
stapgers. from the battle line into a
Y. NJ. C.. A. for he needs comfort
Well. now, if a doughboy ever Went
from the battle line to a Y. NJ L A.
hut he surely staggered all right after /
the long hike. And his days as
aou1hboy would have been ended tcr
|. douxhboy has to have nerve enough !
10 stay with his mates IS long as ne
AN stand on his two feet and he must
20 forward" If he doesn't he would
,e court-martialed and transferred 70 {
he S. S. as there can be but one kina I
n infantry and that Is good infantry; I
Unless the doughboys will go forward
xe would have been as useless to our
lear uncle and the folks back Eonre {
As the Y. VI. C. A. is to US The Soorg I
-Kansas) regiment has a record $
hat it has paid for with lot OF good
merican blood and that record shows 8
hat we had the will but 1t was mol i
With any aid from the T. that we got
I. If the government had peeh luh 2
';ns the eanteens our uncle would /
ave seen to it that each unit would i
ave gotten its share for ne would i
ave sent men mp with it through the !;
Arllfme. bot the Y. crowd could sell