Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1919-02-11
OUR BOYS
80. in
OUR COuNTRY'S SERVICE

:eived by Mr.. and Mrs. Albert Crosby
of Fairfield from their son. Pvt. II.
Percy Crosby. who is in France:
DADS CHRISTMAS LETTER
BeIivue.sur-Sein France,
Nov. "a, 1918.
Received Dec. Is.
Dear Dad:-since wrote you last GER
tain censorship restrictions have been
removed and am going to take advan-
tage Of it and tell you some of the
places where l have been. Last year at
THIS time We were quartered in little
town in the North Central France
called Liffot-le-Grand. 1t was very
pretty place and one which had never
seen Americans until we dropped in one
morning Perhaps we didn't have SOM,
fun. they didn't understand our ways
and We didn't understand theirs and so
we were continually begging each 9TH
er's pardon. We stayed there until the
first part of February when we strucc
out for the trenches where we wer.
brigaded with the French. We were in
Scissors only a few days before the
German offensive began in March, in
fact the night we left that sector. "Jer-
ry" was Smelling the railroad station at
Scissors. We boarded the train at
Mucier- Pomnier and rode for two
nights and one day. At Chalons-sur-
Marine, we ran into an air raid which
was a corker. The engineer ran tie
train into the station and flew for a
dug-out along side Of the track and
Jerry" dropped a couple of eggs only
a few hundred yards from the engine.
Several of the boys were on fiat car
with the gun carts and were hustling
to mount an anti-air craft gun to get a
crack at him If he came down close
enough. which he did not do. The guns
of the forts around the city were Civ
ing a wonderful barrage. / have got a
pretty good collection of postcards OF
the places we have been in. The next
morning We detrained at Barsur- Sur
Cube for a 1OO-mile hike to Liffot-le
Grand. 1t took US five days to make
the trip and believe me We were tired.
After three days rest We started for
the Trul sector in QUITO trucks some 50
away. III tHc NlildSc VI ' l5 uSt
were many pro-Germans so we had to
watch our step. In Apremont Forest
We had one fine scrap. about / O'Clock
in the morning of May 10. We got Z
wonderful bombardment of gas, min
newafers" and l h. powders, Then at
SOS We sent over a barrage of artillery
and machine guns for 40 minutes. The
hot i,,h In
and We had to move 100 yards into No
Mans Land. Luckily for us the morn
ing was foggy. In that 40 minutes we
fired e412 shots and smoked cigars all
the time. For this we are known rs the
"Smoke Squad by the infantry. For
the next e hours we had no sleep or
very much to eat as Jerry was
! mighty active. 1t was here We suffered
our first casualties. From here we
went to Menit-le-Tour where we stayed
for few days and went to a new posi-
ton in front of the Famous Mount Sec.
On the morning of June 18th, Hinder
burg Circus made their attack and in
I, a position directly in front OF Beau
! mont, l got my first wound. There was
! another lad and myself with two ma
chine guns cut off from the rest by !;
barrage and they stuck close enough
! to throw US together every explosion.
Finally the lieutenant and my corporal
came creeping on their hands and knees
down the trench to where we were
After they arrived, Jerry started
shooting gas and in testing the air
got my gas. Just before noon the order
, came to prepare for another attack and
at this time the lieutenant and myself
started forward to secure new positions
and it was here that my nerves gave
| way when the conclusion of a near
she'll knocked me out. l didn't remem-
her thing until l came to in the field
! hospital and it was quite few days
before I regained control of myself. Ny
, experiences in the hospital YOU know
because l wrote them to you Mother.
] am not going to tell you any mora
, because ! won't have anything to tell
YOU when get home. expect to leave
the hospital this coming week. l was
classified and am not to return to duty
so YOU may get telegram from me
most any day announcing my arrival in
| the L. S. l am feeling fine. Hoping
| this finds you. mother and Noah in fine
health and wishing you all the season q
greetings and hoping to see you soon.
BELLEVUE (S&O). France.
Dec. ., 1915
! Received Dec. 90.
Dear Mother:-Just little note this
ALI
along fine and have been classified and
am now awaiting transportation. There
is a possibility IF my being on my wav
! to the states by the time this letter
reaches YOU. There is not much to say
! as l haven't received any mail since
Oct. 10 which was the day before l got
gassed. The other morning Red
Cro-s girl whose home is in Gardiner
was In the ward and We had quite a
little chat. She knew Aunt Emma and
the rest. On Thanksgiving day in the
afternoon, We all went to Paris to at
; tend matinee. 1t was an English
musical comedy, "Tig Tag" and it wa,
fine. We came back and had a gran
supper after which we had dance
and movies. There is something going
on every night at the hospital and we
are enjoying ourselves as we'll as We
can. At one time it looked as if we
might be home by Christmas but
through some unavoidable delay we
didn't get started. bet daddy was
surprised to get the big long letter from
me. All the boys wrote to daddy same
as we did to you on Mothers day. Nov.
a was Daddy's day. Best wishes for 4