The Mellette County pioneer. [volume] (Wood, Mellette County, S.D.) 19??-1971, 1919-05-23
CORPORAL HENRY NELSON
WRITES.

Dear Friend Fred
Received your most welcome letter
today and was certainly glad to get
such a newsy letter. | am glad to
hear that theRoSebud country is com
ing along so good, especially Mtllette
county and yourself. You seem to
have your hands full. | suppose you
are still patching and as happy as ever
Fred, after being over here and seeing
how the people have to live and how
they are held down the good old u. S.
A. looks better than ever. The peo-
pie here are not suffering but they do
not have much sugar or meat or fat.
Everything is very high. Imgive you
a few prices on their stock at present
an ordinary cow 5000 franks, horse
10000 franks, hog weighing $50 costs
100 franks. A frank is worth about
twenty cents in real money. This
money over here is just like ordinary
paper, we call it wall paper. AT pre-
sent we are dealing n marks. It's a
joke here to buy anything, if you
change a 20 frank note you may re-
ceive in change German marks, French
franks and Belgium franks 1t would
take you an hour to figure it out.
We are occupation troops about so
kilOmeterS north Of Luxenburg City
and have been here for the past three
months. We expect to leave for home
in q few days through Belgium to
Brest where we embark for home.
A few weeks ago a pal and | took a
trip into Germany to see what it look
ed like. We went to a town called
Cehtemach on the German border and
walked across a bridge over the Mosel
River and was in Germany. 1t looked
about the same as Luxembourg and
everything was peaceable. The peo-
pie did not look like they were suffer
ing from lack of food, bat that was
just a'ong the border. They say it is
much worse in the interior. We had
some Of the best wine we eve tasted
In Echtemachburg. 1t is in the heart
Of the vineyards and that locality is
noted for it's good wine and beer.
Two weeks ago we went to LuAen
burg City to the Sixth Army Corps
Horse Show which was great. We
have some OF the best horses you
would ever want to see, Fred. They
are peaches, and all American horses.
The show was a g,eat success all "a
round. They had them hooked to the
different vehicles of war, such as guns
c~aisons, rolling kitchens, wagons,
water carts and supply wagons. We
also saw the Grand Duchess Of Lux
enburg and her sister. Charlotte is
the Duchess name Mary Adelite is her
sisters name. They seemed to enjoy
the show as much as we did. Their l.
many interesting cd buildings there
and The old fort is still staining. They
had some fine buildings there but We
could not scare up a square meal III
the city. We rode in German cars Gu
the Prince Henry road.
The best time / ever had over here
though was when a bunch Of us got a
furlough to Axe LIE Bains in southern
France, from here in January. We
made a trip up on Mt. Reward and
looked on Mt. Blank saw Italy and
Swi zerland, went skeeing and Sleigh
rideing and then took good baths every
day. Say, Fred, you don't know what
1t means, after living in trenches and
dugouts at night for several months
without a chance toclean up, and then
to have a real bed. We put up at the
best hotel there, the Astoria, and slept
until 8 or 10 o'clock in the morning,
nc rcvilee 10 retreat. We went
through Metz, Luxembourg City, Yer
don, Nancy, Chaumont, Dion and a
more good sized towns. Verdon Is a
sight / will never forget, they call it
the city Of the dead, and 1t Is go"d
name. The hill sides are lined with
long rows of graves Of French soldiers
and the town is shattered to bits, for
II, was under shell fire for four years
and up until the Last day of the war.
We passed through many towns be-
tween Metz and Nerdon that were
leveled to the ground. In Nerdon
there is a vast underground tunnel
that will mold several regiments OF
soldiers. 1t fact all there Is left is
the underground work. We stopped
In Nancy for a day and saw a number
Of buildings that had been wrecked
by enemy bombs.
Well Fred, this sight seeing is what
went to remember about this war.
What | experienced and saw at the
front | want to forget If possible, foI
1t seems like n long awful dream
go 49, he yT