Gunnison news-champion., 1919-06-06
ALFRED BESSE HAS WON
DERFUL TRIP ACROSS OCEAN
Brest. France,
U. $. S. lmperator,
May s, 1919.


Dear Folks:-
just a few lines tonight. as ! have
not much 10 do. | just came abroad
the lmperator and We are all busy go
ing thru it. The first night we We're
on this ship, there We're about twelve
of US started TO take in the sights.
We walked around until about eight
o'clock. then We decided that we had
better go where our beds were, so We
started back and got lost II took US
until one o'clock in the morning be-
fore we found where we were TO
sleep. When we started, there were
just a few of US; those we ran
into would ask US where we slept, and
we replied: don't ask US, for We
have been looking for the place and
cannot find it." When we found the
place where we were to sleep, there
must have been about forty or fifty
boys You have to watch your step
on this ship. You cannot imagine
how swell II is fitted out. This ship
is nine hundred feet long, has eleven
decks, eight elevators just like a big
hotel in city. 1t takes a person half
an hour to walk from one end 20 the
other. There are four state rooms,
four shows, three dance halls, also
foTty-six boilers. The crew on this
ship numbers 2.200-that is some
crew-and it will transport about 49,
900 soldiers on one trip. This is one
of the largest ships built.
! take a little. Of my time every day
and go thru part of it. start in
where / leave off the day before.
We will soon start back for the
states now. They put 200 soldiers
abroad today. | watched them to see
If there were any | knew. but there
were not any.
l would like to have a little liberty
while We are in France, so we could
go around and see some of the coun-
try, but the way things look, l don't
think We are going to have any liber-
ty this time. What they say, goes,
for you cannot do as you like.
Secretary Daniels came aboard
the ship today and gave US a little
talk. He said that he would let US
out of service as soon as he could and
that would probably be when we got
all the soldiers home.
! am feeling fine. Must close now.
May 20.
WIN write you a few lines to let
you know that / am in New York. I
arrived yesterday at four o'clock in
the afternoon. II did not take US
very long to cross the Atlantic with
this ship-just week. Had a little
trouble one day As the ocean was a
little rough and the ship started to
leak in the fire rooms. We had to
work in water as they could not get
the pumps to work and keep the water
out. We hurried to fix them in order
to pump out the water.
Another night it was SO rough that
we could not keep the ship level, It
was leaning TO one side all the time.
One would think it was going to turn
over. We were all ready to leave the
ship and they would not let us go to
bed. We had to stay up III night in
order to be ready to get Oh the ship
in case of danger. That is the life in
the navy. You never know when you
are going to the bottom Of the ocean.
This sship will be in the docks here
for repairs 30 that we won't have any
trouble with it going back.
We brought over on this trip about
600 Red Cross nurses, and about that
many army officers, and 1000 soldiers
You ought to have seen the harbor
yesterday when we came in-the peo-
pie were shouting with Joy to zee the
ship coming IN They were in little
tugs and barges. and on one Of the
barges they had banA that welcomed
US e New York.
eUt TO - tie Statue e Lihsrey.
/ did nct ct 70 re Il veEy B1ainly u
account Of - fog, bat ~ i ~ TIE
same.
/ havent had any man xinee we
came baek from Cuba, hut win prob
ably Get seme now.
Eesr levhgc sen I'D hzetas.;