TRANSCRIBED FROM THE BENTON COURIER AUGUST 8, 1918 P. 7
Hello, dear old Saline county people
How are you all by this time anyway? Fine, I hope. I want to say that all we Saline county boys are O.K.
This is a fine country down here, some beautiful scenes here. We can sit in our tents and watch the squirrels play from one tree to another. The moss hangs down from the trees in some places, as much as ten feet. All this sure does look good to me.
We have been under quarantine since we came down here. We are in for twenty-one days. We have served seven days and have only fourteen more. I tell the boys that we ar only in jail for twenty-one days. This all goes with army life now.
We are all well satisfied down here. We don't have anything to do but eat and sleep. Don't know when we will get out of quarantine; guess we will get our work done when we do get out. Uncle Sam wants us all to do our duty; I am sure every boy from Saline county who is in this company will do his part wherever it may happen to be.
I guess the boys who left Saline county for the training camps on the 26th are feeling pretty blue by this time, for I suppose they have received their second shot. I want to say that the second shot we got nearly killed us. We boys will certainly remember the Fourth of July, for we got our second shot for typhoid just the day before.
They are enlarging the camp down here. They are going to build eighty-three new barracks and some new Y.M.C.A. auditoriums. The work will commence Monday. They are going to give some more of our boys a home. I think they are doing the right thing when they call more of our boys. When they call a fellow and he takes to the tall uncut, I think they should go and get him in a rough way and not give him a chance of any kind. I don't mind going and fighting for the Stars and Stripes and the women and children, but when it comes to fighting for slackers who are hiding out in the woods. I say let's make war on them first.
W. L. Dobbs, of Haskell, is in the tent with me. He was bragging about not having to work on K.P. duty at Camp Pike, but what they did to him yesterday was a plenty. When any boys get back home we can do anything for our Uncle Sam is teaching us to wash dishes, cook, scrub floors and wash clothes, and most anything he can think of, and let me tell you, that is a plenty.
I will try and name a few of the boys who are here from home: J. R. Pelton, O. D. Parker, Esten Parker, Morris Westbrook, W. L. Dobbs, R. O. Starnes Caple, Charlie DePriest and Joe Bauers.
Well, I guess this is about all I can think of to write now. I wrote a letter about our trip down here, but don't think I made a success of it. I wrote it on the train and think it was the fastest writing I ever did. I took a fast shave on our way down here, too. The train was running about fifty miles an hour while I was trying to shave.
We don't know how long we are here for. We are in the Quartermasters Corps. They tell us that we will train down here for about two months and then go across the wide and deep sea. I want to try and come home before I go across. We have heard that we will all get a ten days furlough some time before we go over, but don't whether we will or not. Anyway all of us are going to try and get home before we take another ride. I am ready to go any day.
With best wishes to The Courier and its many readers. I am,
As ever,
Duffie Ewell.
NOTES: Duffy Westbrook Ewell was born in Benton, Arkansas on August 19, 1895 he died on February 8, 1960. He is buried in the Pinecrest Memorial Park and Garaden Mausoleum in Alexander, Arkansas. His military headstone identifies him as a Pvt. in the Demobilization Det. in WWI. A later document shows Demolition. He enlisted on June 25, 1918 and was discharged on December 20, 1918. He was serving as a Private in the Demolition Det. #116-2d Brigade.
TRANSCRIBED BY LAEL HARROD
Hello, dear old Saline county people
How are you all by this time anyway? Fine, I hope. I want to say that all we Saline county boys are O.K.
This is a fine country down here, some beautiful scenes here. We can sit in our tents and watch the squirrels play from one tree to another. The moss hangs down from the trees in some places, as much as ten feet. All this sure does look good to me.
We have been under quarantine since we came down here. We are in for twenty-one days. We have served seven days and have only fourteen more. I tell the boys that we ar only in jail for twenty-one days. This all goes with army life now.
We are all well satisfied down here. We don't have anything to do but eat and sleep. Don't know when we will get out of quarantine; guess we will get our work done when we do get out. Uncle Sam wants us all to do our duty; I am sure every boy from Saline county who is in this company will do his part wherever it may happen to be.
I guess the boys who left Saline county for the training camps on the 26th are feeling pretty blue by this time, for I suppose they have received their second shot. I want to say that the second shot we got nearly killed us. We boys will certainly remember the Fourth of July, for we got our second shot for typhoid just the day before.
They are enlarging the camp down here. They are going to build eighty-three new barracks and some new Y.M.C.A. auditoriums. The work will commence Monday. They are going to give some more of our boys a home. I think they are doing the right thing when they call more of our boys. When they call a fellow and he takes to the tall uncut, I think they should go and get him in a rough way and not give him a chance of any kind. I don't mind going and fighting for the Stars and Stripes and the women and children, but when it comes to fighting for slackers who are hiding out in the woods. I say let's make war on them first.
W. L. Dobbs, of Haskell, is in the tent with me. He was bragging about not having to work on K.P. duty at Camp Pike, but what they did to him yesterday was a plenty. When any boys get back home we can do anything for our Uncle Sam is teaching us to wash dishes, cook, scrub floors and wash clothes, and most anything he can think of, and let me tell you, that is a plenty.
I will try and name a few of the boys who are here from home: J. R. Pelton, O. D. Parker, Esten Parker, Morris Westbrook, W. L. Dobbs, R. O. Starnes Caple, Charlie DePriest and Joe Bauers.
Well, I guess this is about all I can think of to write now. I wrote a letter about our trip down here, but don't think I made a success of it. I wrote it on the train and think it was the fastest writing I ever did. I took a fast shave on our way down here, too. The train was running about fifty miles an hour while I was trying to shave.
We don't know how long we are here for. We are in the Quartermasters Corps. They tell us that we will train down here for about two months and then go across the wide and deep sea. I want to try and come home before I go across. We have heard that we will all get a ten days furlough some time before we go over, but don't whether we will or not. Anyway all of us are going to try and get home before we take another ride. I am ready to go any day.
With best wishes to The Courier and its many readers. I am,
As ever,
Duffie Ewell.
NOTES: Duffy Westbrook Ewell was born in Benton, Arkansas on August 19, 1895 he died on February 8, 1960. He is buried in the Pinecrest Memorial Park and Garaden Mausoleum in Alexander, Arkansas. His military headstone identifies him as a Pvt. in the Demobilization Det. in WWI. A later document shows Demolition. He enlisted on June 25, 1918 and was discharged on December 20, 1918. He was serving as a Private in the Demolition Det. #116-2d Brigade.
TRANSCRIBED BY LAEL HARROD