TRANSCRIBED FROM THE JUDSONIA ADVANCE AUGUTS 19, 1917 P. 1
August 20, 1917
Dear Friend and Editor:
After reading the letter of our friend, John Joyner, I could not resist letting you know that I am also one of the happy “Sammies”. While at Jefferson Barracks, Mo., I didn’t think much of my job, but I concluded that I would stay with it a while longer. The first degree was a regulation hair cut and you can’t hardly realize what it is until you have the experience. But after arriving here I was much better satisfied and I like it better every day.
There are 3,000 in the medical department and about 900 officers, in all about 80,000 including, the cavalry and field artillery and the jolliest bunch you ever saw. The average age is 20 to 25. They are shipping the boys out every day now, some of them to Texas, but most of them to a place unknown to them, but they all have a pretty good idea.
I am clerking in the Post Exchange and make $15 more per month than a private soldier, and if you never saw a Post it would be worth one’s time to visit a camp and see with their own eyes. I don’t suppose that I will have this place after the first of the year. I was told that all the special duty men were to stay until all of the “draft” were trained and that includes about 200 of us, but when the word is said we are ready to “Fall In” and forward march. Well, I am lucky so far, have had but one offense against me and that was for missing Reveille the other morning, but I had plenty of company, the whole section was absent and we had to stay in the Fort for 5 days but I call that lucky for he could have said 5 days in the guard house just as easy.
Well I will close for this time; will try and write again some time.
Your Friend,
THOMAS H. GIBSON,
Fort Riley, Kas.
P.S. One of my friends told me that the war would not last long. I asked him why and he said that his brother joined and that he was never known to hold a job more than two months.
NOTES:
TRANSCRIBED BY KAREN PITTMAN
August 20, 1917
Dear Friend and Editor:
After reading the letter of our friend, John Joyner, I could not resist letting you know that I am also one of the happy “Sammies”. While at Jefferson Barracks, Mo., I didn’t think much of my job, but I concluded that I would stay with it a while longer. The first degree was a regulation hair cut and you can’t hardly realize what it is until you have the experience. But after arriving here I was much better satisfied and I like it better every day.
There are 3,000 in the medical department and about 900 officers, in all about 80,000 including, the cavalry and field artillery and the jolliest bunch you ever saw. The average age is 20 to 25. They are shipping the boys out every day now, some of them to Texas, but most of them to a place unknown to them, but they all have a pretty good idea.
I am clerking in the Post Exchange and make $15 more per month than a private soldier, and if you never saw a Post it would be worth one’s time to visit a camp and see with their own eyes. I don’t suppose that I will have this place after the first of the year. I was told that all the special duty men were to stay until all of the “draft” were trained and that includes about 200 of us, but when the word is said we are ready to “Fall In” and forward march. Well, I am lucky so far, have had but one offense against me and that was for missing Reveille the other morning, but I had plenty of company, the whole section was absent and we had to stay in the Fort for 5 days but I call that lucky for he could have said 5 days in the guard house just as easy.
Well I will close for this time; will try and write again some time.
Your Friend,
THOMAS H. GIBSON,
Fort Riley, Kas.
P.S. One of my friends told me that the war would not last long. I asked him why and he said that his brother joined and that he was never known to hold a job more than two months.
NOTES:
TRANSCRIBED BY KAREN PITTMAN