TRANSCRIBED FROM THE CLEVELAND COUNTY HERALD NOVEMBER 28, 1918 P. 4
Oct. 3rd 1918.
Dearest mother and all
well, I got some mail at last 16 bags of mail came in for the Battallion today and I got six and Ralph got one they were dated from August 25th to Sept. the 6th four were from you and the others were from Emma and Anna. You cant imagine how glad I was to get them. I haven’t got any Heralds yet guess I will get them and the letters you wrote during June and July sometime in the future.
Did you get the letters I wrote while I was in England and I also sent you a picture of the ship on which I come over on. I haven’t herd from L. since I come over guess she is married by this time
Gee” they are having an air battle over head now and Ralph is trying to make me move over so he can get down in the trench too. I am lying down in a trench writing Gee this is a great life.
If you don’t weakhn” the big guns keep the ground quivering all the time.
They almost give me the earache. Gee” didn’t you hear that big shell burst. It fell close to the kitchen you can almost tell when its “Chaw time Frits always sends over a few big shells.
Well two planes have fallen during the air battle don’t know which they were but I think they were Boch.
Well I will stop for a while and run up to the kitchen and get my chaw and come back and finish my letter.
After Supper
Well Frits is rather lively tonight he dropped several shells between our place and the kitchen while I was at supper. You ought to see us do the “dug out glide” when the shells begin to pop around us we have lots of fun laughing at each other ducking several batteries of own big guns are right behind us and they shoot about 40 times to fritzes one so you can imagine how noisy it is the aviators had a big battle over head yesterday eve. there was over 50 planes engaged in it and air craft guns and machine guns on the ground were prcking away at them too and of all the racket you ever heard it took place then. But the most thrilling thing took place this afternoon when a Bosh come over and shot down one of our Balloons the ovsere jumped out and come down in a pair shoot and the Balloon burned up then the sun of a gun turned his machine gun on us and here he come right over our heads ___ boys business picked up when those bullets begin to pepper around us, we turned air craft guns machine pistols and riffles all loose on him and brought him down, he fell about a killometer from us and we all made a break for him and by the time I got there I guess there was ten thousand French and American Soldiers there they had to take him off to keep the yanks from making souvenieers out of him, and they tore the plane very near up for souvineers before they could get them away. So you see how crazy we are for souvineers well it is too dark to write so I will finish in the morning.
Oct. 11.h.
Well I said would finish in the morning but when morning come I was fighting like H L and have been ever since until yesterday we got released for a few days I guess we were in the hardest battle that has ever been fought yet. All of the home boys got through all O K except Marvin Reid Ione Cash’s beau he got wounded.
You will have to excuse this had when I started the letter so I will finish on it. I got two more letters from E. and G. the other day was sure glad to get them. No Jewel Pratt was not in our Co. I didn’t know Mary R. was married who did she marry.
Ralph just now got a letter from his girl tee first one he has got since he come over well I guess I have wrote enough for this time so good by. Tell every body hello and all of you write often for I sure do enjoy reading them.
Prvt. Dadid Kendall.
Co. B. 8th M. G. Bn A. E. F.
Censured by R. C. Watts
___ 8th M. 9 Bn.
NOTES: This same letter was published in the Pine Bluff Daily Graphic November 6, 1918, p. 3 David H. Kendall of Rison, Arkansas is writing from France to his mother, Mary E. Kendall. Kendall was born on February 1, 1899 and died on March 19, 1982. He enlisted on June 28, 1918. After serving in France he departed for the United States on August 12, 1919 on board the Pretoria and arrived in Brooklyn, NY on August 25, 1919. He was discharged on September 9, 1919. He was serving in Co. B, 8th Machine Gun Battalion.
TRANSCRIBED BY LINDA MATTHEWS
Oct. 3rd 1918.
Dearest mother and all
well, I got some mail at last 16 bags of mail came in for the Battallion today and I got six and Ralph got one they were dated from August 25th to Sept. the 6th four were from you and the others were from Emma and Anna. You cant imagine how glad I was to get them. I haven’t got any Heralds yet guess I will get them and the letters you wrote during June and July sometime in the future.
Did you get the letters I wrote while I was in England and I also sent you a picture of the ship on which I come over on. I haven’t herd from L. since I come over guess she is married by this time
Gee” they are having an air battle over head now and Ralph is trying to make me move over so he can get down in the trench too. I am lying down in a trench writing Gee this is a great life.
If you don’t weakhn” the big guns keep the ground quivering all the time.
They almost give me the earache. Gee” didn’t you hear that big shell burst. It fell close to the kitchen you can almost tell when its “Chaw time Frits always sends over a few big shells.
Well two planes have fallen during the air battle don’t know which they were but I think they were Boch.
Well I will stop for a while and run up to the kitchen and get my chaw and come back and finish my letter.
After Supper
Well Frits is rather lively tonight he dropped several shells between our place and the kitchen while I was at supper. You ought to see us do the “dug out glide” when the shells begin to pop around us we have lots of fun laughing at each other ducking several batteries of own big guns are right behind us and they shoot about 40 times to fritzes one so you can imagine how noisy it is the aviators had a big battle over head yesterday eve. there was over 50 planes engaged in it and air craft guns and machine guns on the ground were prcking away at them too and of all the racket you ever heard it took place then. But the most thrilling thing took place this afternoon when a Bosh come over and shot down one of our Balloons the ovsere jumped out and come down in a pair shoot and the Balloon burned up then the sun of a gun turned his machine gun on us and here he come right over our heads ___ boys business picked up when those bullets begin to pepper around us, we turned air craft guns machine pistols and riffles all loose on him and brought him down, he fell about a killometer from us and we all made a break for him and by the time I got there I guess there was ten thousand French and American Soldiers there they had to take him off to keep the yanks from making souvenieers out of him, and they tore the plane very near up for souvineers before they could get them away. So you see how crazy we are for souvineers well it is too dark to write so I will finish in the morning.
Oct. 11.h.
Well I said would finish in the morning but when morning come I was fighting like H L and have been ever since until yesterday we got released for a few days I guess we were in the hardest battle that has ever been fought yet. All of the home boys got through all O K except Marvin Reid Ione Cash’s beau he got wounded.
You will have to excuse this had when I started the letter so I will finish on it. I got two more letters from E. and G. the other day was sure glad to get them. No Jewel Pratt was not in our Co. I didn’t know Mary R. was married who did she marry.
Ralph just now got a letter from his girl tee first one he has got since he come over well I guess I have wrote enough for this time so good by. Tell every body hello and all of you write often for I sure do enjoy reading them.
Prvt. Dadid Kendall.
Co. B. 8th M. G. Bn A. E. F.
Censured by R. C. Watts
___ 8th M. 9 Bn.
NOTES: This same letter was published in the Pine Bluff Daily Graphic November 6, 1918, p. 3 David H. Kendall of Rison, Arkansas is writing from France to his mother, Mary E. Kendall. Kendall was born on February 1, 1899 and died on March 19, 1982. He enlisted on June 28, 1918. After serving in France he departed for the United States on August 12, 1919 on board the Pretoria and arrived in Brooklyn, NY on August 25, 1919. He was discharged on September 9, 1919. He was serving in Co. B, 8th Machine Gun Battalion.
TRANSCRIBED BY LINDA MATTHEWS