TRANSCRIBED FROM THE GRAND PRAIRIE NEWS NOVEMBER 7, 1918 P. 6
Somewhere in France,
October 6, 1918
Miss Clara McPherson,
Stuttgart, Ark.
Dear Homefolks:
Your good letter of Sept. 12th reached me the day I indicated by card its arrival to me. We are very nicely located here, have good, dry barracks, have three blankets, a bed sack filled with straw, and a shelter half, that is our bedding. As for clothing, we have plenty, more than we could carry very far, which consists of two wool shirts, one wool coat, one wool pants, one woolen leggings, one wool cap, two undershirts, two drawers, four pair woolen socks and two pair hobnailed shoes. The best part of our equipment is hip boots of rubber, and we have pretty good rain coats. We have coal stoves to use, but the only thing we have to go up against is the wet weather. It rains about every twenty minutes and again the sun shines in about that length of time.
Pet, I want you and mother to help the Y. M. C. A. and Red Cross as much as you can. If it were not for them our boys over here would have a tough time of it. I tell you, you have to feed a man’s mind as well as his body, also his appetite for smokes and sweets. Imagine now every article for human consumption having to come from the U. S. A., yet every one to be fairly and comfortably fitted. Then the “Y” and Red Cross comes along and supplies the thing a boy needs to give him that touch of home, and I want to tell you they are great.
I do not know whether I shall ever see anything in France that made me gladder from the very heart out, than one evening when we had made sixteen miles on foot, the Y. M. C. A. auto came out to hold a meeting. They brought cookies, chewing gum, and cigarettes enough for all to have a few, also, real stick candy. We had, had none of these for nearly a month, but the best of all was a Miss Watson, a real American lady, passed out the candy, and all the boys called her mother. That, mamma, was the best thing I ever heard or saw, just to hear her voice in good English terms tell us that she was real glad to be among us, the first real American woman we had seen. We see them frequently now, in the reading room.
Please give me the address of any of the Stuttgart boys over here whom I happen to know. In our Battery we have Capt. Armitage, and Second Lieut. Schacklin, old University of Arkansas men, and schoolmates of mine, also, First Lieut. Thompson in the 1912 and 1914 Cardinal, also several others, in fact I know of only one here that finished the University, who is not an officer, but none of them could be any stronger to make their organization better, or get any more pleasure out of doing all they can. It’s all work and everyone gets his shoulder to the wheel, whether he is a Major or private. Sister, send me some American newspapers, and the Saturday Evening Post.
You asked me several things. No military military information of any kind can be divulged by the boys over here. I know it will satisfy you to know we are comfortably situated in one of Napoleon’s camps, made several hundred years ago. Would it surprise you, sister, to know these lines of combat follow mainly Napoleon’s old route? The only difference is that he was the aggressor and now we are the defender, I speak of the lines as a whole, but think, Pet, what a great military genius he was, to have picked out the main objective points to the line being occupied now, so you see history repeats itself.
Mamma, don’t worry about me. I am getting along O. K.
Your son and brother,
Sgt. R. R. McPherson
Battery “B” 142nd F.A.
NOTES:
TRANSCRIBED BY SHANNON SOUTHARD
Somewhere in France,
October 6, 1918
Miss Clara McPherson,
Stuttgart, Ark.
Dear Homefolks:
Your good letter of Sept. 12th reached me the day I indicated by card its arrival to me. We are very nicely located here, have good, dry barracks, have three blankets, a bed sack filled with straw, and a shelter half, that is our bedding. As for clothing, we have plenty, more than we could carry very far, which consists of two wool shirts, one wool coat, one wool pants, one woolen leggings, one wool cap, two undershirts, two drawers, four pair woolen socks and two pair hobnailed shoes. The best part of our equipment is hip boots of rubber, and we have pretty good rain coats. We have coal stoves to use, but the only thing we have to go up against is the wet weather. It rains about every twenty minutes and again the sun shines in about that length of time.
Pet, I want you and mother to help the Y. M. C. A. and Red Cross as much as you can. If it were not for them our boys over here would have a tough time of it. I tell you, you have to feed a man’s mind as well as his body, also his appetite for smokes and sweets. Imagine now every article for human consumption having to come from the U. S. A., yet every one to be fairly and comfortably fitted. Then the “Y” and Red Cross comes along and supplies the thing a boy needs to give him that touch of home, and I want to tell you they are great.
I do not know whether I shall ever see anything in France that made me gladder from the very heart out, than one evening when we had made sixteen miles on foot, the Y. M. C. A. auto came out to hold a meeting. They brought cookies, chewing gum, and cigarettes enough for all to have a few, also, real stick candy. We had, had none of these for nearly a month, but the best of all was a Miss Watson, a real American lady, passed out the candy, and all the boys called her mother. That, mamma, was the best thing I ever heard or saw, just to hear her voice in good English terms tell us that she was real glad to be among us, the first real American woman we had seen. We see them frequently now, in the reading room.
Please give me the address of any of the Stuttgart boys over here whom I happen to know. In our Battery we have Capt. Armitage, and Second Lieut. Schacklin, old University of Arkansas men, and schoolmates of mine, also, First Lieut. Thompson in the 1912 and 1914 Cardinal, also several others, in fact I know of only one here that finished the University, who is not an officer, but none of them could be any stronger to make their organization better, or get any more pleasure out of doing all they can. It’s all work and everyone gets his shoulder to the wheel, whether he is a Major or private. Sister, send me some American newspapers, and the Saturday Evening Post.
You asked me several things. No military military information of any kind can be divulged by the boys over here. I know it will satisfy you to know we are comfortably situated in one of Napoleon’s camps, made several hundred years ago. Would it surprise you, sister, to know these lines of combat follow mainly Napoleon’s old route? The only difference is that he was the aggressor and now we are the defender, I speak of the lines as a whole, but think, Pet, what a great military genius he was, to have picked out the main objective points to the line being occupied now, so you see history repeats itself.
Mamma, don’t worry about me. I am getting along O. K.
Your son and brother,
Sgt. R. R. McPherson
Battery “B” 142nd F.A.
NOTES:
TRANSCRIBED BY SHANNON SOUTHARD