TRANSCRIBED FROM THE JONESBORO EVENING SUN JULY 25, 1918 P. 4
Camp Dix, Wrightstown, N. J.
July 13, 1918.
Dear Mother:
Received your most welcome letter yesterday, was sure glad to hear from you once more, as you remember it had been over a month since you had written to me. If I’d known that my address would have been the same except the change in camps, you could have written and I would have gotten your letter when I reached camp. There were two letters for me when I reached camp, but they were sent to Camp Pike and forwarded here. They were dated June 14th and I left Camp Pike June 13 th.
I am certainly sorry to hear of the two deaths of which you made mention in your letter. It seems as though you can’t be away from home even a month without some change taking place. Am sorry to know that the crops are being injured by dry weather, because you know food will win the war, therefore Uncle Sam needs all that can be produced.
There is a 400 acre farm near Camp Dix which is owned by the government. This land is tilled by soldiers from the depot brigade. I see them pass early in the morning going to work and they seem just as happy as if they on the farms at home, although I guess this is the first farming many ever did because many of these soldiers are from New York City and many other large cities nearby.
I thought for a while that we would be in this camp for only a few weeks but I noticed in the papers where no soldiers would be sent across without six months training, so as we have many new men in our company, and must have still more before we will have a full company, so considering this, I think it will be a few months before we cross the pond. But, all the boys want to go across and so do I. We don’t stop to think what we will get into “over there” because we don’t care.
I laughed at some of the new fellows today. They were getting instructions as to how they should put up their shelter tents. Gee! They were awkward, believe me, if they had been with the 312 Am. In., on our trip cross country, they sure would have gotten some experience, because we pitched tent after dark and always struck tent before day light, and sometimes in the rain too. I remember well the morning we left Fort Mitchell, Covington, Ky. It was raining hard and it was cold too. We struck tents about 1 a.m., left at 2 a. m., crossed into Cincinnati, Ohio and it rained all day. Of course the roads were slick so some of the boys let their truck get into the ditch. Believe me we were some wet bunch and when night came we halted and found the ground nice and wet. But all were so tired that we slept just as well on the wet ground as we would have at home on feather beds.
Our commanding officer called us all together at Washington D. C., and told us that in his twenty years service he had never had under his command a better bunch of men. He also stated that we had endured all the hardships on this trip that we would when we were in action, except shell fire. Of course those few words of praise made all feel proud.
Well, mother I guess this is about all I can think of. Will buy me a whole lot of stationary next time and write more.
Be sure and answer soon, because I always like to hear from home and good old Arkansas.
Your son.
Private James F. Needham,
Motor Co. D, 312 Am. In.
Camp Dix, N. J.
NOTES: This letter was written by Jas. F. Needham of Jonesboro, Craighead County, to his mother, Mrs. Maude Needham. He was born November 11, 1894. When he enlisted he was tall and slender with blue eyes and dark hair. He died January 9, 1969, and is buried in Hillcrest Cemetery, Texarkana, Texas.
TRANSCRIBED BY CAROLYN YANCEY KENT
Camp Dix, Wrightstown, N. J.
July 13, 1918.
Dear Mother:
Received your most welcome letter yesterday, was sure glad to hear from you once more, as you remember it had been over a month since you had written to me. If I’d known that my address would have been the same except the change in camps, you could have written and I would have gotten your letter when I reached camp. There were two letters for me when I reached camp, but they were sent to Camp Pike and forwarded here. They were dated June 14th and I left Camp Pike June 13 th.
I am certainly sorry to hear of the two deaths of which you made mention in your letter. It seems as though you can’t be away from home even a month without some change taking place. Am sorry to know that the crops are being injured by dry weather, because you know food will win the war, therefore Uncle Sam needs all that can be produced.
There is a 400 acre farm near Camp Dix which is owned by the government. This land is tilled by soldiers from the depot brigade. I see them pass early in the morning going to work and they seem just as happy as if they on the farms at home, although I guess this is the first farming many ever did because many of these soldiers are from New York City and many other large cities nearby.
I thought for a while that we would be in this camp for only a few weeks but I noticed in the papers where no soldiers would be sent across without six months training, so as we have many new men in our company, and must have still more before we will have a full company, so considering this, I think it will be a few months before we cross the pond. But, all the boys want to go across and so do I. We don’t stop to think what we will get into “over there” because we don’t care.
I laughed at some of the new fellows today. They were getting instructions as to how they should put up their shelter tents. Gee! They were awkward, believe me, if they had been with the 312 Am. In., on our trip cross country, they sure would have gotten some experience, because we pitched tent after dark and always struck tent before day light, and sometimes in the rain too. I remember well the morning we left Fort Mitchell, Covington, Ky. It was raining hard and it was cold too. We struck tents about 1 a.m., left at 2 a. m., crossed into Cincinnati, Ohio and it rained all day. Of course the roads were slick so some of the boys let their truck get into the ditch. Believe me we were some wet bunch and when night came we halted and found the ground nice and wet. But all were so tired that we slept just as well on the wet ground as we would have at home on feather beds.
Our commanding officer called us all together at Washington D. C., and told us that in his twenty years service he had never had under his command a better bunch of men. He also stated that we had endured all the hardships on this trip that we would when we were in action, except shell fire. Of course those few words of praise made all feel proud.
Well, mother I guess this is about all I can think of. Will buy me a whole lot of stationary next time and write more.
Be sure and answer soon, because I always like to hear from home and good old Arkansas.
Your son.
Private James F. Needham,
Motor Co. D, 312 Am. In.
Camp Dix, N. J.
NOTES: This letter was written by Jas. F. Needham of Jonesboro, Craighead County, to his mother, Mrs. Maude Needham. He was born November 11, 1894. When he enlisted he was tall and slender with blue eyes and dark hair. He died January 9, 1969, and is buried in Hillcrest Cemetery, Texarkana, Texas.
TRANSCRIBED BY CAROLYN YANCEY KENT