TRANSCRIBED FROM THE HOME NEWS JANUARY 31, 1919 P. 5
Neuwieb, Germany,
Dec. 22, 1918.
Mr. Porter Best,
McCrory, Ark.,
Kind Friend:
Well perhaps you will be surprised to hear from me at this time nevertheless I sure have had some time since I saw you last. Having stopped for a few moments rest, I thought perhaps you would like to hear from across the sea, so here I come. I am not feeling the best but hope this will find you enjoying life and the best of health. I have been on the move since I left there last July, leaving Camp Beaureard in a few days after I reeturned, landed after a three days ride in Camp Stuart, Newport News. Va., boarded a ship the 6th day of August. After three days out we were overtaken by a storm and you can not immagine how seasick we were. After feeding the sea fish for three or four days we enjoyed our trip fine. We landed at Brest, France on the 8th and embarked the 19th ___for a so-called rest camp some four miles out, then after two days rest, they called it rest, I didn’t, we started by train to the interior of France, after three or four nights ride and hike we stopped at a small French town by the name of Mehun. where we enjoyed a short rest. There we saw some old buildings built as far back as 900. Well as we were about to rejoice over peace I woke up one morning, the 17th of October, and to my surprise found myself on a 12 mile hike to take a train for the front line, after two days ride in a box car, some 35 men to the car. We stopped on an old battle field in the Argonne Forest. Well, believe me that was some wrecked country, we then took up the rest of our journey on hob nail special, perhaps you don’t know what that is, if you had been with us you would have learned soon. With a pack on our back weighing some 60 pounds, rifle and some other articles and a pair of hob nail shoes aand a 15 or 20 mile hike in front of us for our days work, that’s what we call the hob nail special. Well we landed with Co. D. after a hard evening and night the morning of the 21st. After being bombed by an enemy airplane but no one was hurt, we began to see real war. Our division was behind the lines for rest and we found only heavy artillery and airplanes to bother us, so we rested very well until the morning of November 2, when we found ourselves again on the hobnail special moving to the front. We finally found the front line after experiencing some things too horrible to mention. The next day firing ceased, and God be with us, we did not see any fighting except by artillery Well there at the little French village called Louppy, on the Verdun front. we relieved the 5th division. After two days rest, we again boarded our hobnail special for a 200 mile hike across France. the southern part of Belgium, Luxemburg, at Echternach, we stopped to spend our glorius Thanksgiving. Well it sure was thanksgiving to us, nothing much to eat but we were glad to get rest. We enjoyed the day fine on the first day of December we crossed the border into Germany, and though it was a long weary hike, sleeping in barns on good hay, we all enjoyed it the best we could until the 15th day of December, we finished our journey. On the 18th we moved to the little village of Neuwieb, Germany, and here we are with nothing to bother us as we found to our surprise the German people to be very friendly and as good as they can be, therefore not a thing to worry about except our trip home and just when we start I don’t know, but as you all know that is the trip we think most about. Well I could write seven more pages but paper is one scarce article and this is all I have. We are now staying in a very comfortable place, in an old German house but not like the good old U. S. A.
If anyone should ask you what won the war, you can tell them corn beef, hard bread and Bull Durham. Of course the boys did the fighting but that was our backing.
Well, knowing this will not reach you by Christmas, I will wish you a happy new year. We are thinking of having a chicken or slung, we are undecided, but I rather think it will be slung as we are used to that and it won’t make us sick.
Well, hoping to see you again soon, and would be glad to hear from you. I am.
Your Friend.
Pvt. Geo. Park.
Co. D. 126 Inf. 32 Div. A. E. F. A. P. O. 734
NOTES:
TRANSCRIBED BY GABBY RUSHING
Neuwieb, Germany,
Dec. 22, 1918.
Mr. Porter Best,
McCrory, Ark.,
Kind Friend:
Well perhaps you will be surprised to hear from me at this time nevertheless I sure have had some time since I saw you last. Having stopped for a few moments rest, I thought perhaps you would like to hear from across the sea, so here I come. I am not feeling the best but hope this will find you enjoying life and the best of health. I have been on the move since I left there last July, leaving Camp Beaureard in a few days after I reeturned, landed after a three days ride in Camp Stuart, Newport News. Va., boarded a ship the 6th day of August. After three days out we were overtaken by a storm and you can not immagine how seasick we were. After feeding the sea fish for three or four days we enjoyed our trip fine. We landed at Brest, France on the 8th and embarked the 19th ___for a so-called rest camp some four miles out, then after two days rest, they called it rest, I didn’t, we started by train to the interior of France, after three or four nights ride and hike we stopped at a small French town by the name of Mehun. where we enjoyed a short rest. There we saw some old buildings built as far back as 900. Well as we were about to rejoice over peace I woke up one morning, the 17th of October, and to my surprise found myself on a 12 mile hike to take a train for the front line, after two days ride in a box car, some 35 men to the car. We stopped on an old battle field in the Argonne Forest. Well, believe me that was some wrecked country, we then took up the rest of our journey on hob nail special, perhaps you don’t know what that is, if you had been with us you would have learned soon. With a pack on our back weighing some 60 pounds, rifle and some other articles and a pair of hob nail shoes aand a 15 or 20 mile hike in front of us for our days work, that’s what we call the hob nail special. Well we landed with Co. D. after a hard evening and night the morning of the 21st. After being bombed by an enemy airplane but no one was hurt, we began to see real war. Our division was behind the lines for rest and we found only heavy artillery and airplanes to bother us, so we rested very well until the morning of November 2, when we found ourselves again on the hobnail special moving to the front. We finally found the front line after experiencing some things too horrible to mention. The next day firing ceased, and God be with us, we did not see any fighting except by artillery Well there at the little French village called Louppy, on the Verdun front. we relieved the 5th division. After two days rest, we again boarded our hobnail special for a 200 mile hike across France. the southern part of Belgium, Luxemburg, at Echternach, we stopped to spend our glorius Thanksgiving. Well it sure was thanksgiving to us, nothing much to eat but we were glad to get rest. We enjoyed the day fine on the first day of December we crossed the border into Germany, and though it was a long weary hike, sleeping in barns on good hay, we all enjoyed it the best we could until the 15th day of December, we finished our journey. On the 18th we moved to the little village of Neuwieb, Germany, and here we are with nothing to bother us as we found to our surprise the German people to be very friendly and as good as they can be, therefore not a thing to worry about except our trip home and just when we start I don’t know, but as you all know that is the trip we think most about. Well I could write seven more pages but paper is one scarce article and this is all I have. We are now staying in a very comfortable place, in an old German house but not like the good old U. S. A.
If anyone should ask you what won the war, you can tell them corn beef, hard bread and Bull Durham. Of course the boys did the fighting but that was our backing.
Well, knowing this will not reach you by Christmas, I will wish you a happy new year. We are thinking of having a chicken or slung, we are undecided, but I rather think it will be slung as we are used to that and it won’t make us sick.
Well, hoping to see you again soon, and would be glad to hear from you. I am.
Your Friend.
Pvt. Geo. Park.
Co. D. 126 Inf. 32 Div. A. E. F. A. P. O. 734
NOTES:
TRANSCRIBED BY GABBY RUSHING