TRANSCRIBED FROM THE PINE BLUFF DAILY GRAPHIC SEPTEMBER 11, 1918 P. 4
After a tiresome and monotonous trip on a transport for many days we landed safely at Panama. If Heaven looks as good to me when I die as land did then, I don’t want to miss getting in.
For the first hour or town on land I thought I was rocking but only in imagination. The last three days out the boat rocked like a leaf in a storm.
I missed something but couldn’t tell what is was; someone spoke up and asked where was his belt, and then I knew it was my belt that was missing. We had to carry our life belt with us all the time and at night I slept on mine. It was too hot and stuffy to sleep in the hatch so I would roll up in my blanket and sleep on deck. Over half of the fellow did the same thing. I remember one night the guard woke me up a dozen times, telling me to stick my feet in. A passage had to be kept on deck so the gun crew could get to the guns if anything happened.
We were switched around for a couple of hours before pulling out for our camp. Not in camp five minutes before it started raining. I thought it was a terrible rain but one of the old boys told me it was very light rain. For the coming month our sleeping quarters were in tents, isx men to the tent. We had to sleep under a beautiful white drapery called mospito bar, only kind of bar allowed in a military camp. Every other night we had to take two little pieces of candy, the orginal quinine, but it came so often that candy was more appropriate for it.
During the day time it is pretty hot, but at night we use a blanket, as it is cool.
We have just gotten out of quarantine and don’t know much about the camp as a whole. We have a picture show every night, that is all there is to do except go to the post exchange.
NOTE: This is a partial letter written by Harry A. Smith to Mrs. J. C. Fiisakerley of 523 East 6th Avenue in Pine Bluff, Arkansas. Smith is writing from Corazal Canal Zone.
TRANSCRIBED BY NANCY ARN
After a tiresome and monotonous trip on a transport for many days we landed safely at Panama. If Heaven looks as good to me when I die as land did then, I don’t want to miss getting in.
For the first hour or town on land I thought I was rocking but only in imagination. The last three days out the boat rocked like a leaf in a storm.
I missed something but couldn’t tell what is was; someone spoke up and asked where was his belt, and then I knew it was my belt that was missing. We had to carry our life belt with us all the time and at night I slept on mine. It was too hot and stuffy to sleep in the hatch so I would roll up in my blanket and sleep on deck. Over half of the fellow did the same thing. I remember one night the guard woke me up a dozen times, telling me to stick my feet in. A passage had to be kept on deck so the gun crew could get to the guns if anything happened.
We were switched around for a couple of hours before pulling out for our camp. Not in camp five minutes before it started raining. I thought it was a terrible rain but one of the old boys told me it was very light rain. For the coming month our sleeping quarters were in tents, isx men to the tent. We had to sleep under a beautiful white drapery called mospito bar, only kind of bar allowed in a military camp. Every other night we had to take two little pieces of candy, the orginal quinine, but it came so often that candy was more appropriate for it.
During the day time it is pretty hot, but at night we use a blanket, as it is cool.
We have just gotten out of quarantine and don’t know much about the camp as a whole. We have a picture show every night, that is all there is to do except go to the post exchange.
NOTE: This is a partial letter written by Harry A. Smith to Mrs. J. C. Fiisakerley of 523 East 6th Avenue in Pine Bluff, Arkansas. Smith is writing from Corazal Canal Zone.
TRANSCRIBED BY NANCY ARN