TRANSCRIBED FROM THE HELENA WORLD MAY 22, 1918 P. 2
Fort McDowell, Calif.,
May 13, 1918.
Dear Mother:
I just arrived here yesterday and am in quarantine. Do not know how long we will be here or where I go from here. Am going to try and come home if I can. Will try for some place east and closer to home. We had quite an extended trip coming over. We went up to Russia and picked up some refugees. We also had the woman colonel of the Battalion of Death aboard with us and some Belgian soldiers, also some Italians who had deserted from the Austria army. It certainly was a cosmopolitan crowd. We had an entertainment aboard ship and there was singing in every language except German. Among them were Russian, French, Flemish, Italian, Spanish and English. We were allowed shore liberty in Vladivostok, and it is some town. It is in an awfully disturbed state and not much work or anything going on. The rebels were fighting within a few miles of there, and there were thousands of people who would have given all they possessed to come to the United States with us. We also stopped at Nagasaki, Japan. I wrote cards from both places, but do not know whether you got them or not. If you address letters to me at Fort McDowell, Calif., I will get them. Hope you are all well. It is really cool here in the morning and at night, and I have all my heavy clothes in the customs. Guess we will get them tomorrow or the next day. Give my love to all the folks and tell Tom and Frances and the baby they are able to see their old uncle step in any day.
Love from
EDWIN
NOTES: Edwin Thomas was writing to his mother Mrs. J. D. Thomas.
TRANSCRIBED BY SHANNON SOUTHARD
Fort McDowell, Calif.,
May 13, 1918.
Dear Mother:
I just arrived here yesterday and am in quarantine. Do not know how long we will be here or where I go from here. Am going to try and come home if I can. Will try for some place east and closer to home. We had quite an extended trip coming over. We went up to Russia and picked up some refugees. We also had the woman colonel of the Battalion of Death aboard with us and some Belgian soldiers, also some Italians who had deserted from the Austria army. It certainly was a cosmopolitan crowd. We had an entertainment aboard ship and there was singing in every language except German. Among them were Russian, French, Flemish, Italian, Spanish and English. We were allowed shore liberty in Vladivostok, and it is some town. It is in an awfully disturbed state and not much work or anything going on. The rebels were fighting within a few miles of there, and there were thousands of people who would have given all they possessed to come to the United States with us. We also stopped at Nagasaki, Japan. I wrote cards from both places, but do not know whether you got them or not. If you address letters to me at Fort McDowell, Calif., I will get them. Hope you are all well. It is really cool here in the morning and at night, and I have all my heavy clothes in the customs. Guess we will get them tomorrow or the next day. Give my love to all the folks and tell Tom and Frances and the baby they are able to see their old uncle step in any day.
Love from
EDWIN
NOTES: Edwin Thomas was writing to his mother Mrs. J. D. Thomas.
TRANSCRIBED BY SHANNON SOUTHARD