Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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A Group of Interest! Q rs 1A A Ck i Mrs. Horace Holmes Receives Two Leiters From Ker Husband. At the front. September 9, 1918. My Dear Wife: Just a few lines to let you know that I am deine; fine and do truly hope you are enjoying your dear self to the highest. I have been up to the front for some time and i like to be up elosc to the big guns. Sometime things get real lively up there but you can't be a soldier if you can't stand the powder, so 1 am trying to get used to it. This is no joke-I certainly didn't feel safe at all the fir-c night. I could not think of sleeping at all, but new the roar of the guns just puts me to sleep just as" anyone would rock a baby to sleep. Now you j can believe your "art about that tale ! We have bee-.i attacked by gas sev- ? eral ti axes but no damage done for j we are always "on the job" ?md in j fact we are too quick for the Ger- ! mar. boys, for wc think about them ! when they are asleep. Ora, I have had the pleasure cf seeing some good ajr raids and al most every time ou* American boys bring the German planes down. I teil you the Germans put up a good fight, but you well know they can't do anything with tlfe Americans, tan they? I am in hopes of being back home before long for I just came over to I help the boys clean up the Germans and then come back to my dear wife and loved ones. So I don't think it will be very long before we can com- [ pletc our work or that is what we are hoping with all our hearts, and I do truly hope wc won't be disap pointed, don't you? Well, tell all I will write as soon j as I get a chance. Give my love to ? all. Your devoted husband. , Tuesday A. M. My Dear Ora: I am again writing you a few lines this morning to put in with the one I wrote you yesterday as I did not have a chance to get it off and we are going to move to another point. As *I do not know when I will have the opportunity I am going to, make good use of this. _a cnance to take one in over two ; weeks for you see we do not have ! very many bath houses up where I j am staying. They would stand a poor chance up here when shells begin to j fall. Ora, tell Louis and all the rest of \ the family I will write them some j time but day time is the only time j I have to sleep and some days I do : not get that. Now you can see what we are doing but I guess vou can i _ j understand why we are working so | hard-we are going to soon be back home and won't that be a happy dayl I say it v. ill. You asked me something about i whether I am geting your mail. 11 receive anywhere from five on up of ? your letters every mail day. but you '. understand that day does not come every day. You should see what a ! happy bunch of boys we are when we receive mail from home. I know ? there could never be any happier : .boy than I am when mail day comes j and I get your letters. Give my love to all the family and \ tell them not to worry about me for I have a good chance to come back without a wound. I am trusting in the right One to take care of me. I don't care where I am placed for you well know we have got to go to places where it isn't very safe but I feel like I am going to be one of the lucky ones. Ora, I have several things 1 would like to tell you but I don't know how they suit in mail so I will find out before saying any thing. Well, I .viii close. Your devoted husband, Horace Holmes. Mr. John E. Agner Writes Let ter to His Sister. August 12, 1918. My Dear Sister: How are you getting on? I hope you are well as this leaves me feel ing fine. Dear Sister, I received your last letter that you wrote me but did not have time to answer it before I started over here. I am sailing somewhere on the sea. Since I started you don't know how many times I have thought of you. We had such a nice time together. How many times have played the ng Leiters From Our * Boys. harp while you seconded on the pia ir.o. Ican't help thinking cf you but ? think our happy days have passed land gene. i I wrote Mother and Fainer a Ict iter today. Sallie I never will forget 'the last time I was nt your home and ?the nice breakfast you fixed for mc. j I certainly hope it will be so that I can get back to see you all soon again. Tell Brother John "Howdy" for me, and Uncle Johnnie, too. I am a long way from home but am ' hoping some day to get back, j I can't think of anything much to ?write this time. You must write me 'all the good news. What does Uncle Johnnie think about the war? Well, I will have to close for this time. With much love to you. Answer real soon. Your loving brother, John E. Agner. P. S. Write every chance you get. You don't know how much I enjoy getting a letter from you and Mother. Mr. Hampton Medlock Writes to His Parents From France. August 2o, 1918. Dear Father and Mother: This letter leaves me well and hope ' it will find you the same. I just re- ! ceived your kind and loving letter a few days a<ro and was surely glad j io hear from you all. I wish 1 could see you ail today. Please write to me and tell me if you are still living and getting cn well. Tell me how the cotton and corn are and how the crops are. Let me know if you are still geU ting my allotment. Have you heard from George? Tell me where he is and what he is doing. How are Sister and Jim getting along? I am glad that Henry did not have to go. When you see Aunt Emma and Uncle Matt and Henry tell them that I send my love to them all. If you know where George is tell him that 1 say for him to please write to me. Tell him to remember God and his soul's salvation. I am the same old boy that I used to be and ?I feel that I am better prepared to meet God than ever before. If you never see I me again don't worry about me for ', I feel that each day is bringing sal vation to me. The fear of battles does not worry me: The thing that I worries me is to see the human rnrp Your loving son, Hampton Medlock. Mr. Claude Watkins Writes His Mother Somewhere on the Atlantic Ocean. My Dearest Mother: I am sitting out on top deck of the ship, where I have been spending j most of my time since I came aboard. I As this is Sunday afternoon my ! thoughts drift back to old-Saluda and ; Edgefield county, especially around ? Pleasant Lane where I would probab-j ly be going if I were at home. Well, so far we have had a good ' trip, the weather has been good and j the sea very -calm. To my surprise I ; never did get sea-sick and there were I only a few of the boys who did. How ever, I am geting tired of looking at I nothing but water, water, water morn ! ing, ni<rht and noon and I hope we will not have to spend very many I more days on water. I have seen some very peculiar looking fish* and water animals but not as many as I expected to see. Looking for them is too much like rabbit hunting at | home for me-that is, some day we . would net see a fish. The Y. M. C. A. man is doing a j great work cn the boats and keeps j busy furnishing entertainment for ?the soldiers in the way of moving pictures, good books to read, check ? er boards and various games. I have j spent many hours back in one corner i ! playing checkers, which, as you i know, is my favorite game. If I had only had "A. P." to play with me of ? course I would have enjoyed it more. Like most of the boys, I have caught myself gazing out across the deep blue sea several times, perfect ly unconscious* of everything that was going on about me, as I was back home, walking over the crop, talking with the hands, planning my work for the future, and amidst it all was your dear face-but I must forget all of these things now, and concentrate my mind on one and on ly one thing, and that is, of course, helping to win the war. Then when it is all over I can come back and live with a clear conscience, that I have done my part. There is a chance of my not coming back. Nev ertheless, if I die on the battle field I die with honor, for the liberty and freedom of you all at home andfl want you ail to feel that way about it. While I am going over with the intention of coming back some day, I am going to live tho life that I would not mind thc world knowing. I am not going to do apything that would grieve you. I give you my word and honor on this. There is ab solutely no excuse for any man going wrong in the army. Uncle Sam is making e/ery effort to protect the young men that come in. tho army, with a good morale, and to reform those that have adready formed bad habits. I am anxious to hear from you all. How is James getting along with the farm? And how does the crop look? I am anxious to know. You must write me often and freely, all the news-the little happenings around home will be very interesting to me, thousands of miles away from home and loved ones. That naturally makes me appreciate home ano the news more. - I feel very optimistic over the war.now. Everything ha:; been com ing our way for several months and I believe we will soon put the "fix ings'" to '"Kaiser Bili." Give my regards to everybody. ? Love to you and James. Your devoted son, Claude W. Mr. W. E. Morgan Writes Let ter to Kis Father. September 1, 1918. Dear Pana: As today is- Sunday will drop you a few lines. 1 wrote "Toad" a lotter some few days ago and I guess she will get it by tho time this one loaves France. I will try to write twice every week if not oftener. We are drilling real hard and when I have the time to write I don't feel like it. We are getting plenty to eat and have a good place to stay. There are only a few people living in the little village where we are and they are poor people. But they are as nice to us as can be. We buy milk from them every day as they have lots of good cows. They ' have some'J of the finest milk cows I have ever seen. You know how Cousin Jim Gil christ's big cows look. Every one of these is just like his best ones. How's everything around home? Guess your cotton has begun to open by now. Hope you will make a good crop this year and get a good price _ ?mee 1 left the States but am expecting to every day. With love to all. As ever, Your devoted son, Corporal W. B. Morgan. Miss Deadis Dow Received Let ter From Her Saldier Cou sin. September 22, 1918. Camp Jackson, S. C. My Dearest Cousin: I will write you a few lines to let you hear from me. This leaves me all O. K. and hope to find you the same. I was more than glad today when I received letters from you, Bertha, Maggie and my dear mother. You don't know how much good it does me to get letters from home folks. Well, the boys got the outfit for the band today so we will have some music now. There is one boy here in thc camp who has boen to France. He is now back to train tho boys and he says that it isn't so bad in France, no worse than it'is here. I told my officers today that I was a .good hand to run. They said that was what they wanted and that I would be one in the race if the Ger mans got after us. We certainly have good officers. I haven't heard any of them say a word that they ought not to. Deadis, I haven't felt very sad but once since I have been here and that was when I got word that Grand mother was so sick. That was the first time she was sick and I could not go to see her. I tried to come and that was all I could do. If I never meet her on earth again I will meet her in heaven some day and it will be a glorious day for me. If I could see you I could tell you something that would make you feel good. Don't you all worry about me for I am all right. I don't worry about anything. Just take everything to the Lord in prayer and it will work out well in the future. Well, I have about written all the news I know for this time. I will write Sadie a few lines and send it with your letter. Write again soon. Give my love to all and take your part. Your loving cousin, Pressley E.. Doolittle. w r ? tel ?il v^jf? \ You are readuigj^gi'y da}' of our boys over there^al"rershing?s divis ions chargin^ir?t? the blasting fire of the BodJ^renfches; of small de taehmenis^smashi?ig their way from house tb house through ruined vil lages; of single-handed deeds of sac rifice and valor. 1 \ They knovv that all America is back of them; they know that they can count on us at home to send them all the guns and supplies they need to win. There is only one way we can do it. All of us must work and save and buy Liberty Bonds, with our whole souls, the way our men are 1 fighting over there!* No less will win. There is no other way to provide the money the Gov ernment must have. No other stand ard can make the Fourth Liberty Loan a Success. ?uy Bonds to your utmost M:;mkmmMmm+ This spr.ee contributed io Winning the u>ar by mmm8m$&&^^ ADDISON MILLS EDGEFIELD, 5. C. Now Working on Government War Material