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A Group of Interesting Letters From Our Soldier Boys. * Mr. S. B. Mays Writes H ter, Miss Madge Ma; At the Front, September 29, My Dear Sister: I find it a hard job to write of you as I am not sure whi of letters you like to receive, the letters I have seen copied erican newpapers are the ki which the fellows tell what a picnic they are on and all th; dope." Although I am sure i wanting any of my letters pul I believe that is the kind of let of you want to get from over I find it hard to express just i want to say, when writing abo life over here and after readin of my own letters over I find too doleful and Fm sure that V any worse off than the writer c other letter. I do not believe there is a American soldier in France whc not want with all his heart tc over here until Germany is thor ly whipped but still every 01 those soldiers is looking forwa the time to come when he ca back to those States which they all learned to love so well. In th; ?peet the feeling is unanimou; if Borne of my letters seem a home-sicky dc not think that I gotten my fill before my time. I could go to some length an< you some horrible things that I seen with my own eyes. I have ?en who were so badly shot up their own friends could not recoj them, men whose faces were lac ?d with bayonet cuts and any 1 ber of such incidents but I do no liere that you care to hear of things. I, myself, have been sp from such things but I have ?hells fall so close to me that high explosives used would tl stones, clods of dirt, sticks anc manner of debris around me. On oecasion I had a rather large piec kit me squarely upon the head, is happened to be my lucky day was only a clod of dirt instead 1 rock or piece of the shell and I < got a headache and a rather h lump on my head instead of a wo stripe. One gets so used to it all 1 the bursting of shell begins to si and sound natural anJ as strange it may sound, it is real interest Of course business always picks when the shells begin to fall i your very midst but as long as t are a couple of hundred yards a\ it is great sport to watch them ? have about gotten so that they ?ot give me the shaky feeling t they did at first and I would not i natural if I could not hear a few ing over to let the Dutch know t Uncle Sam is still on the job and 1 asleep at the switch. Who could help being proud tl he is one of this greatest-of-all-tin army? I wish that I could tell y what a great thing it is. I am lati of the opinion that to view it in greatest light one must look at from behind the lines instead from the front line trenches and have had the opporutnity to see little of it from both places. I z ?ot wanting to take any of the ju: ly due credit from the Dough bo for they have met the great Prussi; Guards and demonstrated to t world that they are better and bra ?r fighters. But I am wandering ai will go back to the other theme. When I go out tomorrow I will si United States railroads built by Ar erican soldiers with American mat rial with an American engine ar box cars, see all kinds of automobil from America from twelve cylindi closed cars to worn out Fords ar every kind of truck that you can in agine. Today we had steak that wi raised in the West, killed in Chicag and shipped from Nw York along wit everything else that we ate. The there are any number of other sue things that I could mention. I som? times wonder if there is any mater al in the world that does not com from the U. S. A. About the onl thing that you haven't is a war rag ing in your front yard and you do no want that. It sometimes seems fun ?y to me that the firing line does no .xtend all around the world as i seems unreasonable to think of ? place where there is peace. It seem that all this is a part of the world' arrangement and will go on forever As for my personal experiences, . have been into places that were oe copied by the German army for foui years and have seen old men, womer and children that had been prisoners .f war since the start. They are novs seing led back to their homes and ."ear ones by the hand of your UN CLE SAM. I have slept in the open in what was one of France's beauti ful valleys, later held by the Ger jnans, still later known as No Man's Land but now being protected by the greatest of all armies. I have fed say stock on forage that was raised (by the French civilian population and stored up for the use of the Ger man army. For meal at least I have eaten some cabbage that was raised by the Boche (this, however, is the only horse feed or cabbage that I have had which did not come from the States), besides a number of other such experiences but I am rea dy to stop my little pilgrimages into i captured territory as soon as the war is over and come back to the U. S. A. I hope that my letter has not been j boring although I'll have to admit ?that it is rather wabbly and shaky as well as rather scatter-brained and disconnected. You see I have "kind er" followed my own musing: tonight. It is easy to lie awake at night and with probably nothing over you ex cept a rain-coat, watch the stars and the shells play together while you are planning a letter you will write home on the morrow. Oh, you can then think of a great many thrilling and interesting things to say and make a fine letter out of the amus ing little things that will mix so well with the little newsy items that are also passing through vacant space at the same time, but on the next day after you have ridden through the rain for several hours and dodged a few shells that seem hell-bent, you find that by the time you get to camp and start your letter you have for gotten most of it and can't expresa the other. October 1, 1918. My letter was rather suddenly stopped the other night at eleven thirty by an order that sent me out with the company in short order. I laid the letter down as I knew I could not get a chance to finish it on the trip and will now pick it up again. We left about one o'clock at night and got back about midnight last night without stopping for more than an hour's time. Incidentally I visited the worst shot to pieces town that I have had the opportunity of seeing. It was so badly torn down that there were not more than two or three walls standing in the place. I was in rather a good piece of luck the other day and got a good hot bath, something that is rather a novelty. It was my first since a swim in a rather well know river that is a little too famous to mention the name of, about six weeks or more ago. ?There is very little doubt that I will be in dire need of another one long before I can get it. I think, or rather am sure that Ar thur Tompkins is near where I am now but I haven't been able to run across him as yet. I would like to see him but to look for any one is out of the question. It is just luck when you get to see a friend. We were quartered in a little place the other day when the Germans got lits range and threw about thirty ?shells into it in short order. In some ?miraculous way none of our men were killed although I do not see how jail of them escaped. A few men in ^sorne other outfits that were also ?there, got killed. That is the most awful kind of death. To be quite a few miles behind the lines and appar ently safe, not looking for anything to happen and too far away to fight back when Fritz opens up on you with one of his long range guns. We haven't as yet been able to see any of the papers about the election. I am in hopes that it won't be long now before we can get some papers telling all the dope. I hope to be able to go to some of the places in France that one would like to visit before the winter is over although it seems a long time off. I do not seem to be in a very good writing mood and am rather sleepy headed so will close for this time. I 'write my letters to all three of you and will send my love to all of you together. Write to me often, as I have all of you constantly in my mand and am looking forward to the time when I can see all of you again. Your brother, Sam. J Mrs. Sam Agner Receives Let ter From Her Son in France October 21, 1918 I My Dear Mother: How are you all feeling today? I hope you are well. I am feeling fine today. It has been raining today over here but it is fair now. I suppose you all are having some pretty weather in which to pick cotton. The letter you wrote on the 4th of September I received and was so glad to hear from you all. I'm so glad you all are getting a good pri?e for cotton. Well, how is Grandpapa getting along? Also Brother Ed and his family. Tell them all "Howdy" for me. I hope it won't be long before I can see you all again. Well, Mother, I am still going somewhere through France. If I keep on going I will get to see it all. Mother, had you ever thought about where I was on the 21st of Oc tober last year? I will close for this time. You must write and tell me alLthe news. With many good wishes and lots of love. Your loving son, John E. Agner. Co. L. 321 Inf. A. p. 0. no. 791. Frank Reese Writes His Father Mr. J. W. Reese. At the Front, October 20, 1918 Dear Papa: I will now try and answer your letter I received some time ago. I hope this letter will find you and all well and getting along fine. I have been sick but am getting along O. K. You asked me to write you a good interesting letter so I will do my best. After leaving our camp in South Carolina we got to the port of embar kation and went on board ship. Then my greatest experience of life began. We were on board 17 days and when we had been out about 8 days I be came sea-sick and of course I had to help feed the fish. I got to work in the sh'V bake shop as you know that you cant' keep a cook out of the kit chen and a cook that has good sense won't go hungry. Well, I didn't any way. We arrived in port, an English port at that, about four o'clock in the afternoon of the 17th day of our voyage. We went to rest camp and spent the night, leaving there the next day. We went by rail to another English rest camp. Now, Papa, when I say by rail, I mean that we travel led over a sure enough railroad, but entirely a different kind to the ones you find in America. When you get into the coach you are locked in and there is no aisle. You have to stay in j the compartment you are in. There I is just room for eight men to sit up ' in a compartment and there are about : five compartments to a car. We tra velled all day crowded that way to the other rest camp. There we unload ed and stayed about five or six days more. England is a very pretty country but I will take America for mine. I saw one of the oldest cathedrals in the country there. Its foundation was laid in the 11th century and it was completed in the 14th. Some of the finest roads and most beautiful scen ery in the world will be found there. While I was there I was out walking one day and met a mighty nice old gentleman. I was taken into his home and had tea with him. His name is Mr. Henry Tanner. It was there that I got my dog. It is a registered Eng lish Retriever. He was just a 'pup but is now a big dog and my best friend. I named him Sammie because that is what we are called. Major Marchant named him but I think ev ery boy in my company wanted to name him "English Kid." I had better leave England or I won't get into the war at all in France. We left England and went aboard ship for France. We crossed the channel and landed in France the next morning. We went to another rest camp and stayed over night, leav ing there by rail to a training camp. The trains in France are just -the same as the trains in Englanu. We 1 travelled three days on this trip and then we went into some barracks said to have been built in the time j of Napoleon, the Conqueror. We ; trained there for actual war for two months then we were shipped out to the front. This is where I can't tell you every thing I have seen but I will do my best Before leaving for the front we were put in fighting form. We j did not have any great amount of lug- j gage. We had to go into dog tents ; and live in the woods. We could not ; have lights at night so we just had to j wait and see what our duties were, j I We could hear the guns from the 1 front very plainly now. This is where I was under shell fire the first time, j Of course I did not have to go but I wanted to see all of the excitement and I did see and hear the greatest thing in my life-a real battle. There j were more guns fired in this battle ; I believe than there were in the | whole Civil war. It seemed as if the \ world were on fire. The knees of the i men will get shaky under that kind of shell fire but it doesn't bother you long for that is all in the game over here. After the battle we visited what was at one time No Man's Land. From that day on I have been at the front. I have been under shell fire five times. At one time shell were bursting all around me but we served dinner right on a3 if we were at Camp Sevier and not a gun within 100 miles of us. Say, Papa, it just takes grit and the American spirit to fight in this war and plenty of it. So you see these Untrained American Farmers (as Fritz calls us) are just giving the boches hell anl a plenty of it. The boys of '61 and '65 don't know any thing about war. Well, you can see how the allies are fighting when you know how they are talking peace. They are betting 50 to 1 that we will be in the States by the 4th of July. I hope so anyway. ?". _:.:_,_-_H^rZZL,,-."_^r^?3ZZ^ZZ_-r~_:^_-.-1-: I The season is now upon us when sporting goods ap peal to our people. At this time of the year, after the harvest is practically over, men v/ho are sportively in clined give some time to recreation, and very properly sc. We want them to know that we can supply every wish. . If we haven't got what you want we will get it on short notice. In guns we have a large assortment of Parker lw-16 and 20 gauge, La C. Smith and Ithica guns. Come in to see them. We also have a large stock of Legging, Hunting Coats and Gun Cases. We have a complete stock of Bicycles, Bicycle Tires, Automobile Tires and Tubes, Hand Horns and Electric Horns, Weed chains and Red-O-Skid chains. ? Make your wishes known to us. We can supply them with dependable goods at reasonable prices. I Stewart & Kernaghan I am now living in a German dugout that Fritz occupied for four years but we have them now. Oh, yes. I have a fox for a pet now. I will have a menagerie when I get home, I guess. Well, Papa ,1 will have to quit for this time. Hoping to be home before long. Give my best regards to all my old friends, Nick and Pete. Tell Mr. Townsend to look for me back soon. Get Joe and George to write to me. Kiss Mama, Sister and May for me. Tell Dr. Cothran that I can sure nurse the sick, lame and lazy when I get back. Say, tell me what cotton is bring ing. Write soon and send me the Edgefield papers every week. Give Uncle Jack my love and best regards. Look for a German helmet for I am going to send one home with this let ter. As ever, Your son, Cook Frank B. Reece, Co. G. 105 Ammunition Train. American Expeditionary Force. (Continued on page Six.) Letter From Tee Bailey to the Editor of The Advertiser. Camp Hill, Va., November 16. Dear Mr. Mims: Twill take great pleasure in writ ing you just a few lines to let you know I haven't forgoten you. This leaves me feeling .fine. I am having a good time here but could enjoy it better in old Edgefield. I certainly hope we boys can soon be at home as the war is over. I an anxious to get home. We thought last Monday that we would go aeross. ? We stayed on the ship all day ready to go but at last got orders to get off. I think thert were some proud hearts among those boys, too. I did not mind going across to fight but I don't want . to go now if I can get out of it hon orably. Well, wt are under quarantine yet, as wt have been for a long time but I guess it is for our good. Earl' Hammond received one of your pa pers this week. We certainly were glad to get it and it made us feel so good. I am sorry to know that one of my true friends has left the world. Fertilizers for Grain Farmers can practically double their yield of grain by a liberal application of the right kind of fertilizers. We are now prepared to fill orders for all kinds of fertilizers. Let us know your wrnts and we can supply them. Haul your fertilizers while the roads are good. W W. Adams & Company