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Letters Home From WWI |
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This page part of the Wallowa County AGHP Site
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Letters Home From WWI |
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Clifford Jewell
In a letter to his mother, Mrs. Sarah Jewell,
Clifford Jewell writes from Camp Lewis:
I am still in the remount. Guess I will leave about
tomorrow. Have been expecting to go every day since I took the examination, but
for some reason they couldn't get the release papers, but the Sergeant told us
to be ready to leave, so I guess we will go this time. I sure will be glad when
I get to work in a company. I have got about all the remount I want for one
time. It is about the best place in camp, but it is getting old now and I am
ready for another move. They put in a call for twenty horseshoers, but they
wanted them out of the remount men. They were going to Florida and then on to
France, I expect. I saw the sergeant about getting in with them, but he said the
only way would be to get transferred into the quarter masters' corps, so I guess
I will let that drop. I am afraid I would just get my transfer started and they
would go and leave me and I would be in remount until the war was over. The
sergeant said there wasn't twenty horseshoers in the remount division, if they
took all the instructors out of the shop, so we depot brigade men may get to go
yet if they don't get enough here. I guess there isn't any danger but what I
will get a job shoeing. They will need lots of horseshoers when the 13th
division leaves and that will be about the first of November, I guess. That is
the same as everything else here. We can't tell much about it. The only time you
can tell you are going is when you get the order to go. Before then it is all
guess work.
I see the Bruce boy is in France. He came here the same
time I did, so if I had stayed with my company I would have been across too. But
I know more about shoeing horses than I would if I hadn't come down here. We
sure learn a horse's foot here. I know every part of the horse's foot, from the
fetlock down and every disease and how to cure them if they can be cured, and
how to shoe a horse to make him travel right. Well, I guess I had better go to
dinner. I just looked at my watch and I am five minutes late and I will have to
hurry or miss my dinner and that will never do, as I can't afford to miss
anything to eat.
Well, I had my dinner and will write some more. We had
chicken for dinner today. The only trouble with the chickens we get here is they
are most too old to eat. They can't bring them here until they are of draft age,
but I think they missed this one and let him run over draft age a few years.
Most of them we get a person can eat if they gave him time enough, but the one
today we couldn't have eaten if we had all the time there is - he sure was a
tough old bird.
I see by the Chieftain where W. S. Burleigh gave the
boys who are going to war some pretty good advice. The only trouble I found with
it is, I don't know what he wants with sheets. He said for each boy to bring one
or two sheets with him. That might be all right for a man who likes to sleep
between sheets, but I would just as leave sleep between blankets. I don't
believe they would let us use sheets if we had them. I never saw it tried
though.
They made the boys get rid of their civilian clothes.
When that order came I had just sent my shoes home, so I didn't have any to get
rid of, but lots of the boys did.
Enterprise Record Chieftain
Thursday, October 3, 1918
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Clifford Jewell
Clifford Jewell is in Co. F. 13th Am. Train, Camp
Lewis, where he is learning the ways of the army. In a letter to his mother,
Mrs. Sarah Jewell of the Buttes, he writes:
I surely have been a busy kid since I got up here. They
gave me a rifle that came packed in some kind of grease and I have been cleaning
on it all the week. It was a dandy and I have got most of the grease off of it
now. Tomorrow is inspection day and I don't know whether it will pass or not.
We have been taking gas tests for three days. That is
the worst thing I have found since I have been in the army. You have to take
your mask out of the satchel and put it on in six seconds when it is on your
chest, and in seven seconds, when it is on your hip, and you have got to move. I
made it easy from off my hip and just missed it about half a second from my
chest. You have got to hold your breath while you are putting the mask on. There
is a rubber tube goes in your mouth and a cramp fits over your nose and you
breath thru your mouth and when you get out on a march with it on, it is no
joke. They tell me I have got to learn to shoe a horse with one on, and I am
willing to try once anyway. It will be just the same as shoeing a horse with
threshing machine glasses on and your nose shut up and breathing thru your
mouth.
This company got its horses today and I suppose I will
go to shoeing about Tuesday, I hope so. I saw Earl Fort up by the gas house
today. It was the first time I have seen him and I couldn't say anything to him
as I was marching in the ranks. There are so many soldiers here that if you
don't run right into anyone, you might pass him a hundred times and never notice
him.
There is an entertainment tonight and they are making
so much noise I can't write and can't think how to spell anything. Somebody gets
up and speaks a piece or sings a song, and when he gets thru they all clap their
hands and holler. There are about 100 men here and they sure can make some noise
and every time they yell I misspell a word.
Enterprise Record Chieftain
Thursday, October 24, 1918
Leonard Jordan
Leonard Jordan writes to his parents, Mr. and Mrs.
L.E. Jordan on the stationery of the National Defenders club, Presidio, Cal. He
is in the first company reserve officers training camp. His letter follows:
Another Sunday has almost passed. Arnold and I have
been at the Defenders club all day. There are a fine bunch of motherly old
ladies here who sit around knitting and talking to the soldiers. It is sure a
fine place and such a fine spirit.
Well we drew our clothes which consisted of the
following: 1 blouse, 2 pairs of trousers, 3 pair of socks, 2 suits of
underclothes, 2 shirts, 1 pair of russett dress shoes, 1 pair of nailed trench
shoes, 1 service hat, 1 pair of leggings.
No one knows whether we will be allowed to keep them or
not, but they are poor stuff except the shoes. They don't fit at all and no one
has two articles of the same shade. It is humorous, the way they fit you out.
The customary line is formed and the supply sergeant takes one look at you and
begins to bark out unintelligible words and numbers. Immediately various
articles of wearing apparel come floating at you from every angle. You come to,
with your arms filled so high you can't see over the top and a guy poking you in
the ribs and shouting: "Sign here and move on brother, we're not serving
refreshments today."
So you sign up and move on not knowing whether it is a
meal ticket or an oath of allegiance to Germany.
The tail of my coat stuck out like an awning and my
pants measured about 44 around the waist. I could turn around in my shoes and
the leggings would have been too small for a jay bird. I have traded around now
until I have a good outfit, comparatively speaking.
There has only been about 60 fellows here this week as
all the rest are on furlough. Consequently I have been first lieutenant once and
K.P. once. We all get a chance and by receiving my honorable discharge from this
last camp, I was automatically placed in the advanced course which gives me a
chance at drilling a company. A "basic" can only be a corporal, but a corporal
here must know about ten times as much as a captain in the Home guard.
We have been drilling in close and extended order a
little, but most of it has been physical and bayonet work, with considerable
study too, on the nomenclature of the automatic rifle and machine gun. We have
had no firing practice with them, only assembling and tearing them down. In fact
we get off easy until the 18th. We only get up at 6:30 now and stand retreat at
5 p.m. Taps not until 11. Of course we don't waste much time during the day but
I am hardened now until a hard bayonet workout doesn't bother me.
A peculiar incident the other day. We were having
bayonet duels at long range but one fellow got in too close and got a jab in the
thigh. The fellow who made the jab was so terrorized that he dropped the butt
instead of making a clean withdrawal, which of course made a jagged wound which
bled freely but healed in a week at the hospital. Accidents are very few,
however.
We have a rigid inspection of bunks, equipment and guns
at 9 in the morning. There is some army regulation covering every detain, e.g.
"Hat cords will be stitched to the hat in 3 places" - not 4 or 5 but THREE.
If one wishes to see the company commander he will
proceed to the orderly room, knock, remove the hat when entering, walk straight
across the room to the first sergeant and ask of him permission to speak to the
C.O. All this time the C.O. will probably be scrutinizing you closely. When
permission is granted you will execute "about face," face the C.O. and say, "Sir
does Captain --- wish that blouses be worn at the next formation" or whatever
you wish. Upon receiving the answer you will salute, face the door and step out
smartly, being careful not to slam the door or shift your eyes from those of
your superior during the conversation. Such things may seem useless and trivial,
but it takes just that to make an officer. No detail is too small to be
overlooked.
I can feel that it is doing me a world of good already.
I have learned that pockets are not to put hands in and that there is but one
way to stand when not at attention and that is: Feet apart, hands clasped behind
the back, squaring the shoulders. (Thought I had more paper, but haven't so will
have to quit.
Enterprise Record Chieftain
Thursday July 18, 1918
Morris C. Knapp
Stationed at Camp Porter, Goat Island, has written
to his parents, Mr. and Mrs. E.B. Knapp:
Had shore leave a few days ago, so shall try and tell
you a little about San Francisco. It is a wonderful city and the traffic on
Market street is simply amazing. We went out to the Golden Gate and a few of us
went thru Chinatown. While in the city we made our headquarters at the Defenders
Club. It is a beautiful place and they surely treat one swell. Bowling, dancing
and everything free for the enlisted men. Great big, soft chairs around a lovely
fireplace; piano and everything very cozy and home like.
A bunch of us went up to the Palace hotel about 9
o'clock to a party given for the enlisted men. Well, talk about your swell
places. It was just like a palace, marble floors and everything so beautiful I
can't begin to describe it.
This morning we had inspection by some "big gun" with
about 17 stripes of gold on his sleeve. Believe me, whenever we see one of those
"gold braids" coming we stand at attention and salute as far as we can see them.
A good many of the fellows have colds and are crabbing around thinking it is
such a hard life, but so far I like the regular hours, military discipline and
training. A good deal depends on the spirit that one goes into the thing.
Our company have been on mess duty and you have no idea
of the immense amount of food consumed in this camp alone. The food is cooked in
great, large vats. Today for dinner we ate 450 gallons of ice cream. The K.P. or
mess duty is not half bad. I did not mind it at all.
There are aeroplanes flying about all the time. It is a
great sight to see them dipping and going thru all kinds of flap-flaps.
Yesterday we marched to the other side of the island to see a camouflaged
destroyer. You can see San Francisco, quite plainly from the island about one
mile away. Oakland about two miles. Goat island is situated between the two.
Letters from home are received with great pleasure,
also home papers. The Chieftain means a whole lot to me now.
Enterprise Record Chieftain
September 19, 1918
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