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Thursday, August 2, 2018

Dan Tompkins Writes Home From France, 1918

“A Letter From Dan Tompkins,” from the Jackson County Journal, Sylva, N.C., published Aug. 2, 1918

We give below part of a letter written by Dan Tompkins to his mother, from France, under the date of June 22nd.

The journey we made through England was a very enjoyable, if a hurried one, and the “right little, tight little island” is quite a nice place, everything being so spick and span, and well kept, quite in contrast to rugged and sometimes ill kept America. I was struck with the vast amount of farming and gardening for so small a place as England, as was in evidence everywhere.

I have seen quite a number of the “Tommy Waacs” or girl soldiers of England, about whom you probably read in Mr. Cobb’s article in the Saturday Evening Post some time ago. Of course they don’t do any real fighting, but as I understand the idea, they do a lot of work that women can easily do, and which would have to be done by men who can be used advantageously elsewhere.

If I do nothing else while I am in France, I have at least acquired one accomplishment, that strange to say I had never learned to do before, and that is that I have learned to ride a wheel, which by the way is no mean accomplishment, considering the fact that it seems to be quite the common means of locomotion both in France and England. I am not very adept in the art as yet, but of course the main thing is practice, and perhaps I will get quite a deal of that. I get outside, either riding or walking, every chance I get and have just returned from a little spin along the country roads.

On our way through England we stopped for a short while at the town that is famous in the annals of football and were served with cakes and coffee by the British Red Cross. There is one habit which the English have that fails to meet the approval of my gastronomical senses, and that is of serving tea, very frequently instead of coffee, and then when they do make coffee it doesn’t taste like “the kind that mother used to make.”

The last American newspaper that I saw was dated May 20, an Asheville Citizen that was forwarded from Camp Sevier, and which I received before I left the States. I would certainly like to see one of more recent date, especially the Jackson County Journal or one of the Asheville papers.

I reckon Sylva is getting lively for the summer by now, as I suppose the girls have all returned from school and are getting busy with parties, picnics and one thing and another, though they must be rather short of boys. Also, I reckon the summer school at Cullowhee is in full swing by now.

Since writing the above, I have received two letters from you, both in the same mail, and one mailed June5 and the other the 7th. Take it from me I was sure glad to get both, as they are the first thing I have gotten from home since the 18th of May. I take it however, from the tone of your letters, that I should have several more written before these, wandering around over the world somewhere. I reckon I will get them in a few days now, as the two I got today made very good time, coming all the way up to New York and across the Atlantic.

I saw Major Rhinehart while we were on Long Island.

You had best leave off the number of the Division hereafter when addressing letters, as I understand it is against the censorship regulations to connect the name of an organization and the number of the division.

Will write again in the next day or two and hope that in the meantime I will get the other letters you have written.
Dan

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