Letters From Soldiers
Germany
Jan. 6, 1919
Dearest Sister:
I received a letter from you the other day and sure was glad
to hear from you. I am glad to know that you are well enough to write again.
I guess the people of the states were some glad when
hostilities ceased.
I have written to you several times but I don’t know whether
you received them or not.
I have no idea yet when we will go home, as we are a part of
the occupation troops. We have been through so much since coming over here that
we hardly realize yet that the fighting has ceased.
The second division has been in five pitched battled and I
have had the luck to go over seven times in those five battles without being
hit.
I guess the second division has been through as much
bloodshed, if not more, than any other American division. It has had one tenth
of the total casualties of the American E.F. It has taken one-fourth of the
prisoners taken by the American Expeditionary Forces. I think that is a good
record and not to be beaten.
With lots of love and best wishes,
Sergt. J.H. Bynum
-=-
From Corporal J.H.
Finch
La Mans, France
Feb. 17, 1919
Dear Mother:
Will tonight take the greatest pleasure in answering your
letter which I received yesterday afternoon. Was indeed delighted to hear from
you.
Had a nice Christmas but it was a rainy one. It has been
raining nearly every day since (words obscured) but the weather didn’t turn
cold until last month. It is very pleasant here now but we are still having
plenty of rain.
We had a parade last week, the 30th Division.
About five miles from Beaumont, France, was the little town we were located in
at that time. There were about 27,000 soldiers received. General Pershing and
lots of other officers were in the receiving stand. There was quite a number of
French people out to see the parade. The third battalion of the 119th
regiment, which was the I.K.L. and M. companies, were also selected to pass
review by General Pershing. It was snowing and some cold. I thought I would
freeze standing at attention, but as we are the Old Hickory boys, we got along
fine and General Pershing gave us a very high reputation. We have stayed in
Blaumont, France, longer than we have in any other town since we have been over
here. We were the first troops that were ever in Belgium. We hiked from a
little village called Nouse in France. We started out on July 2nd
and arrived in Belgium July 5, 1918. It was a very long hike, being over 40
miles, but we got along fine. When we arrived at the place where we entered
Belgium, we were about three miles from the front lines and were under shell
fire about two months, while the enemy airplanes were over every night dropping
bombs and even dropped some when we were 40 miles behind the lines. Beaumont
and La Mans, France, are the only places I have been in that have not been
bombed by the enemy. The enemy usually come to drop bombs about dusk and our
large guns would throw their search lights on the enemy and shoot, bringing many
aeroplanes down. It seems very good to know that the war is over and not to
hear the bombs dropping all around us. It seems good that we do not have to go
back into the lines any more.
Well, we left Beaumont last Monday and arrived at an
American camp once more, about three miles below La Mans, France. The 30th
Division is together once more for the first time since we left Camp Sevier.
Well, mama, you said tell you something about France, so I
will tell you a few things which happened during the time of war. On Sunday
morning, September 29th, 1918, at about 5:30, we went over the top
at the Hindenburg line, which had never been broken before. The shells and whiz
bangs and bullets were bursting and flying everywhere and we could not see in
front of us more than 50 yards for the smoke. It was not very long lines but I
was there before I knew it. The enemy was retreating, but shooting at us all
the while. They knew that we were not going to give in, so some of them threw
their guns and were running down the trench with their hands up. On our right
we were shooting in the dugouts while everybody in the left had already gone
over the enemy’s trenches. I could not see more than a half a dozen of Company
K boys. There was about three dozen of us all alone but we captured quite a
number of prisoners and started out with them. We did not get all of them for
there was plenty of them and they were shooting at us all the time until we
were out of reach with the prisoners. The big shells were still dropping all
around us. We had on our packs, mess kit, and I had a little entrenchment took,
which is a little shovel, on my pack. I felt something strike me in the back
but I thought nothing of it. Just before we captured the prisoners I was a
little scared, for there were not many of us together and I was afraid we would
be captured or killed. We arrived at the aid station all o.k. and I turned my
prisoners over to an M.P. at the aid station and he gave me a receipt for 20
prisoners. In a few minutes Tink Lamm came in with 30 more prisoners. We did
not know what to do then as our company was still advancing and we did not know
the way back to our company. We decided to eat our lunch, which was in our mess
kit, so I asked Tink to take my mess kit off my haversack. When he took it off
there was a hole in it that had been shot through it and as I had my raincoat
on I asked him if there was a hole in it. There was not so I could not
understand how the bullet had gone through the mess kit without going through
me, so I happened to think of my entrenching tool. I took the shovel out of the
carrier and there was the bullet and a dent in the shovel. I was scared more
than ever as there was a pain in my back but I sure was some thankful to know
that it did not get me. So the little shovel was my friend and surely saved my
life and I thank the Lord for taking me through and for the good health that I
have had during my 20 months service. I have been on the job all the time,
night and day, while in the lines so I have had very good luck all the way
through while in Belgium and France. I hope to land safely in the good old
U.S.A. soon.
Well mother, I will ring off for this time. There are lots
of other things to tell you when I get home.
Give my best regards to all. With
love and best wishes.
Your boy,
Corp. J.H. Finch
-=-
From the Hickory Daily Record, March 24, 1919
Sgt. Griswold Says
Armistice Saved Germans From Disaster
Sergt. C.M. Griswold
of Co. D, 55th telephone battalion, in France, has written
his friend Mr. Frank Dankel of the Hickory Electric Company of his sensation at
various times during the past year. His was a dangerous job and was calculated
to make him think frequently of the folks at home, of his sins and good deeds,
and all such, and the sergeant’s mind considered everything.
Sergeant Griswold, who was along the front with the signal
corps, said the signing of the armistice prevented a massacre of the Germans,
for they were doomed. He says the Germans are not so bad to get along with and
he even “lets” them scrub the floor of his room.
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