So then I give her my name and where to reach me and of course they won"t nothing come out of it Al only a man has got to amuse yourself some way in a dump like this or they would go crazy. But it would sure be a horse on me if she was to answer the letter and say she would be glad to see me and then of course I would half to write and tell her I was a married man or else not write to her at all but of course they won"t nothing come out of it and its a good bet we won"t never see Cologne as that was just a guess on Brady"s part.

Well Al things is going along about like usual with nothing doing only inspections and etc. and telling us how to behave when we get up there in the front row and not to stick our head over the top in the day time and you would think we was the home guards or something and at that I guess the home guards is seeing as much of the war as we are in this old ditch but they say it will be different when we get up in front and believe me I hope so and they can"t send us there to soon to suit me.

Your pal, JACK.

_In the Trenchs, May 11._

FRIEND AL: Well Al here we are up in the front line trenchs and we come in here 2 days ahead of time but that"s the way they run everything in the army except feed you but they don"t never do nothing when they say they are going to and I suppose they want a man to get use to haveing things come by supprise so as it won"t interfere with your plans if you get killed a couple days before you was looking for it.

Well Al we are looking for it now most any day and this may be the last letter you will ever get from your old pal and you may think I am kidding when I say that but 1 of the boys told me a wile ago that he heard Capt.

Seeley telling 1 of the lieuts. that the reason we come in here ahead of time was on acct. of them expecting the Dutchmans to make their next drive on this section and the birds that we are takeing their place was a bunch of yellow stiffs that was hard of hearing except when they was told to retreat and Gen. Pershing figured that if they was up here when Jerry made a attack they would turn around and open up a drive on Africa and the bosh has been going through the rest of the line like it was held by the ladies aid and Gen. Foch says they have got to be stopped so we are elected Al and you know what that means and it means we can"t retreat under no conditions but stay here till we get killed. So you see I wasn"t kidding Al and it looks like it was only a question of a few days or maybe not that long but at that I guess most of the boys would just as leave stop a Dutch bayonet as to lay around in this he--ll hole. Believe me Al this is a fine resort to spend 10 days at what with the mud and the perfume and a whole menajery useing you for a parade grounds.

Well Capt. Seeley wants us to get all the rest we can now on acct. of what"s comeing off after a wile but believe me I am not going to oversleep myself in this he--ll hole because suppose Jerry would pick out the time wile you was asleep to come over and pay us a visit and they"s supposed to be some of the boys on post duty to watch all night and keep their eye pealed and wake us up if they"s something stiring but I have been in hotels a lot of times and left a call with some gal that didn"t have nothing to do only pair her finger nails and when the time come ring me up but even at that she forgot it so what chance is they for 1 of these sentrys to remember and wake everybody up when maybe they"s 5 or 6 Dutchmens divideing him into building lots with their bayonet or something. So as far as I am conserned I will try and keep awake wile I can because it looks like when we do go to sleep we will stay asleep several yrs. and even if we are lucky enough to get back to them rest billets we can sleep till the cows come home a specially if they give us some more of them entertainments like we had in camp.

Well Al before we got here I thought they would be so much fireing back and 4th. up here that a man couldn"t hear themself think but I guess Jerry is saveing up for the big show though every little wile they try and locate our batterys and clean them out and once in so often 1 of our big guns replys but as Johnny Alc.o.c.k says you couldn"t never accuse our artillrys from being to gabby and I guess we are lucky they are pretty near speechless as they might take a notion to fire short but any way a little wile ago 1 of our guns sent a big sh.e.l.l over and Johnny says what and the he--ll can that be and I said its a sh.e.l.l from 1 of our guns and he says he thought they fired 1 yesterday.

Well as I say here we are with 10 days of it stareing us in the eye and the cuties for company and the only way we can get out of here ahead of time is on a stretcher and I wouldn"t mind that Al but as I say I want to be awake when my time comes because if I am going to get killed in this war I want to have some idear who done it.

Your pal, JACK.

_In the Trenchs, May 14._

FRIEND AL: Well Al I got the supprise of my life today when Jack Brady handed me a letter that had came for me and that"s supprise enough itself but all the more when I opened it up and seen who it was from. Well it was from that baby in Cologne and I will coppy it down as it is short and you can see for yourself what she says. Well here it is:

"_Dear Mr. Keefe_: Your letter just reached me and you can bet I was glad to get it. I sure will be glad to see you when you come to Cologne and I will be more than glad to show you the sights. This is some town and we sure will have a time when you get here. I am just learning to write English so please excuse mistakes but all I want to say is don"t disappoint me but write when you will come so I can be all dressed up comme un cheval.

Avec l"amour und kussen.

"MARIE ANTOINETTE."

You see Al they"s part of it wrote in French and that last part means with love and kisses. Well I guess that letter I wrote her must have went over strong and any ways it looks like she didn"t exactly hate me eh Al? Well it looks like I would half to write to her back and tell her I am a married man and they can"t be no flirting between her and I but if she wants to be a good pal and show me around O. K. and no harm done. Well I hope she takes it that way because it sure will seem good to talk to a gal again that can talk a little English and not la la la all the wile but of course its a good bet that I won"t never see her because we are just as libel to go somewheres else as Cologne though Brady seems to think that"s where we are headed for. Well time will tell and in the mean wile we are libel to get blowed to he--ll and gone and then of course it would be good by sweet Marie but I was supprised to hear from her as I only wrote to her in fun and didn"t think nothing would come from it but I guess Harry Friend isn"t the only lady killer in the U. S. army and if I was 1 of the kind that shows off all their letters I guess I have got 1 now to show.

A side from all that Al we was supposed to have our chow a hr. ago but no chow and some of the boys says its on acct. of our back arears being under fire and you see the kitchens is way back of the front lines and the boys on chow detail is supposed to bring our food up here but when the back arears is under fire they are scared to bring it up or they might maybe run into some bad luck on the way. How is that for fine dope Al when a whole regt. starves to death because a few yellow stiffs is afraid that maybe a sh.e.l.l might light near them and spill a few beans. Brady says maybe they are trying to starve us so as we will get mad and fight harder when the time comes like in the old days when they use to have fights between men and lions in Reno and Rome and for days ahead they wouldn"t give the lions nothing to eat so as they would be pretty near wild when they got in Reno and would make a rush at the gladaters that was supposed to fight them and try and eat them up on acct. of being so near starved. Well Al I would half to be good and hungry before I would want to eat a Dutchman a specially after they been in the trenchs a wile.

But any way it don"t make a whole lot of differents if the chow gets here or not because when it comes its nothing only a eye dropper full of soup and coffee and some bread that I would hate to have some of it fall on my toe and before we left the U. S. everybody was trying to preserve food so as the boys in France would have plenty to eat but if they sent any of the preserves over here the boat they come on must of stopped a torpedo and I hope the young mackerels won"t make themselfs sick on sweets.

Jokeing to 1 side this is some climate Al and they don"t never a day pa.s.s without it raining and I use to think the weather profits back home had a snap that all they had to do was write down rain or snow or fair and even if they was wrong they was way up there where you couldn"t get at them but they have got a tough job when you look at a French weather profit and as soon as he learns the French for rain he can open up an office and he don"t half to hide from n.o.body because he can"t never go wrong though Alc.o.c.k says they have got a dry season here that begins the 14 of July and ends that night but its a holiday so the weather profit don"t half to monkey with it. Any way its so dark here all the wile that you can"t hardly tell day and night only at night times the Dutchmens over across the way sends up a flare once in a wile to light things up so as they can see if they"s any of us prowling around n.o.body"s Land and speaking about n.o.body"s Land Brady says its the ground that lays between the German trenchs and the vermin trenchs but jokeing to 1 side if it wasn"t for these here flares we wouldn"t know they was anybody over in them other trenchs and when we come in here they was a lot of talk about Jerry sending over a patrol to find out who we was but it looks like he wasn"t interested. But all and all Al its nothing like I expected up here and all we have seen of the war is when a sh.e.l.l or 2 busts in back of us or once in a wile 1 of their areoplanes comes over and 1 of ours chases them back and sometimes they have a battle but they always manage to finish it where we can"t see it for the fear we might enjoy ourselfs.

Well it looks like we would half to go to bed on a empty stomach if you could call it bed and speaking about stomach Brady says they"s a old saying that a army travels on their stomach but a cutie covers a whole lot more ground. But as I say when you don"t get your chow you don"t miss much only it kills a little time and everybody is sick in tired of doing nothing and 1 of the boys was saying tonight he wished the Dutchmens would attack so as to break the motley and Alc.o.c.k said that if they did attack he hoped they would do it with gas as his nose needed a change of air.

Your pal, JACK.

_In the Trenchs, May 16._

FRIEND AL: Well old pal I come within a ace you might say of not being here to write you this letter and you may think that"s bunk but wait till you hear what come off. Well it seems our scout planes brought back word yesterday that the Dutch regt. over across the way had moved out and another regt. had took their place and it seems when they make a change like that our gens. always trys to find out who the new rivals is so the orders come yesterday that we was to get up a patrol party for last night and go over and take a few prisoners so as we would know what regt. we was up vs. Well as soon as the news come out they was some of the boys volunteered to go in the patrol and they was only a few going so I didn"t feel like noseing myself in and maybe crowding somebody out that was set on going and besides what and the he--ll do I care what regt. is there as long as its Germans and its like you lived in a flat and the people across the hall moved out and some people moved in why as long as you knowed they wasn"t friends of yours you wouldn"t rush over and ring their door bell and say who the he--ll are you but you would wait till they had time to get some cards printed and stick 1 in the mail box. So its like I told Alc.o.c.k that when the boys come back they would tell the Col. that the people opp.

us was Germans and the Col. would be supprised because he probably thought all the wile that they was the Idaho boy scouts or something. But at that I pretty near made up my mind at the last minute to volunteer just to break the motley you might say but it was to late and I lost out.

Well Al the boys that went didn"t come back and I hope the Col. is satisfied now because he has lost that many men and he knows just as much as he did before namely that they"s some Germans across the way and either they killed our whole bunch or took them a prisoner and instead of us learning who they are they found out who we are because the boys that"s gone is all from our regt. and its just like as if we went over and give them the information they wanted to save them the trouble of comeing over here and getting it.

Well it don"t make a man feel any happier to think about them poor boys and G.o.d only knows what happened to them if they are prisoners or dead and some of them was pals of mine to but the worst part of it is that the word will be sent home that they are missing in actions and their wifes won"t know what become of them if they got any and I can"t help from thinking I might of been with them only for not wanting to crowd somebody out and if I had of went my name would be in the casuality list as missing in actions but I guess at that if Florrie picked up the paper and seen it she wouldn"t know it was her husband its so long since she wrote it on a envelop.

Well Al they"s other gals in the world besides Florrie and of course its to late to get serious with them when a man has got a wife and kid but believe me I am going to enjoy myself if they happen to pick out Cologne to send us to and if the little gal down there is 1 of the kind that can be good pals with a man without looseing her head over me I will sure have a good time but I suppose when she sees me she will want to begin flirting or something and then I will half to pa.s.s her up before anybody gets hurt. Well any way I wrote her a friendly letter today and just told her to keep me in mind and I stuck a few French words in it for a gag but I will coppy down what I wrote the best I can remember it so you will know what I wrote. Here it is:

_Mon cher Marie_: Your note recd. and you can bet I was mighty glad to hear from you and learn you would show me around Cologne. That is if they send us there and if we get out of here alive. Well you said you was just learning English well I will maybe be able to help you along and you can maybe help me with the French so you see it will be 50 50. Well I sure hope they send us to Cologne and I will let you know the minute I find out where they are going to send us and maybe even if its somewheres else couldn"t you visit there at the same time and maybe I could see you. Well girlie we will be out of here in less then a wk. now if we don"t have no bad luck and you can bet I won"t waist no time getting to where ever they send us and I hope its Cologne. So in the mean wile don"t take no wood nickles and don"t get impatient but be a good girlie and save up your loving for me. Tres beaucoup from

Your Sammy Boy, JACK KEEFE.

That"s what I wrote her Al and I bet she can"t hardly wait to hear if I"m comeing or not but I don"t suppose they"s any chance of them sending us there and a specially if they find out that anybody wants to go there but maybe she can fix it to meet me somewheres else and any ways they won"t be no lifes lost if I never see her and maybe it would be better that way. But a man has got to write letters or do something to keep your mind off what happened to them poor birds that went in the patrol and a specially when I come so near being 1 of them.

Your pal, JACK.

_In the Trenchs, May 18._

FRIEND AL: Well Al if I am still alive yet its not because I laid back and didn"t take no chances and I wished some of the baseball boys that use to call me yellow when I was in there pitching had of seen me last night and I guess they would of sang a different song only in the 1st. place I was where they couldn"t n.o.body see me and secondly they would of been so scared they would of choked to death if they tried to talk let alone sing. But wait till you hear about it.

Well yesterday P. M. Sargent Crane asked me how I liked life in the trenchs and I said O. K. only I got tired on acct. of they not being no excitement or nothing to do and he says oh they"s plenty to do and I could go out and help the boys fix up the bob wire in front of the trenchs like we done back in the training camp. So I said I didn"t see how they could be any fixing needed as they hadn"t nothing happened on this section since the war started you might say and the birds that was here before us had plenty of time to fix it if it needed fixing. So he says "Well any ways they"s no excitement to fixing the wire but if you was looking for excitement why didn"t you go with that patrol the other night?" So I said "Because I didn"t see no sence to trying to find out who was in the other trenchs when we know they are Germans and that"s all we need to know. Wait till they"s a real job and you won"t see me hideing behind n.o.body." So he says "I"ve got a real job for you tonight and you can go along with Ted Phillips to the listening post."

Well Al a listening post is what they call a little place they got dug out way over near the German trenchs and its so close you can hear them talk sometimes and you are supposed to hear if they are getting ready to pull something and report back here so as they won"t catch us asleep. Well I was wild to go just for something to do but I been haveing trouble with my ears lately probably on acct. of the noise from so much sh.e.l.l fire or something but any ways I have thought a couple times that I was getting a little deef so I thought I better tell him the truth so I said "I would be tickled to death to go only I don"t know if I ought to or not because I don"t hear very good even in English and of course Jerry would be telling their plans in German and suppose I didn"t catch on to it and I would feel like a murder if they started a big drive and I hadn"t gave my pals no warning."

So he says "Don"t worry about that as Phillips has got good ears and understands German and he has been there before only in a job like that a man wants company and you are going along for company."

Well before we snuck out there Sargent Crane called us to 1 side and says "You boys is takeing a big chance and Phillips knows what to do but you want to remember Keefe to keep quite and not make no noise or talk to each other because if Jerry finds out you are there we probably won"t see you again."

Well Al it finely come time for us to go and we went and if anybody asks you how to spend a pleasant evening don"t steer them up against a listening post with a crazy man. Well I suppose you think its pretty quite there at home nights and I use to think so to but believe me Al, Bedford at 2 o"clock in the A. M. is a bowling alley along the side of 1 of these here listening posts. It may sound funny but I would of gave a month"s pay if somebody would of shot off a fire cracker or anything to make a noise.

There was the bosh trench about 20 yds. from us but not a sound out of them and a man couldn"t help from thinking what if they had of heard us out there and they was getting ready to snoop up on us and that"s why they was keeping so still and it got so as I could feel 1 of their bayonets burrowing into me and I am no quitter Al when it comes to fighting somebody you can see but when you have got a idear that somebody is cralling up on you and you haven"t no chance to fight back I would like to see the bird that could enjoy themself and besides suppose my ears had went back on me worse then I thought and the Dutchmens was realy makeing a he--ll of a racket but I couldn"t hear them and maybe they was getting ready to come over the top and I wouldn"t know the differents and all of a sudden they would lay a garage and dash out behind it and if they didn"t kill us we would be up in front of the court"s marshal for not warning our pals.

Well as I say I would of gave anything for some one to of fired off a gun or made some noise of some kind but when this here Phillips finely opened up his clam and spoke I would of jumped a mile if they had of been any room to jump anywheres. Well the sargent had told us not to say nothing but all of a sudden right out loud this bird says this is a he--ll of a war. Well I motioned back at him to shut up but of course he couldn"t see me and he thought I hadn"t heard what he said so he said it over again so then I thought maybe he hadn"t heard the sargent"s orders so I whispered to him that he wasn"t supposed to talk. Well Al they wasn"t no way of keeping him quite and he says "That"s all bunk because I been out here before and talked my head off and nothing happened." So I says well if you have got to talk you don"t half to yell it. So then he tried to whisper Al but his whisper sounded like a jazz record with a crack in it so he says I"m not yelling I am whispering so I said yes I have heard Hughey Jennings whisper like that out on the lines.

So he shut up for a wile but pretty soon he busted out again and this time he was louder then ever and he asked me could I sing and I said no I couldn"t so then he says well you can holler can"t you so I said I suppose I could so he says "Well I know how we could play a big joke on them square heads. Lets the both of us begin yelling like a Indian and they will hear us and they will think they"s a whole crowd of us here and they will begin bombing us or something and think they are going to kill a whole crowd of Americans but it will only be us 2 and we can give them the laugh for waisting their ammunitions."

Well Al I seen then that I was parked there with a crazy man and for a wile I didn"t say nothing because I was scared that I might say something that would encourage him some way so I just shut up and finely he says what is the matter ain"t you going to join me? So I said I will join you in the jaw in a minute if you don"t shut your mouth and then he quited down a little, but every few minutes he would have another swell idear and once he asked me could I imitate animals and I said no so he says he could mew like a cow and he had heard the boshs was so hard up for food and they would rush out here thinking they was going to find a cow but it wouldn"t be no cow but it would be a horse on them.

Well you can imagine what I went through out there with a bird like that and I thought more then once I would catch it from him and go nuts myself but I managed to keep a hold of myself and the happiest minute of my life was when it was time for us to crall back in our dug outs but at that I can"t remember how we got back here.

This A. M. Sargent Crane asked me what kind of a time did we have and I told him and I told him this here Phillips was squirrel meat and he says Phillips is just as sane as anybody usualy only everybody that went out on the listening post was effected that way by the quite and its a wonder I didn"t go nuts to.

Well its a wonder I didn"t Al and its a good thing I kept my head and kept him from playing 1 of those tricks as G.o.d knows what would of happened and the entire regt. might of been wipped out. But I hope they don"t wish no more listening post on me but if they do you can bet I will pick my own pardner and it won"t be no nut and no matter what Sargent Crane says if this here Phillips is sane we"re stopping at Palm Beach.

Your pal, JACK.