(Apologies for the rough formatting of this page. I'm clearly not a web designer and welcome ideas for improvement!)

My mom, Evelyn Marvel (maiden name), had an Uncle Paul on her mother's side. When my Uncle Paul died one of his possessions was the diary you are about to read. My mom doesn't know who A. W. Miller is - distant relative, friend of Paul? A little genealogy is in order.

I have had the diary since my teenage years, and hadn't read it probably since first receiving it. My 12 year old son (2006), however, loves history. He can't get enough of it. When he learned of the diary, he excitedly asked to read it. To better preserve it, though, we decided to carefully scan it in. The original scans are much larger than the ones shown on the following web pages.

While Mr. Miller points out that this is a copy of his original diary, it seems that he copied it partway through his time in Europe. Later pages contain names and addresses written by people he met in France, and the names are mentioned in the next diary entry. So at least a portion of the diary must be original. But I can't help wondering if his first diary is the hands of a family in France...

After scanning, I typed the script preserving linebreaks, misspellings, typos, and so on. I am all too human, however, and have probably introduced an error or two. Feel free to point any out that you discover! We are also very interested in any information that might tie other people to Mr. Miller, as well as any general comments or thoughts you might want to share.

Thanks!
Mike, mike.ab3ap@gmail.com

AWMiller
Gunner. of Cannoners
Hdqr. Co. 108th N.S. Inf.
American Expeditionary Forces
Somewhere in France.

May 10th 18,

At 4 a.m. today we packed
our belongings & silently
marched thru the outskirts
of a small town to the
docks where our transports
awaited us. Just before
we marched up the
gang-plank some bloke
in Co. C- turned yellow
& attempted to desert. My
ship is H.M.S. Kursk -

May 27th 1918.

Today we left Brest in
small freight cars labeled
Cheveaux en-long 8- Hommes
36-40. Our destination
is unknown but we
stopped for a few minutes
in Lorival, France where
I bought some cheap
beer. Travelling in these
cars is a torture. We
are packed in tightly &

May 29th 1918.

Arrived at Noyales in the
Somme Sector. Last night
Hun aeroplanes hovered
overhead & dropped bombs,
our railroad being their
objective. They missed
however & succeeded only
in killing a poor cow.
On the night of the 29th we
camped in British tents after
a long hot march. The
Germans were overhead
again & we sure expected
almost anything but no
bombs were dropped
near us. All nights were
blown out & no smoking
was allowed.

Today I learned that
the Y.M.C.A. man aboard

May 30th 1918.

Chanchy, France. After a
long march during which
I suffered with blistered feet
we arrived here & are
billeted in French barns &
houses. At about 10 P.M. on
this night German machines
were directly overhead. I
could see them dimly against
the dark background of the
sky, but the hum of their
motors was plainly discern-
able. One bomb shook my
billet as though it had
been a leaf & I quite
expected a shower of
bricks & plaster down
my head.

It was plain Hell again
tonight & the poor French
people in whose barn I
am billeted were so
frightened that they went
down cellar & remained
there all during the
raid. Overhead I could
hear the hum of machine
guns so I knew a battle
was on up in the clouds.
The Allies sent up many
star shells & fired on the
Germans with anti air-
craft guns. The bursting
shrapnel overhead was a
wonderful sight but I
commenced to think of
other things when a shell
passed thru the upper
branches of the tree under
which I was standing.
Abbeyville, the next
town, was the German

June 1st 1918.

Wow! What a wine party
we had today. Suffice to
say I drank my share &
was pretty well under
the weather.

June 2nd 18,

I was on patrol duty today
& noticed many refugees
fleeing the town. It
seems that the Germans at
this front are advancing
for we can hear the
roar of guns in the dis-
tance & a constant stream
of men & supplies is
going by toward the line.

Today Sergt. Jones, an old
service man was reduced.
In Brest he was drunk
one day & hit a little girl
over the head with his
pistol. Today he was tried
& put back in the ranks.
Word was flashed over the
wire that spies were in
Chanchy. We scattered & another
fellow & I went hunting
them together. We had
lots of fun searching houses
& ruined buildings.
Since my arrival in France
I noticed many of the old
historic drawbridges &
moats.

June 9th 1918.

Today 4 of us went hunting
thru the Creay Forests.
Saw a big wild boar but
couldn't get a shot in.

June 11th 1918.

Today I was on kitchen
detail & gave a firey
wop a piece of soap
in place of cheese. After
he took a bite I thought
my life wasn't worth a
nickel. He sure was
some mad. New rifles,
the British Enfield, were
issued today, also steel
helmets. Another raid took
place about 11 P.M. The
firing was extremely heavy
& my billet was jarred
considerable. During every
raid something seems to
remind me about that
new song - "Some day
somebody's going to get you!
I wonder - !

Eats are not very plentiful
so I often raid the kitchen
in order to fill up. Hard-
tack & corned beef are in
abundance, but who the
devil can eat such stuff?
Today I walked about 4 miles
to the W.A.A.C. camp. These
girls work in Abbeyville
during the day but as a
raid occurs almost every
night they are lorried
out to these woods where
they sleep on the ground
in tents. They are all either
British, Scotch, Irish or
Canadian girls.

June 14th 1918.

Today we marched to Domvast
France where we were
issued gas-masks. We
were put thru the Lachsy-
meter chamber to test

June 18th, 1918.

My! What a day. We left
Chancy in full marching
order & hiked to St Blimont
21 miles distant. I never
saw so many men
drop out exhausted. My
feet were full of blisters
& every bone in my body
ached. It was a supreme
test of endurance. I am
sleeping in an old French-
man's wagon & as a result
got a nice batch of
cooties. They are fine
little friends to have
crawling around on one
body - bite like the
devil. These people dont
understand our language
so we have a lot of
fun mis-naming things

Houverilles France. Enroute
to this place we crossed
the famous Somme River
It was a long march & again
many men dropped out
exhausted. I am sleeping
on the floor in an old
chateau - shell torn &
ruined.

June 22nd 1918.

Marched to outskirts of
Abbeyville & then took
Lorries to Rue St. Leger. No
supper was served & as I
was mighty hungry I
rustled some bread & jam
in a British Lorry. Alls fair
in love & war.

June 23rd 1918.

Today I was acting corporal
of the guard. Fair, a rather
nutty fellow, fired two
shots in the air & the
top serg't ordered me to
arrest & hand cuff him.

June 25th 18.

This is a payday but I draw
nothing owing to my allot-
ment having been over-paid.
I lost all my money on
the transport, $175.00 so
have been broke ever
since. Its hell to be
without smokes & the
price of other comforts.

June 26th 1918.
Wow! Ribble who I loaned
$60.00 in America paid
me 50 Francs & I celebrated
by getting potted on
champagne. I was rough
as usual & offered to
box anyone in the crowd.

June 27th 1918.

German planes overhead.
Heavy firing & one shell

June 29th 1918.

Big Divisional maneuver
today. I was sent out to
locate a certain battalion
& in my travels wandered
close to the front line. At
11.45 a.m. I strolled into a
French Cafe & drank some
English beer.

June 30th 1918.

Gas instruction today. It
seems that the Hun gas
is pretty deadly & we
are cautioned almost
daily against it. Ambulance
after ambulance passes
thru this city loaded with
wounded soldiers. I am
sleeping in an old
chicken coup & am lousy
of course.

July 7th 1918.

I am now in Abeele Belgium.
It was a long hot march
to this place & it was
a very sad & silent march
too as the whole country
seemed deserted & in ruins.
Passing thru so many cities,
especially Steenvoordie,
the tramps of our feet
echoed thru the
stillness like an un-
canny chant of a heathen
funeral. Not a soul
remained to greet us,
not even a dog remained
to bark a kindly greeting
& all we could see was
ruined houses & buildings
with gaping holes in
their walls.

July 8th 1918.

Last night was a hummer.
The enemy kept up an
incessant bombardment
trying to cripple our
transports & shells were
bursting all around.
We are billeted in small
elephant huts with a
two foot wall of sand

July 9th 1918.

The day before we arrived
here a British Tommy had
his head shot off by a
Boche shell, & today an
American was shot in the
foot by a spy. I strolled
toward the front & passed
thru Rentliver, Belgium.
This town is completely
ruined. Not a single
building or house remains
whole. Our artillery is
all around us & when
the big fellows are fired
one is reminded of an
earthquake. The earth
just rocks. Overhead are
many Allied observation
balloons & each day Ger-
man artillery fires on
them. None have been
shot down so far but
many were forced to

July 12th 1918.

Today I had a close one. I
was on my way over to
Hdqr. to fix up a gas
alarm when suddenly a
big shell whizzed by my
head & bursted about 50
yards away. I dropped
flat in a puddle of mud
& water so was saved
from the flying bits of
steel. Fritz shelled us for
about 2 straight ours today
but no gas was put over.
Several men - killed in action,
were buried. Their bodies are
simply wrapped in burlap

July 16th 1918.

Today we were reviewed by
Sir Douglas Haig. In the
evening the Germans shelled
our area & for a time
we were kept guessing.
No damage done, however.

July 17th 1918.

Poor Davidson! He was one
of a party of men sent to
the trenches for general
observation & on his way
back was killed by
machine gun fire. He said
to the fellow next to him
Jesus! That was close wasn't
it? And the next instant
he toppled over dead. It
seems that he didn't feel

July 18th 18.

I am now in Leulingham
France attending a special
cannon school. We rode in
Lorries all the way from
Abeele Belgium. I felt very
sore & stiff when we
finally arrived here. The
37 m/m platoon I belong to
requires specially trained
men hence the school.
Lately I've lived on mostly
greasy army stew & believe
I think often of mothers
pies & regular meals.

Today I borrowed 20 Francs off
Lieut Stuart & visited St. Omer
where I had a good time &
was able to buy steak, eggs
& potatoes. But the steak
was horse flesh, so I didn't
relish it much although
I ate it. It was much
sweeter than real beef
steak. I sat in a French
Estaminet & was served by
a pretty French Mle. who
seemed very happy to wait on
the soldiers for among us
were Australians, Canadians,
New Zealanders, British, French
Italian, & a few of us Yanks.

July 26th 18.

Today the fellows were paid
& I collected some outstanding
bills. We had a big party
on Burgundy wine & that
night when I returned to
my tent I dragged Erico

July 27th 1918.

Erico is confined to his
tent as his clothes are
all wet & muddy. He is
very sore & dams me every
time I get in his sight!

July 30th 1918.

This was an exciting day.
Our cook, who is a nutty
old mountaineer lost his
pants, & entirely serious he
went looking for the thief
armed with a cleaver, a
big pistol & several huge
knives. Foley, who stole the
pants hid them in a
tree several hundred yds.
distant. At noon, which we

July 31st 1918.

This a.m. while breakfast
was being served a wop
& Jew got in an argument.
The wop hit the Jew
square in the face with

Aug 1st 1918.

Back again in the ruins of
Belgium. The little grave-
yard has increased considerably
since I left here & many of
my comrades are resting
beneath the famous wooden
crosses.

Aug. 3rd 1918.

6:45pm I am now preparing
to go up to the front on a
working detail. The
prospect thrills me even

Aug. 5 - 18.

The regiment is now
occupying the front line

Aug. 6 - 18.

At 1:45 P.M. we buried
Priv. Whalen of Co. E. who
was killed in action. I was
on the burial detail &
wondered, when I helped
lower the body, if some
day, somebody would
perform a similar duty
for me. It was a very
touching ceremony. Every-
one was bareheaded as the
band played Nearer My
God to Thee & a farewell
volley was fired over
the grave. Other old
friends of mine were
wounded.

Aug. 7 - 18.

Today I raided a chicken
coop & gathered three eggs.

Aug. 8 - 18.

Last eve Fritz put over a
hurricane of shells. Its odd
to try & sleep under fire,
because one can't get away
from the thought that any
moment death may call on
you. We sure hugged the
ground.

Aug. 9 - 18.

Today Fritz put over 3 big
shells & wounded a sergt
in the leg. We consider him
lucky as he is now resting
safely in some hospital.
The wooden crosses in-
creased in number again
today. Next!

Late last night I was with
a party of men sent to the
front to act as escort for
troops being relieved. We
were under heavy shell &
machine gun fire as we
stood at the entrance of
the front line trenches but
none of us were hit.

Aug. 11 - 18.

Poor Carr! He went bugs up
in the line & was running
around half naked. I guess
he will be transferred to a
non-combatant unit. Whenever
a shell broke near him he
would scream My God! They
got me! And then he would
drop flat. Shorty Ames dis-
appeared in the trenches & it
is assumed that the
Germans came over on a
silent raid & captured him.
Poor Shorty! Johnis & Lauer
got mad when they failed

Aug. 14 - 18.

3 P.M. Just now I am sweating
like a horse. I have been
digging graves & burying
dead men. Some of the bodies
stunk fearfully & one was
swarming with maggots.
War may be glorious alright
but when such a death as
this lies in the balance, I
can't see where its really
worthwhile, even tho' I'm
glad I'm over here.

9 dead men lay in the grave
yard ready for burial. By
lifting up the burlap covering
them I could see the bodies.
Some were literally shot to
pieces. One poor chap had
his head blown off, another
had all his teeth shot
away, besides other gaping
wounds, & on most of the
rest I could see tattered
flesh sticking out of torn
clothing & mangled shoes.
One chap evidently wasnt
killed outright as he had
bandaged his head & perhaps
crawled in a shell hole,
waiting for aid, when the
shot came along which
finished him.

Aug. 22 - 18.

Fritz is busy shelling our
balloons today & shrapnel
flew all around me.
Many pieces missed me

Aug, 23 - 18.

Last night I went to Wauto or
Watau, Belgium on a party
& while there Fritz shelled
the place & killed 3 Americans,
also several horses. My
seg't. went into the line again
today but the British
wouldn't allow us cannoners
to go along so we were
sent to Trappas Farm
where we are now camping.

Sept. 1 - 18

Today the Germans
evacuated Mt. Kemmel & we
are therefore ordered to
other parts. The 106th

Sept. 2 - 18.

Last night the enemy
dropped bombs close to us
& a big chunk of dirt hit
me in the face. One of
our balloons was shot
down again today.

Sept. 3 - 18.

I am back on Trappas Farm
once more in charge of a
detail looking after property
& must see that the same
is loaded properly & follows
the reg't. when they move.
Last night was a bear. How
in Hell can a fellow
sleep when the Huns

Sept. 4 - 18.

Lorries were to have arrived
yesterday to convey this property
to a railhead. I feel that
we have been forgotten & if
this is so, we sure are in
a fine pickle. Our grub on
hand is barely enough to
last us another day, but
potatoes are available in a
nearby field & we can milk
the peasants cows, also kill
their chickens, should the
worst happen.

Sept. 5 - 18.

We are still stranded but
today I scoured the country
on a bicycle which I salvaged
& located a ration dump
which I raided pronto. I
got about 15 cans of jam,
20 loaves of bread, 20 cans
of beans, 2 big slabs of

Sept. 6 - 18.

We four are having a
fine time here. I am the
chief cook & believe me
creamed & mashed potatoes
are my specialty. If I get
a chance I intend to shoot
some of these chickens
around here but the trouble
is the peasants are always
on the job. We have made
cots & get plenty of sleep.
It seems good to be away
from the call of a bugle &
strict military discipline.
Gee! Last night I had a
regular thrill. Was reading
in my tent by the light

Sept. 11 - 18.

At 3 P.M. today I was back
in Calais setting in a
French movie. I couldn't
understand the play very
well but enjoyed the
music immensely. It
seemed like old times
again to set in a theatre
after my long association
with life up at the
line. Today several Red
Cross trains pulled in
Calais loaded with
wounded soldiers of all
nationalities. German
prisoners of war conveyed
the wounded from the
trains to big ships
at the docks, bound
for hospitals in England.

Sept. 12 - 18.

We left Calais last night
just before a big air
raid in which much
damage was done &

Sept. 14 - 18.

Last night our car was
bumped around fierce. I was
tossed all over on top of
our baggage & had a fine
time trying to sleep.
During the night we
passed thru Amiens, the
second largest city in
France & only about 18
miles north of Paris.

Sept. 15 - 18.

Am in Rosel du Auvat today
& think this is where we
will meet up with our
reg't. Several train loads
of fresh prisoners are here
& I saw one give an old
Scotchman his Iron Cross
for a cigarette. I yanked
a button off one prisoners
cap which I intend to
send home.

Sept. 16 - 18.

Back with the company
in Amplier France. Wagons

Sept. 18 - 18.
This morning at 8.30 our
dentist bored a hole thru my
gum in order to reach an
abcessed tooth. Peachy, indeed.
The dentist has his quarters
in a quaint French school
house. The blackboards &
desks are still here, but
the children were taken
to a safer zone farther
in the rear. At 1 P.M.
today we started on hike
in heavy marching order.
The sun was blistering
hot & I soon had blistered
feet. We halted about
7 P.M. & pitched dog tents

Sept. 19 - 18.

It rained last night so sleep-
ing on the ground wasn't
much of a pleasure. My
clothes were damp & I
felt very stiff when I
got up this morning.
We started out on man-
euvers about 6.30 a.m. & as
luck would have it my
gun crew got lost in a
very hilly & thickly
wooded country. None of
us happened to be
carrying iron rations
so we had nothing to
eat save for some wild
fruit which we chanced
on occasionally. Gee! But
my feet are blistered.

Sept. 20 - 18.

Today I drew my first pay
in France & immediately

Sept. 21 - 18.

Am in Doolaugh's tanking
up on champagne today.
On Monday the 23rd we
are leaving for the front
so I'm taking advantage of
this opportunity to have
a good time, because it
may be the last chance I'll
ever get.

Sept. 22nd 18.

O! What a head. I wish I
had a bag of ice. Last
night, after the doings, I
stopped in Atheule & slept
with Pat Schafer & John
Blitzski. This afternoon
I increased my winnings
to over 700 Francs & when
I paid a French woman
liberally for a dinner in
her home, she thought
I was a regular Creosus.

Sept. 24th 18.

We travelled all of last night
& yesterday in the usual
small, cold cars, & after a
long hike today, we reached
a neck of woods between
St. Quentin & Cambris where
we are now camping. We
rode thru Albert, Perronne,
& Arrga, & from this point
the front is only a few
miles distant. Perronne &
Albert are merely ghosts now.
They are literally blown to
pieces, the railroads are
destroyed & all bridges
blown up. Huge steel
girders are bent & twisted
as though they were so
much wire. It seems awful
that man's puny fleck must
battle the same Titanic forces
which caused all this

Sept. 25 - 18.

In the distance we can
see German observation
balloons so it is necessary
to keep under cover of the
woods as much as possible
else we may have a
rain of shells fall down
among us. Last night in
the dark I stumbled in

Sept. 27th 18.

As I record these words I
realize that they may be
the last. We arose early
this morning & after
breakfast rolled our backs
for a march to the line.
Our chaplin held a brief
service & among the most
fitting & impressive hymns
sung were "Nearer My God to
Thee" & Rock of Ages! Many
of the boys wrote a hasty
letter home, & while the
scene in camp was
orderly & quiet, one could
notice a strained expression
on many faces & feel
the tenseness of the
situation. This business
of going into battle was
not one for mirth, for all

We arrived here early this
a.m. My dug-out is a small
affair in the bank of a
sunken road. The front
line is only a few hundred
yards distant, & talk about
being shelled - holy smoke,
this place is hell.
After marching all of last
night, I was picked for
duty as a runner &
wasn't relieved until just
now - 2.30 a.m.

Sept. 29th

Running from company
to company with orders
is a risky job. I was
shot at hundreds of times
by machine gunners &
sharpshooters & often I
was obliged to dash
across a piece of No-Mans-
Land - in full view of
the enemy. Bullets
were humming all
around me, & once when

Sept. 29th 1918.

This has been a day of
violence & death. 10 men in
my platoon, including my-
self, were selected to go
Over The Top with the machine
gun co. when the big attack
started at 6 a.m.
We took up our position
in a trench as per orders

Oct. 1 - 18.

It is a long time since I
have slept. I am very
tired, very muddy, very
wet & very haggard.

Oct. 2 - 18.

The Division has been
withdrawn from the line
but I was left behind
with a burial party. I
aws many horrible sights,
arms - legs - heads -
& chunks of flesh laying
all over the battlefield.
We buried only bodies
that were in bad shape,
for instance - a headless
man. Those that werent
badly shot up, we
placed in piles, & later they
were taken to a cemetery
in the rear. We were
under fire all day as
usual, but none of us
were wounded. Today
I nearly pulled a

Oct. 3 - 18.

The Hindenburg line is a
marvel. Trenches are about
14 feet deep with cement
walls & all dugouts are
at least 60 ft. deep. Some
are equipped with electric
lights, wooden floors, rugs,
pianos etc. all this stuff
was taken out of French
houses by the Germans. The
dead number into the
thousands on this battlefield.

Oct. 4 - 18.

Tincourt, France.

It is a relief to be away
from the hell of war again.
I bathed today in a creek
& the water was like ice.

Oct, 5 - 18.

I have a vicious cold & feel
very sick today. Sleeping on
the bare ground these
cold nights is certainly a
bad experience. We were
notified today that we go
in the reserve trenches
soon & I wonder if I can
live thru another rain
of shells. It is very evident
that I was slightly gassed
as my mouth is blistered
& I am vomiting green.

Oct. 6 - 18.

The doctor orders me to
remain quiet today as
exercise often kills a
soldier who has been
gassed.

Oct. 8 - 18.

Still sick but in no danger.

Oct. 9 - 18.

Fell better today. Slept a
little in an open field.

Oct. 10 - 18.

Braincourt, France.
Under fire again. I lay in
my pup tent which I pitched
close to a small bank when
suddenly a bunch of shells
descended on us & tore things
up badly. I was re-reading
one of dads old letters at
the time & I guess this
saved my life because a
piece of shrapnel passed
thru my tent & just
nicked my elbow. Marching
to this place we passed
thru many villages just
evacuated by the Germans.

Oct. 11 - 18.

The call to arms blew at
6.30 this a.m. We had hard-
tack & black coffee for
breakfast & then pushed
forward. A mine exploded
a few hundred yds. ahead
of us & as we were under
observation I suppose the
enemy thought we were on
the spot at the time. But
fortunately we had halted
in the village looking
for suitable billets. I
hope the day of long marches,
blistered & death at
every corner will soon be
nothing but a memory.

Oct. 12 - 18.

Hiding in the woods today &
from where I stand I can
see German balloons just

Oct. 15 - 18.

This a.m. I went "over the top"
with the first wave. Germans
surrendered by the crowd, &
I robbed one big bloke at

Oct. 15 - 18.

Am now resting comfortably
in a hospital in Dury
France - just outside of
Amiens. I was gassed in
my right eye, & same is
totally blind. I knew when
I left the front line that
some road was under fire
but I didn't know which
road it was. As luck would
have it I chose the danger
road & two rifle bullets
zipped close to my head
before I got under cover.
Its great here in the hospital.
My nurse is an English girl
& because I'm an American
she treats me fine. It is
hoped that my sight will
be saved but an operation

Oct. 17 - 18.

An eye specialist has taken
charge of me & this a.m. my
eye was operated on. Three
incisions were made & the
ordeal was very painful, no
anesthetic was administered.
My nurse who stood by, kept
muttering poor boy - poor boy -
& the specialist said - "Sorry to
hunt you old chap, but its really
necessary. God! But its nice to
be away from the hell of war!
Here everything blooms with
life, but at the front, not even
a tree or the sheaves of of grass
are green with the throb
of existence. Everything is withered
& lifeless in that hole of
hell & misery.

Last night I sneaked out of
the hospital & had a great
time. I befriended two
English nurses who were
being annoyed by a nutty
old Frenchman. My eye is
still doubtful & discharges a
lot of puss.

Oct. 20 - 18.

A very wild & wooly day.
Sneaked out again & spent about
300 Francs. Met an American
girl & it sure was good to
talk to her.

Oct. 21 - 18.

Eye is improving & when the
doctor removed the bandage & looked
at it today, he said I would
recover my sight.

Nov. 1 - 18.

Back again with my company
in Foilloy France. Am sleeping
on a cement floor in a
shell torn house,

Nov. 6 - 18.

Arm was cut yesterday by
the doctor. No anesthetic was
given me again, but the
doctor offered me a cigarette
& the smoke, braced me up
some.

Nov. 8 - 18.

Today Stoner blew off part
of his left hand while
fishing with bombs.

The war ended at 11. a.m. today
& now I fell confident that
I'll return home again We
certainly have led a mighty
hard life & Im thankful thats
its all over with.
The following is a list
of the battles & engagements
I fought.
Dickebysch Sector, Belgium
Aug. 21st to Aug. 30 - 18.
Vierstratt Ridge, Belgium,
Aug. 31st to Sept. 2nd 18.
East Poperinghe Line, Belgium,
July 9th to Aug. 20 - 18.
Hindenburg Line, France,
Sept. 29th & 30th.
LaSalle River (St. Souplet) Oct 17,
Jenede Mere Ridge (Arbie
Guermon) Oct. 18 - 18,
St. Maurice River (Cattilon)
Oct. 19 & 20 - 18.

Jan. 26 - 18.

Mother always said I'd get
ahead in the world & this
morning her prediction
came true. I woke up
with an awful head.
We had quite a banquet
last night. Killed two
rabbits, stole a sack of
boiled potatoes & then had
a French woman prepare
them for us. So far
this month I have won

Jan. 23 - 19.

I learned today that my old
pal Jimmie Scorce was killed
over here. God! It would take
every page in this book to
record all the names of my
friends who cashed in their
checks in France & Belgium.

Jan. 26 - 18.

Another big feast today. We
stole & killed two thin chickens
bought steak, cheese &
onions. I offered a woman
$6.00 to cook up the
works but she refused.
Its against the law to kill
or cook chickens in this country
so we had considerable
trouble in coraling a
woman who would

[Having trouble reading
the name & address...]

Still in Savigne Leveque.
The foregoing names were
writtne in this book by
two Frenchman whom I
met in Le Mans last Sunday
when I went to that city
for the purpose of being
de-loused.
Again I feel the pangs
of deep sorrow because
of death. A letter today
from Mildred Guepp
intimated that my brother
Walter is very sad & I
infer that his young
wife has succumbed
to her recent illness.
Death swoops down
upon us swiftly, &
there sure is no avoiding
it.

A.W.O.L. 60 days confinement,
pack drill but a dam
good time. Guess we go
home tootasuite & I'll
sure be glad to leave this
desolate burg.

Feb. 22 - 19.

Today Wagoner & MacKenzie
were sent to a labor unit.
Strange I didn't get it too
because I was even worse
than they in breaking
rules.

Feb. 23 - 19.

Left Savigne Leveque at
2 P.M. today & hiked to
Champagne where I am
now waiting to board
train for Brest. Teh 1st
lap of the journey home.

Brest, France. Nine months
ago today we landed here
but today not all of us
returned. We are the first
fighting division in the
A.E.F. to leabe France.

Feb 28 - 19.

Today I boarded the steam-
ship Muritania for America.
There are 10000 aboard
her, including crew,
civilians & troops.
Some boat.

March 3rd 19.

Today I am about in
the middle of the ocean.
Rather rough weather
& the boat is being
rocked & pitched con-
siderable. Many of the
boys are awfully
sick, but so far
have kept quite
well.

W. R. Houston
Hdqr. Co. 309th H F At,
A.P.O. 770
78th Div.

Miss Catherine Hanna
c/o Rosenbaum's Cafe
411 Halsey St.

E Webster
47 East 128 St.
NYC Byrant 7100

G. L. Dowling
Box 362
Billmore, N.C.
#5 Brooks Ave.
C. S. Bradley
614 Webster Ave.
New Rochelle, N.Y.