Letter to Mother from Somewhere in France

#782373
S.W. in France
9-25-17[sic]

Dear Mother:–

I have not had time to write for about three days. I have been in two work parties that took up the most of the two dayes, Well Mother I ran accross a French train that beat the Slow Train thru Arkansa It had about 3 miles to take five gravel cars loaded with use boys and it had to stop several times to make up lost steam and then at a siding a mile and a half away I got out and walked home and had my breakfast just completed when the boys got in that stayed on the train we surely laughed some, I am still on rest billets but have been in vicinity of line since I come here. No shells have dropped near me,                  Later about 6.30 P.M.            I was lying by the ball diamond when I wrote the above. I realy am not in writing order tonight, I come in this P.M. and slept till supper at 4.30 then I cleaned my equipment.

The shovels we use in army work are midgets the are two inches shorter in the shovel end and the same amount narrower so you can get an idea that it an’t so heavy shoveling a little until I can tell you how much we work when out, but I wish some times they would say finish your alotment and go home; I would be out in an hour and a half at the outside instead of 3 and a half that we spread it out over. In this country there a great quantity of flint sides of wall are built with it and etc. I may be able to explain more full some time,

The truth of the matter is I have an head ack tonight I just went over and took a dose of castor oil. I did not hear from Annie this week but say Mother in your letter just mention me to her for I don’t get letters written to her as often as I do to her.

You folks that send me socks are doing more red cross work than you may think for I have given away six pairs of socks that I have had to the good. that four pair of never had a hole in. one pair I never had on. I keap four or five pair of knew ones all the time clean that is about all I can carry handy if I ever have to.

I stoped here and read a cupple of chapters of Ephesians, I will have to soon go in now, and roll up in my little blanket I am cosey this trip is surely fine. I have undressed every night since we come out on your wedding day, I have very little bother about crumbs I pick my clothes nearly every day and crack most of eggs so I get very few I seldom do any scratching at all but I seem to be luckier than they don’t take care of them selves is all that is one of the little items of army life. Can you picture use, by the hundreds sometimes picking shirts, te. he.

Well bye bye Mother dear as ever your loving son
Laurie