Search The Archive

Search form

Collection Search
Date: March 22nd 1917
To
Mother
From
Gordon DeGear
Letter

France
Mar 22nd/17

Dear Mother

This is not going to be a letter just a note thats all. I have not had any mail since I wrote you last and have just been putting it off till it came but I thought as it was somewhere around two or three weeks since I wrote I had better drop a few lines to let you know that everything is going along pretty good with me and thought if you did not hear from me you would be getting anxious. I have just wrote Aunt Mabel a letter in answer to two that I have had this month but the two parcels she sent me have not arrived yet. Mail had been coming very slow lately as everybody seems to be complaining of the same ting so it is a general complaint but no doubt before long it will keep us busy answering the letters that do come. I have kept up my correspondence up to date so far so you see I have improved since coming out here. You have no idea how much mail I do get sometimes but I suppose some of it will be dropping off some of these days but it will not be my fault as I intend to keep it up. A letter is something to look forward too so I say the more the merrier. It is coming time for another bunch of letters to come in answer to my last batch that I wrote six or seven weeks ago. We are still on the same [?] party yet but I thought we would be through by now but i guess it will end before very long now. They say a change is as good as a rest so a change will soon feel good again. But still this have been a pretty good spell outside of dodging few of those tings that fly around the air that they call a shell but he happened so far to give us a pretty wide berth. Of course that is all good experience for us so we will know what they are and about where the are going but sometimes you would think that they are coming down on your head. When we hear one coming and it lands pretty close and does not go off everybody nearly always say "dud" at the same time and it is quite a relief. Some days I feel nervous but other times I do not mind it near so much, but of course when we are working we are nearly always sheltered more or less. I have never been up to the front line but quite close enough at times, but still it no worse than quite a ways behind especially when he starts with his big stuff and then we say Fritz's old grey mule was working lat night. I am feeling pretty good and sometimes some of my very near friends begin to feel good too but thank goodness not so bad as some fellows.

Love to all from your loving son

Gordon

Original Scans

Original Scans