Letter 100

           Letter 100

                                                                                                            Dec. 21. 1918

                                                                                                           France 

             To My Dear Sweetheart,

             You will see I’ve broken my promise, for I said I would write to you the next day.  Well, two days have passed by and not a word have I written.  But you will forgive me I’m sure, won’t you dear?  We did not leave Nancy at the time we should have, but we arrived here late last night.  We rode on the train for about 24 hours.  This place is located up in the mountains.  It does not seem very cold.

            When I first entered the town, my impressions were that we had been placed in some remote corner of the earth.  But after going through the R.T.O. where we were assigned our hotels and got our passes stamped, my idea changed.  For when we halted in front of a large modern hotel, I could not realize that such a thing could be true.  Upon entering, we did not know how to act (after being away from luxuries for so long) coming into this beautiful building we were taken to.  The floor is of hand polished oak, with lots of carpets.  Well I just can’t tell you how I felt, for the picture which I had in my mind was so far below and overshadowed, that it makes me sad to think of the past.

            Geo. and I have a room by ourselves.  We surely were lucky in getting it together. The hotel is upon a hill and we can see a great deal of the country. Our room is in the front of the building. We surely have lots of things at our disposal, for we have a chamber maid to make our bed and empty our wash water.  We have nothing to do but enjoy ourselves, eat, sleep, and see the country. As for our meals we have them in the large dining room.  We don’t have to get in line, but we just walk in and sit at the first table we see and our meals are brought to us by French maidens. This is all free to is, furnished by our dear Old Uncle Sam, and my!  What a great man he is, and what he can do when wants to.

            Since arriving here I have found out that the United States government has leased this great resort just for the entertainment of American soldiers.  It is one of the greatest resorts in the world. They have here a grand Roman building, which was built in the 13th Century, and the architecture is something wonderful.  For the building now looks as if it will remain standing longer than some of the modern ones they have here:  just think, 500 years of use and still the stone steps do not even show the effects of many years.  We also visited something else of interest, the Great Hot Sulphur Springs, which reminds me of ours at home (Becks).  We entered a tunnel and went for about 200 ft. Upon stopping we found hot water boiling out of the rocks that they said was about 80 meters deep or about 260 ft.

              After leaving that, we made are way up a few stone steps where the water gathered itself until it was released by the Romans. First you enter the large room where the main body of water was, and from there you go into smaller ones.  The water washed away the softer particles and left the harder ones which made the sand very irregular.  It surely was a wonder. I wish you were here to go along with me to see these wonders, but I will try to remember them and tell you about them when I get back home. The Y here is something great, for they have reading and writing rooms, a Theater Canteen, a chapel, billiard rooms, and rest rooms.

            Last night after our delicious mess, Geo. and I came to the Y, and saw a real vaudeville act which lasted from 8:20 until 11:00.  Well to tell the truth, I never laughed so much in all my life!  Well, that is what we’re here for, so let it come.

            I nearly forgot to tell you a joke I played on Geo. After we had been shown our room, we were examining it. When everything had been gone over, we noticed a button on the bathroom wall.  Well, Geo., as boys are all alike and curious, had to push the button.  So I looked at him and said, “The maid will be right up,” and at that Geo. hid himself in the closet.  I did not know what to tell her, so we waited for the maid but to our surprise she never came.  Well, boys will be boys. We surely are two of them.

            Well dear, I might not make this letter too long or you will get tired reading it. But remember these are just the main parts, the rest will come later.  For there are so many things to tell.  There is something going all the time, as you see.   I must go and see that which has been placed at my disposal to explore, for it may be the only chance I will have.

            Well dear girl, this trip thru France, on the battlefields, and other places is one of the greatest experiences I have ever had.  These are things I would have missed if I had not been called to sacrifice a great deal for my country.  May God ever protect you now is the loving prayer of your sweetheart, Henry  X   X   X   X .

                                                                                    Corp. Henry D. Call

                                                                                    Co. A 313^th Engrs

                                                                                    A.P.O. 932

                                                                                    American Expeditionary Forces France.