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Sergeant Harry L. Dabler Describes Conditions As They Are Found Overseas In a Letter toHis Parents.WELL KNOWN fN COUNTYSends Father, W. II. Dabler, 15roken Hun ISayonef, Fi'om Xear Machine0Gun Posifion (iiven Fp By Enemy.IJThe following interesting letter from Sergeant Harry L. Dabler, inthe U. S. service overseas, was received by his parents, Mr. and Mrs. W. H. Dabler of .Manlius:R o m o ran t i n, F r a nee, October 2f), 1918.Dear Dad: Just received your let-! cters of September 1!) and 30 a lewdays ago. The mail service is stillpretty slow :ul haven't received anypapers for a momh or Ion go r. Wejust got aoileo that 8*®00 baga ofmail were on a wharf in New York, which crashed and went down, bo expect some of our mail was among the lgt. Most of .it was second class am glad to Bay. I sent you a Hun bayonet in the mail today, which was picked up in a machine gun nest near Chateau Thierry. Will send the helmet in a few days.1 was up to Paris a week ago last Saturday and Sunday. It was the first time I have been away from camp, as I haven’t taken my seven-day leave yet. On Sunday they were having a big day, celebrating the deliverance of Lille, calling of the 1920 class and the French loan of liberaiton. There were two square blocks of guns taken from the Hun of all sizes, six inch,3 inch, anti-aircraft, minnewerfers and machine guns, all of them camouflaged. Some Avere in good shape, others showed the results of being hit by shell fire. Beside there were several aeroplanes, big reconnaissance planes, with 2 motors, bombers, photo, and small chasse or pursuit planes, captured *by the Allies. A big zeppelin, brought down on a raid over Paris, and a Hun tank. On Sunday they held a parade of small detachments of troops representing practically every nntion at war with the Hun. The Yankees got a great ovation all along the way. At the end of the parado were five light tanks, chasing each other like a group of kittens at play.The news keeps getting better all the time. Today’s paper says the Austrians are ready to accept all of Wilson's conditions. Foch isn't giving them any peace at any place on the line. The Yanks have the hardest sector but they keep going forward step by step. It only needs a very short advance to cut the Hun lines of communication for all his armies in lower Belgium.Very glad to see the Liberty loan go over the top.I sent yon the coupon for a Xmas package last week and expect you will have it by the time this reaches you. Candy will taste about as well as anything, especially chocolate covered caramels. If this reaches you in time wish you would send another wrist watch as mine has stopped and can't get it fixed over here. Either that or send my other watch as I’m Mud of lost without one.Yes, I get a trip In the planes every little while. Once in a while a pilot will let us take the stick and fly them.At the present time we are quite a long ways from the front, 150 milesor thereabouts. I have seen severalarticles in the papers from the statesabout the camp here and work.Write when you have time.Love to all, ff HARRY.SOLDIER SON IN FRANCE WRITES ABOUT WAR LIFE
Newspaper Details
Princeton Bureau County Tribune
Princeton, Illinois, US
Fri, Dec 13, 1918
Page 6
Full Page
Clipped by
Vivian W.
USA 29 Mar 2020
Other Publications Near Princeton, Illinois
Princeton Bureau County Record
Princeton Bureau County Republican
Princeton Bureau County Fair Daily
Princeton Bureau County Tribune
