would know because
if they were hog wild they would be left handers.

The corporals and sargents come from the regular army but after a while
Capt. Nash will pick some of us out to take their place and it is a
cinch I will be picked out on acct. of knowing all about the drills etc.

The next thing was a lecture on what they could do to us if we got
stewed or something and how to treat the officers and we got to sir them
and salute them and etc. and it seems kind of funny for a man that every
time he walked out to pitch the crowd used to stand up and yell and I
never had to sir Rowland or Collins. I'd knock their block off if they
tried to make me.

Well every time we wasn't doing something else they sprung some more of
them upseting exercises on us and I called the corporal to one side and
says if he would excuse me I would pass up some of them because I didn't
need to exercise on acct. of playing baseball all summer and besides I
was tired and he says these exercises was to fix me so I wouldn't get
tired and he made me go through with all of them. How is that for brains
Al and I suppose if a man was up all night watching a corpse or
something this bird would make you stay awake all the next day so you
wouldn't get sleepy.

For dinner we had roast chicken and sweet potatoes and cream corn and
biscuits and coffee and for supper they was bake beans with tomato sauce
and bread and pudding and cake and coffee and the grub is pretty fair
only a man can't enjoy it because you got to eat to fast because if
theys anything left on your plate when the rest of them birds gets
through you got to fight to keep it from going to the wrong address.
Well Al its pretty near time for the tattoo buggle which means the men
has got to shut up and keep quiet so I am going to get ready for bed but
I don't know if I would rather have them keep quiet or not because when
they are keeping quiet you don't know what they are up to and maybe they
are snooping a round somewheres waiting for a man to go to sleep so they
can cut your throat. Some of them has been use to doing it all their
life Al and they are beggining to miss it. But I don't know if I
wouldn't just as leave die that way as from them upseting exercises.

Your pal, JACK.

[Illustration]

CAMP GRANT, Sept. 26.

_FRIEND AL:_ Well Al don't be surprised if you pick up the paper some
A.M. and see where I'm gone and you may think I am just jokeing
Al but I am telling you the tr