Dear Ma and Pa...

Dear Ma and Pa,

Am well. Hope you are too. I knows Pa don't read reel fast, so I'm writin this reel slow. Tell brothers Walt and Elmer the Marine Corps beats working for old man Benz. Tell them to join up quick before maybe all of the places are filled.

I was restless at first because you gots to stay in bed till nearly 6 a.m., but am getting so I like to sleep late. Tell Walt and Elmer all you do before breakfast is smooth your cot and shine some things. No hogs to slop, feed to pitch, mash to mix, wood to split, fire to lay. Practically nothing .Men got to shave but it is not bad, they git warm water.

Breakfast is strong on trimmings. Like fruit juice, cereal, eggs, bacon, etc…, but kind of weak on chops, potatoes, ham, steak, fried maters, pie, and other regular food. But tell Walt and Elmer you can always sit between two city slickers from Ohio that live on coffee.

Their food plus holds you till noon, when you get fed again. It’s no wonder these city boys can’t walk much. We go on “route” marches, which the Platoon Sergeant says are long walks to harden us. If he thinks so, it is not my place to tell him different. A “route march” is about as far as to our mailbox at home. Then the city guys gets sore feet and we all ride back in trucks.

The country is nice, but awful flat. The sergeant is like a school teacher. He nags some. The Captain is like the school board. Majors and Colonels just ride around and frown. They don’t bother you none.

This next will kill Walt and Elmer with laughing. I keep getting medals for shooting. I don’t know why. The bulls-eye is near big as a chipmunk and don’t move. And it ain’t shooting at you, like the Couch boys at home.All you got to do is lie there all comfortable and hit it. You don’t even have to load your own cartridges. They come in boxes.

Be sure to tell Walt and Elmer to hurry up and join before other fellas get onto this setup and come stampeding in
.
Your loving daughter,

Dawn