Source: Gathering Our Heroes.
Letter
1917
Dresden Sep 4th
Dear Brother
Mother called up and told me yesterday she had received a letter from you saying you expected to go to France soon she feals lonesome you know so we all do at your going farther away.
I trust all will be well with you. you know the faith I have I will pray for the Lord to protect you and I will do all I can to make mother happy until your return
I will write to you for her every week if I can I know it will be hard for you to get your mail if you go in the trenches but I will write as often as I can trusting you will get it some tim I will do all I can to comfort mother till your letters come to her if they are a long time coming. I don’t think the war will last long acording to the papers they are giving the Jermans a pretty warm time of it all around the war zones if the papers are right. I seen your picture I think you look splendid mother thinks you were tired I told no I did not think that. she says she could always tell when you were by your looks now when you write tell us the truth of it were you tired or only joking about it aunt Libbie called up last night to know if it was true that you was drafted to go to France. they are all in a great way about you now Phyllis was down to Charlie meritts and they told her that they had got a letter that you had been drafted was the first we heard of it. I told mother we thought you might be going so as to get her thinking about it by degrees and not up set to much so now she has your letter and knows. I read mothers letters when she gets them. I know you wont be able to write to all of us so often so as long as mother gets a letter we all hear it she calls up as soon as she gets a letter and lets me know at once how you are Phyllis got your card all right she was pleased you may be sure she is going to write right away so good by from your sister
Violet
Turnerville Oct 21/1917
Dear Friend
Well Norm I have been thinking of writing to you for months but have never got at it till now. We were down to see Grandpa today and got your adress from Bills they just got a letter from you. Grandpa is not very well he is a lot like Sam his Brother was when he died a kind of a Dropsy his legs have Broke and are running now they have been up at nights for about two weeks now with him he cannot sleep and when he does he just sleeps sitting in his chair a few minutes at a time Ethel Moir is there all the time. Alvah moores are having there own time alvah bought a threshing outfit this fall and now they are all sick in bed but one girl they have two nurses there now. Tyfoid Fever
We have had a cold fall. The crops are not very good but prices are high my corn was all froze before it had got all eared yet but I put up a silo last summer so I cut it and put the corn in it when I threshed I had 10 acres of wheat and sold $400 worth offit and kept 80 bushels so that helps out this fall as there is no corn for the hogs. There is an odd field got ripe Bill’s field is pretty fair. I have gone into the cement Buisness John Coulter and I took the contract of a Bridge over by Kersey on the grey Drain we have one side about in now will finish this next week. I have 4 1/2 acres of Beets they are fair but we will get between 9 & 10 a ton this fall have not started them yet. Well this is Monday morning am finishing this before I go to work it is a fine morning a little frost our folk are all well our Boy is walking around by the chairs so will soon be walking he is a year old 14 of next month Thelma is well am going to put there picture in this letter if we can. The boys all had to go in to Chatham last week and be examined george was no good as you know he is deaf of one ear it was Bealded and running then We fixed our house over last summer we put a cellar under the other part of it and put a furnace under it so will be all right for this winter if we can get coal which is almost imposible Just now, Levi bricked his house and fixed it all over you wont know this town when you get back. Fern wrote a little on the other side Write us with love from
Elmer Paling & Family
Well writing is almost out of my line of work but will try and drop a line in with Elmer. We had a great Evangalistic campaign out to Dresden about three weeks ago there was a lot of good done about 50 from here was converted 300 in all. Bill was among, the ones from here which we were all glad to see. Elmer saw your last letter down to Bill’s to-day and you spoke of having so many crawlers have you anything to get rid of them if not, if you answer this letter let me know and I will send you something that will help to get rid of them. we are having cold rainy weather lately hope you are having fine weather we are all well hope this finds you the same
Fern
History of the 18th Battalion CEF, "The Fighting Eighteenth" 