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Sierra Club Bulletin 



men seem to take great pleasure in disturbing our slumbers, and each 

 night we are treated to an old-time 4th of July. So far none of their 

 greetings have come close enough to my particular unit to do any dam- 

 age. We are taking no chances, however, and are ready for them at 

 any time. Our gas-masks are our bosom friends, and we wear them 

 ready on an instant's notice to dive into them. My present home is a 

 seven-by-twelve dugout with nearly all the comforts of home. Some 

 one must have admired the Persian rugs and marched off with them, as 

 Mother Earth is our carpet; but this doesn't bother us, for if we had 

 them we'd have to keep them clean. The mud in this section is here in 

 gobs. We've had plenty of both rain and sunshine. The latter is favor- 

 ing us now, and we've come out of our squirrel-holes to enjoy it. In 

 our quarters we have four bunks, a la Pullman car, straw mattresses 

 and chicken-wire springs. Our covering is our blanket, overcoat, blouse, 

 raincoat and anything else our delicate systems may fancy. Some of 

 the boys use their gas-masks for pillows, others their comfort-kit bag 

 filled with K. C. Bs. For myself I am the proud possessor of an air- 

 pillow. Candle-light has been our usual means of illumination hereto- 

 fore, but at present all we have to do is turn on the button and our 

 electric light burns gloriously. How's that for being up to date? From 

 7 to II each evening we enjoy its rays; after that the one-power candle 

 comes into its own. We also have a home-made writing-desk and chair 

 to add to our comfort. 



I said four of us occupied our bungalow. I must not overlook our 

 four-legged friends, the rats. They seem to like our companionship, so, 

 uninvited, have moved in with us. Presumably they feel they have a 

 prior right, being here ahead of us. However, they do not bother us, 

 and we haven't time to interfere with their plans, so we both go about 

 our own affairs. Where we are located reminds me greatly of Muir 

 Woods. The country about here is very pretty, and I would like to go 

 nosing around, but "Safety first" is our password, and we stick close to 

 home. Strange to say, there are many birds around us. One would 

 think they'd seek a more restful place while the seeking is good. An- 

 other thing that has taken my eye is the French lily. These are in 

 great numbers in places we've been. They are a beautiful purple little 

 flower, growing wild like the California poppy. As I sit here under the 

 "shade of a sturdy oak," the music that greets my ears is "Whang-brrr- 

 crack!" and a few seconds later "Bang!" Our side and the other fel- 

 lows take great delight in sending and returning greetings. These steel 

 messages are far overhead and are lighting far away; otherwise, I as- 

 sure you, I would not be here calmly telling you about it. When this 

 letter reaches you, you will probably have read some more news about 

 further American successes. I would like to tell you more, but Billy 

 Censor is a particular sort of a fellow and hates to have us tell all we 

 know ; otherwise, we'd have nothing to talk about when we get home. 



The papers are no doubt telling you of activities around Metz. Until 

 we started our "forward march" we were able to obtain the daily news- 



