Evening Republican, Volume 22, Number 67, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 20 March 1919 — LETTER FROM MEMBER OF FAMOUS RAINBOW DIVISION. [ARTICLE]

LETTER FROM MEMBER OF FAMOUS RAINBOW DIVISION.

- The following extracts are gleaned from a letter written by Edward Feiegrine, of Newland, who at the present time is with the Rainbow Division with America’s army of occupation ' iNevcnahr, Germany, February 26, 1919. Dear friend:— It sure is a pleasure to get a letter from you. ■ ■/; There has been lota of sickness here and lots' of- deaths and a good many of the boys died with .the “flu”. Many others have died from exposure and other diseases. I have been pretty lucky so far and have gone through without any sickness. It is spring4ike here now, nice and warm with lots of rain. & I see by the papers that many of the Jasper county “veterans” are returning home. » won’t be long until t have spent eighteen months in Granegards and God only knows that I don’t want to spend many more “over here.” Army life is all right for one who likes It, but I prefer civilian 'life. I have been in the ar.tillesry ever since coming over here and our guns have been drawn by horses until just lately. Now we are fully motorized and have eight tractors, four trucks, two touring care and a motorcycle. At the present time we are billeted in these German hotels and are getting hot mineral water baths once a week; they surely are fine. The German people are treating us very well, but have to for they know what they would get if they didn’t. We have an old German in the bng now. He tried to smuggle some property that the had left while moving back across the Rhine. I think he was fined 5,000 marks and given 120 days of hard labor. We make the dutchmen take their hats off to the stars and stripes when they pass and if they don t we take them off for them. Well close now as 1 nave written about all the news there is The rumor is that we will sail about the 26 of April, but you know these army rumors. Your friend, Edward Peregrine.