Jerry letter to Bennett Champ Clark - January 21, 1919

Transcript

[January] 21st. 1919. Lieut. Col. Bennett C Clark, Asst. Chief of Staff; 88th Div. A.E.F. PO. 795. France. My dear Bennett; I have wanted to write you a letter for a long time but first one thing and then another has prevented me. On Sunday the 19th, I spent most of the afternoon here in the office writing you and after writing one page and left that in the machine over night and next morning completed the second page and when I looked for the first it was gone. I have preserved the second and am now going to rewrite the first which will necessarily make this a very disjointed letter. I have written you several and from what Charley told me of a letter he had from you you have never received but one of my letters. The other day the boss asked me where the devil I had been keeping myself all Winter? I told him I had been here all the time, but that I had not bothered him much because I knew that he had enough people coming in on him to take most his time anyway, but that I was always about and subject to his call. Both he and Mother look mighty well and especially since peace is in sight. They worried about you a good deal, but are both now bright cheerful and look splendidly. When Genevieve took the boy home he looked fine. He was dressed in soldier clothes and called me “South” and shook hands with me and talked just like my boy did to me at about the same age, and that was very plain. By the way the boy got the Bosch Helmet with a bullet hole in it that he wrote you to send him and so did Dad by the same mail and it would be hard to decide which was proudest of his trophy. My boy said his looked more like a collander than it did a helmet. The thing came to my office and I did not unwrap it till I took it to him tho everyone in the office wanted to see it, I have again been interrupted here and had to take this out of the machine and then put it back and start it again. Of course we all walk the plank shortly after the 4th ofv March and I am looking around to see just what I want to do. My present intention is to stay here and practice law, because I believe there will be fine possibilities here in the way of adjusting War Claims for large amounts. My information from home is the the practice was never worse and that is generally true from all over the county. The boy is doing so well in school that I am averse to taking him away from here for the time being, so feel sure that you will find us hanging around Washington, when you come home; and then I want to see what developed for the coming Presidential campaign. I can see it better from here that from Arkansas or elsewhere. We need you badly as above said and I will welcome the day when you arrive. Look this second page over and remember that I am here to do what ever you may have to suggest. Yours always; Jerry.