Hi List, Below are letters written by soldiers from Taylor County who were in France during WWI. Please let me know if you have any information on these individuals, such as if they survived the war, parents names, birth and death dates,etc. I would like to post these letters online with details about each soldier. I will post more letters to the list as I locate them. Thanks, Carla Miles The Butler Herald Thursday, September 5, 1918 Page Seven Letter From France Periguenx, France August 3, 1918 My dear Sister: I received your letter today, and will answer tonight. I received nine letters this morning, five of them from my fiancée, well I am mighty proud I have a girl there in the states that thinks something of me. I was sorry to know that your babies had been sick. I am in fine health, and faring fine. It is a beautiful place here, a nice town with goodshows, nice parks a nice river, and many fine old castles that were built hundreds of years ago. I am going to bake again Monday. I like baking much better. As soon as I have time I will write you out some recipes and send them to you, of course, I have been always cooking in large quantities for when I make a cake I mix it in a tub. We sometimes make biscuits, and when we do it takes 600, for we use more bread than anything else. I have just been reading a San Francisco paper, and their camp cooks are getting $150.0 a month, but I guess I am as well off in the army for I have never saved anything. We have had some bad times over here, but we have had good ones too. I could never have a better time than I am having now I work only half of my time, so when I am off a lady friend and I go swimming or boat riding, then in the evening I go to her home and she teaches me French. She is a graduate of one of the best colleges in France. She speaks English, French and German, and, of course she smokes cigarettes and drinks wine, but that is the custom in France. Most of all the people here are Catholics, but this friend is a protestant, and on Sunday we go to church, it is really the only time I have been to church since leaving home, everything is in French, but we understand very well now. I must close for this time as we are having pay-day. With love to all, Your brother, Robert Scrimshire (Note: Robert was a son of Robert Wilson Schrimshire. He was a cook with the Co. C 18th Engineers, R.Y., American E.F., France. I don't know what became of him at this point.He was a younger brother of my great-grandmother Gussie Scrimshire Adams) The Butler Herald Thursday, November 7, 1918 Page Seven Letters From Our Soldier Boys Somewhere in France October 4th, 1918 Mr. C.E. Benns Butler, Georgia Dear Friend: I received a Butler Herald last week and I can't tell you how much I enjoyed it. It was just like a letter from home. I have read it over until I have almost memorized everything it contained. I do not know who sent it to me, but you can tell them to send another one if they life. A Butler Herald in France looks to me like a Chicago Ledger would in the states. I see old Taylor county's honor roll is still growing and it makes me feel good to see the boys fall in line, and I feel like every one will make a record for himself, and perhaps one that will go down in history, lets hope so for there is nothing too good for old Taylor and her's. I have been over here a little over three months and I like it here fine. If France was in the good old U.S.A. it would be grand. The place where we are now located makes me think of the Butler level, but they can't grow cotton here, but grow a lot of wheat, oats, potatoes and have some of the finest cows, hogs and sheep that I have ever seen. There are a lot of pretty French girls here, but they can't speak English and we can't speak French very well so you can see we are out of luck, but we all will speak French well if we are here any length of time, for we all have French books and every chance we have we get some pretty girl to teach us, as soon as we learn the first lesson it comes quite easy for us. There were three thousand American girls, who came over sometime ago to do Red Cross work, and among them I have met five that I knew while in the States, one from Atlanta who is now working in our canteen and I tell you it makes the boys feel good to have the girls come over here to care for them, when the boys speak of them, or to them, they speak of them as our little mothers. We have very good health over here and I have been lucky so far not to be wounded or killed, the French and British soldiers say they never saw better soldiers than the American soldiers, they say they are the coolest men they ever saw going over the top, all you can hear the boys say when they are going over the top is, on to Berlin, and believe me, we are going there soon. All of the Huns look small to us when we are behind the old machine guns. Well I will say goodbye for now. I hope everything is well with you and that victory wil come soon, then we boys can be with you once again and with our loved ones. Respectfully, Walter Hill MG Co. 304th Inf. 1st Prov. M.G. Regt. A.P.O. 773 American Ex. Forces, France The Butler Herald Thursday, November 7, 1918 Page Seven Letters From Our Soldier Boys Somewhere in France Sept. 19, 1918 Dear Otis: I have just received 12 letters from home and I feel like I have been talking to all of you. You can't imagine what a "letter from home" means to us. Well old boy, I am seeing some real service now, and am glad to say I am enjoying it very much, as I still have better health than I have ever had. I wish you could see the path behind our army they are sweeping everything as they go, and haven't failed to take what they set out for since I came over. The German aeroplanes try to visit every day, but the anti air-craft guns soon bring them down. It is just wonderful to see and know what good work our guns are doing. I only wish I could tell you all about this war Otis, but it never would pass the censor, so I must just say we have had a great victory and the good part is all going our way. You see I hear direct from headquarters every morning and we most always get good news. All the German prisoners we get now are mere boys and none of the men are under 50 and 60 years and you know this makes us feel like we will be home by next June. I certainly believe we will soon win. I went with my captain up in sight of the fighting line this P.M. but believe me we didn't tarry long. You see we don't see much of that, as our work is to clean up after the battles and wait on the men. The German coat buttons are the smallest "war relics" I have so I am sending them first. Tell Papa I have some real "war tales" to relate to him when I come. I am sure seeing some of this world at "my old uncle's" expense. Say if you want to see this part of France go up to Five Points and look around and you will almost see it, nothing but hills and mountains. Our winters are very cold over here, we have only 3 months of warm weather. This is the greatest wheat country in the world, but you never see any cotton or corn. I have not heard from Jay and Ambry yet but have written both of them several times. Their Regiment is not far from me, but it is hard for me to hear from them. Otis I have begun to get the Butler Herald and I am so glad to receive it. I notice that my old address is still on the "Honor Roll" and won't you please give Mr. Benns my new address and kindly ask him to change it, for I want my friends to write me. You all need not send my "Christmas box" until you hear from me again, as I am going to get an order from my captain and send you telling what I prefer. I am glad to know mama and papa are still very well. Write me again and tell the other home folks will write to them soon. Much love to you and all. Your Devoted Brother Jonathan Morgan McCants No. 1342553, Mech. Co. C 1st Pioneer Inf. American Ex. Forces, France