Recently, project staff discovered the WWI correspondence
between Private Edward W. Meier and his cousin-in-law Frank Baebler, both of
St. Louis, Missouri. Private Meier was in the 138th Missouri Infantry, American Expeditionary Force. Meier’s letters are very humorous and describe his war experiences in colorful language.
Topics discussed include his training at Fort Sill, Oklahoma, his time in New York before going to Europe, and his experiences in France. Excerpts from his letters are below.
Jan 3, 1918, Fort Sill, OK
Hello Frank, |
| A souvenir that Pvt Meier sent to Frank Baebler. It is an unmailed postcard photograph of nine German soldiers. |
Jan 3, 1918, Fort Sill, OK
Gee today, was a fine day, the best day I have seen here for a long time. It has been so doggoned nice, that it has reminded me of home and given me the homesick blues. The best thing that I know of for this disease is to get out my trusty pen and scratch letters until they are shaken off…
Gee, it is beginning to look as if we are going to miss the big show, doesn’t it, holy smokes, looks as if we will be in the same fix that an old settler here is, he says he has been a soldier fifteen years and has never fired a shot. It would be a damned dirty shame if I have petted, oiled, coaxed, babied, and been a wet nurse to my rifle these 11 months Just to get over there when it is all over, or, not get there at all.
The time was, when I felt kinda shakey in the knees when anybody spoke about trenches, or bayonets, but I have been fed up so much on them both I am aching to try myself out. This training has developed me so much , and made me so damn tough I actually believe I could lick at least 3 good sized Germans, and not have any trouble doing it….
Meier continues in this vain in his next letter.
April
6, 1918, Fort Sill, OK
Hello Frank,
Some sunuvagun hid my pen to keep me from writein.
Judging from the looks of things here this will be about my last letter from here, it seems as though we are going to get a chance at Fritz at last. I’m just a rarin to go, wild, wooly and full of flees. I can speak French already with a real Parisean accent, when a man says something to you in French and you want to answer yes you simply say “Wee Wee Monsieur” with a French accent “Wee Wee Manure”. Gee aint I getting smart, an English Sergeant Major told me the other day that I was the flower of the Regiment, (a bloomin hidiot). He went home with a sign on his eye “closed for the season”.
Gee its hell to be a private, I’d like to catch the dude that invented Kitchen Police, especially the dude that invented the magnificent rank of Pot hound and slop slinger….
Tell her [his aunt Mary, who raised him and his brother] there is no danger of any hun causing me to push up daisies, the wicked never die young. There ain’t a hun big enough to put me out of business and if they gang me I’ll put off my shoe and asphyxiate them…
Shortly after writing
the previous letter Meier received orders and his unit headed to N.Y. – the point of
their debarkation. In the next letter it is easy to see that Meier is very
impressed with New York.Some sunuvagun hid my pen to keep me from writein.
Judging from the looks of things here this will be about my last letter from here, it seems as though we are going to get a chance at Fritz at last. I’m just a rarin to go, wild, wooly and full of flees. I can speak French already with a real Parisean accent, when a man says something to you in French and you want to answer yes you simply say “Wee Wee Monsieur” with a French accent “Wee Wee Manure”. Gee aint I getting smart, an English Sergeant Major told me the other day that I was the flower of the Regiment, (a bloomin hidiot). He went home with a sign on his eye “closed for the season”.
Gee its hell to be a private, I’d like to catch the dude that invented Kitchen Police, especially the dude that invented the magnificent rank of Pot hound and slop slinger….
Tell her [his aunt Mary, who raised him and his brother] there is no danger of any hun causing me to push up daisies, the wicked never die young. There ain’t a hun big enough to put me out of business and if they gang me I’ll put off my shoe and asphyxiate them…
April 23, 1918, Camp Mills, N.Y.
Hello Frank,
Don’t be surprised if this is the last letter you receive from me from this aide as there is no telling just when we will leave, it may be 2 days and it may be 2 months, but all indications point at the former….
The New York papers announced the arrival of the cowboys from Missouri and the Indians from Oklahoma the other day.
The other night I was in New York with a Corporal, and we were riding the upper deck of a double decked bus, on 5th Ave. where all the swells live, I never saw so much motor traffic on any one street in my life. We were getting along fairly well until the corporal spied 2 fellows from our company, he jumped to his feet waved his arms like and Indian and yelled at the top of his voice trying to attract the attention of these other 2 fellows. I suppose the people thought we were connected with some circus….I nearly broke my neck stareing at buildings. We took in the Winter Garden, and I must say that the theatrical people of New York are setting a fine example for economy in dress, the women wore very little more than a smile….
The next several
letters were written after Meiier arrived in France. Don’t be surprised if this is the last letter you receive from me from this aide as there is no telling just when we will leave, it may be 2 days and it may be 2 months, but all indications point at the former….
The New York papers announced the arrival of the cowboys from Missouri and the Indians from Oklahoma the other day.
The other night I was in New York with a Corporal, and we were riding the upper deck of a double decked bus, on 5th Ave. where all the swells live, I never saw so much motor traffic on any one street in my life. We were getting along fairly well until the corporal spied 2 fellows from our company, he jumped to his feet waved his arms like and Indian and yelled at the top of his voice trying to attract the attention of these other 2 fellows. I suppose the people thought we were connected with some circus….I nearly broke my neck stareing at buildings. We took in the Winter Garden, and I must say that the theatrical people of New York are setting a fine example for economy in dress, the women wore very little more than a smile….
Aug
19, 1918
….We are in the line again “strafeing Fritz”, which is rapidly becomeing a very popular sport, three times I got up and went outside to watch an aeroplane fight, believe me that’s some sight. This last dutchman was the gamest bird I have ever seen, he circled over our lines until it looked like every antiaircraft gun in France was spouting at him, believe me that’s a sight a fellow will never forget, you see a small black spot away of in the sky, and in front back and all sides of him are hundreds of small blotches of smoke where the shells cut loose. For 45 minutes this bird paraded around going right through one barrage after another, a dozen times I expected to see him come toppling, I can’t figure out how those shells could come so close to him without getting him, it reminded me of a baseball game in gods country, every time a shell would burst near him a yell would go up that could be heard in Berlin ……
August
27, 1918….We are in the line again “strafeing Fritz”, which is rapidly becomeing a very popular sport, three times I got up and went outside to watch an aeroplane fight, believe me that’s some sight. This last dutchman was the gamest bird I have ever seen, he circled over our lines until it looked like every antiaircraft gun in France was spouting at him, believe me that’s a sight a fellow will never forget, you see a small black spot away of in the sky, and in front back and all sides of him are hundreds of small blotches of smoke where the shells cut loose. For 45 minutes this bird paraded around going right through one barrage after another, a dozen times I expected to see him come toppling, I can’t figure out how those shells could come so close to him without getting him, it reminded me of a baseball game in gods country, every time a shell would burst near him a yell would go up that could be heard in Berlin ……
…At the present I am down the line about a hundred yards from no mans land with three other signalmen, we have a lovely little signal office here, and about the only thing that keeps us from going crazy is the YMCA. This is the deadest hole I have ever been in, not a thing to do but sit around and look pleasant, we can’t roam around outside our dug out or some square head will think he’s smart and try to knock us off...
September 9, 1918
... We have moved up the line where they fight like they meant it, I am now beginning to see where our Camp Doniphan training comes in, last week we, rode all evening in a box car with 3 square wheels, until midnight, unloaded our equipment until 2 then marched until 5 slept until 7 then marched again until 4 in the afternoon and had nothing to eat until the next morning our toal meals for the trip was 1, which consisted of 1 can willie ( canned beef) to 3 men and 1 Hard tack a piece, which we ate on the train shortly after it started, and it never feazed us right there is where I began to realize just how tough we were...
In the next letter Meier describes his expereinces in the
battle of St. Mihiel in very great detail. This letter is very gripping and
provides insight into the horrors of War.... We have moved up the line where they fight like they meant it, I am now beginning to see where our Camp Doniphan training comes in, last week we, rode all evening in a box car with 3 square wheels, until midnight, unloaded our equipment until 2 then marched until 5 slept until 7 then marched again until 4 in the afternoon and had nothing to eat until the next morning our toal meals for the trip was 1, which consisted of 1 can willie ( canned beef) to 3 men and 1 Hard tack a piece, which we ate on the train shortly after it started, and it never feazed us right there is where I began to realize just how tough we were...
October 3, 1918 ….I have been under shell fire any number of times but good God, I never saw anything to equal the barrage of artillery put over, we went over the top at 530 am. At 430 we were sitting just below the crest of a very steep hill, watching our barrage, and believe me that’s a sight none of us will every forget, the explosions or the guns weren’t very loud as they were too far away, but every shell fired passed directly over our heads, and seemed like a fellow could see them fighting for room. I can’t describe the sound very well, as near as I can come to it, is to imagine a million kids, each with a piece of wire about 3 feet long tied to a tin can, swinging them over their heads. At 530 we went over the crest of the hill and down in the valley, about then our machine gun barrage started. They sure make a weried sound, just a continual Zing ZINg, I was attached to battalion Hdq of the first wave, there was a fog so dense that we couldn’t see where we were going, for about 45 minutes we wandered around with the Major makeing our way towards the German line as best we could with the help of a compass, all of a sudden the fog lifted, zip zing a stream of German machine gun Bullets whizzed by us, we flopped, and two Germans came toward us with their hands in the air we questioned them and were told that the first wave had gone on ahead about 10 minutes ago, so we sent the prisoners back under guard, and advanced about 100 yards to the foot of a gently sloping hill with a small clump of trees about 200 yards on each side of us…..
… just then all hell broke loose, a million machine bullets
were flying at us we dropped into a shell hole and discovered that we were
caught in the neatest trap imaginable, on our left, behind a concrete wall was
a German machine gun nest, on our right, somewhere in the clump of trees was
another, in our rear was one, also to our front, and they were so well camouflaged
we couldn’t find any target to fire at although we knew the general direction
from which they were coming, on top of that
we discovered that we were 15 minutes ahead of the first wave, there
were 22 of us in the shell hole as near to the bottom as we could get, all this
time the major was standing erect organizing and waiting for reinforcements to
ruin the nests. While he was giving an order of some kind a bullet caught him
in the back of the head and put him out of business. After the Major fell they
started to fall all around me, and I decided that as a health resort that shell
hole made a perfect cream separator so I ditched the signal equipment I was
carrying and made a dash for another shell hole a little farther down the
vally, I made it fine with my Bunkie right at my heels, we flattened our carcases
as near as we could to the bottom and proceded to await developments, the
bullets kept clipping the edge of the hole until it looked like they would have
it cut down far enough to get us…..about that time we heard a clanking that
sounded like a boiler factory,” aha a tank” exclaimed my buddy…it came directly
towards us with a machine gun pointing right at our hole, but with in 10 yards
of us it swerved to the left and went around us….They cleaned out the nest and
we went forward hell bent for election. I’d like to tell you all that happened
but it would take me the rest of my life to write it down….
The next day we were relieved, canned willie got me and made me so doggoned sick I couldn’t hardly navigate, can you imagine that, came thorugh a storm like that, to have canned willie lick you.
October 19, 1918The next day we were relieved, canned willie got me and made me so doggoned sick I couldn’t hardly navigate, can you imagine that, came thorugh a storm like that, to have canned willie lick you.
Hello Frank,
Am feeling fine, takeing it easy in the line again, a very quiet sector, I said in my last letter canned willie licked me, but I have found out since that I was mistaken, It was the gas working on me, unless you get enough gas to knock you out it wont bother you for several days, But, oh boy when it does start, look out, you get diary at both ends.
October
21, 1918
….Well, I don’t wish to create any false hopes at home, but nevertheless I am more than satisfied that we won’t winter in France many more times. We were in that St. Mihial drive in reserve, and good God I never heard such a barrage or seen so many aeroplanes in my life, they went over in droves of over 30 or more. just one gang after another all day long for 3 days. Day I've got the cutest mustache you ever saw, looks like a toothbrush suffering from a severe case of dandruff...
….Well, I don’t wish to create any false hopes at home, but nevertheless I am more than satisfied that we won’t winter in France many more times. We were in that St. Mihial drive in reserve, and good God I never heard such a barrage or seen so many aeroplanes in my life, they went over in droves of over 30 or more. just one gang after another all day long for 3 days. Day I've got the cutest mustache you ever saw, looks like a toothbrush suffering from a severe case of dandruff...
P. S. Am enclosing a few souvenirs I picked up in the drive.
One of the enclosures was an unmailed postcard of nine German soldiers (see above).
 |
| British Field Service Postcard |
Oct 27,
1918 –Postcard (see above)
Meier selected what he wanted to say by crossing out what did not apply.
I am quite well.
Letter follows at first opportunity.
I have received no letter from you lately.
Shortly after the pervious correspondence the War ended.
November
24, 1918 Lerouville, FranceMeier selected what he wanted to say by crossing out what did not apply.
Today is “Dads Xmas Letter day” over here, and everybody’s busy writeing to their Dad, I can’t let the gang have anything on me, so I am going to pick on you for a while, take your hat and coat off, pull your chair up to the stove, its going to be a long one (you wont have so far to throw after you have read about half of it) I don’t know how personal experiances are listened to back home, nevertheless I am going to spill a few as that is what we were asked to write in our “Dad’s” letter…..
In the above letter Meier provided a detailed list of all of his
movements since he arrived in Europe. At the time he was in the 35th Division Signal School. Over the next few months Meier wrote Frank several letters but they were few and far between. In these letters, Meier's often joked about this.
January 5, 1919, Lerouville, France
Hello Frank,
I suppose you think it about time I am wakeing up, We Were paid shortly after I last wrote to you, and the business of peeling the Francs from my roll made my fingers so stiff I couldn't write, No I have'nt had anything stronger than chocolate. Say, I'm getting to be an aristocratic hound, had my breakfast in bed this morning. I live in the same hotel all the Nobility of Europe and Millionaires of Gods Country spend their summers in, the only difference is, I am just spening 7 days of my winter here, the altitude is too high, does'nt agree with my delicate constitution, doncher no......
February 25, 1919, Lerouville, France
Hello Frank,
....In answer to your letter on Jan 31st, we are coming home all right, but I don't think well make it before the middle of May. It sure does seem a long time since I left, at Nevada last August a year ago, I thought I would never get used to being away from home, but now I am somewhat afraid that I am going to have a hard time getting used to being home, the 6 months I spent over here while fritz was throwing iron rations seemed like 10 years, but since the armistice has been signed the time has slipped by so fast it is hard to believe that almost 4 months have elasped since it was signed....
March 20, 1919, Lerouville, France
Hello Frank,
Same old stiff finger stall, about time I am inventing a new one isn't it.
We have moved from Lerouville Barracks, we are now at Thorigne in the Le mans area, perhaps you dont know what that means, to us, it means, the first step in our homward push, Le Mans and its area is the big U.S. forwarding center for troops bound for home....
The next communication Frank recieved from Meier was a postcard. The postcard had the following printed message: “ I AM SAFE AND SOUND IN THE GOOD OLD U.S.A.” on the front and "Written aboard the U.S.S. Aoelus" on the back.
April 28, 1919, Aboard the U.S.S. Aoelus (see below)
January 5, 1919, Lerouville, France
Hello Frank,
I suppose you think it about time I am wakeing up, We Were paid shortly after I last wrote to you, and the business of peeling the Francs from my roll made my fingers so stiff I couldn't write, No I have'nt had anything stronger than chocolate. Say, I'm getting to be an aristocratic hound, had my breakfast in bed this morning. I live in the same hotel all the Nobility of Europe and Millionaires of Gods Country spend their summers in, the only difference is, I am just spening 7 days of my winter here, the altitude is too high, does'nt agree with my delicate constitution, doncher no......
February 25, 1919, Lerouville, France
Hello Frank,
....In answer to your letter on Jan 31st, we are coming home all right, but I don't think well make it before the middle of May. It sure does seem a long time since I left, at Nevada last August a year ago, I thought I would never get used to being away from home, but now I am somewhat afraid that I am going to have a hard time getting used to being home, the 6 months I spent over here while fritz was throwing iron rations seemed like 10 years, but since the armistice has been signed the time has slipped by so fast it is hard to believe that almost 4 months have elasped since it was signed....
March 20, 1919, Lerouville, France
Hello Frank,
Same old stiff finger stall, about time I am inventing a new one isn't it.
We have moved from Lerouville Barracks, we are now at Thorigne in the Le mans area, perhaps you dont know what that means, to us, it means, the first step in our homward push, Le Mans and its area is the big U.S. forwarding center for troops bound for home....
The next communication Frank recieved from Meier was a postcard. The postcard had the following printed message: “ I AM SAFE AND SOUND IN THE GOOD OLD U.S.A.” on the front and "Written aboard the U.S.S. Aoelus" on the back.
April 28, 1919, Aboard the U.S.S. Aoelus (see below)
 |
| Knights of Columbus Postcard |
In Meier's final
letter, he expressed how great it was to be back in the U.S. and described how Uncle Sam was preparing the
soldiers to transition to civilian life.
May 5, 1919 Newport News, VA.
Sources:
For more information see the
