Sincerely, Joel C. Swisher

Dear Helen

Since I wrote you last I have seen quite a bit of this section of France. We were made a part of the first army in September and since then we have been on the go most of the time. Stay a few days in a place and then move either on foot or by trucks. Mostly on foot and by night. Spent some of the time at the front. Then went to back area and a few days ago started for a place that was then on the front and by the time we got there it was a long ways behind the lines, so fast have things been going recently.

In two more days I will have been in France one year. I suppose today a year ago we spent most of the day looking for land.

In the last place we were before we came here was in territory held by the Germans for 4 years and recently recaptured. We were billeted in a French chateau that had been used as a German Headquarters. It was an immensely big place, 250 men were almost lost in it. The ceilings on the ground floor were about 15 ft. high. Large fireplaces, and in some rooms large mirrors reaching up to the ceilings. Of course the building had been hit by some shells in the recent fighting but otherwise it was not much damaged. I saw none of the deliberate destruction as elsewhere. It is probable that they expected to stay there forever and had to get out too quick to do any damage. The room I was in had a fireplace, a wardrobe with a life sized mirror, a piano, and a sofa, all in good condition.

So much for the things that were not destroyed. Of the things that were destroyed it would be useless to start to say anything.

I wrote you in Sept. but not knowing your exact address, sent it to Oxford, so don’t know whether it reached you or not.

Since we left the S.O.S.⁽¹⁾Probably Services of Supply, but unclear because Joel was in the Services of Supply region his entire time in France I have not picked up a bit of French and what is more I have forgotten what little I did know. Don’t think I will know anything by the time I get to the U.S.A. Don’t care very much just so I get there and get there mighty quick.

[to be continued]