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Show ID SM TELLS OF EXPERIENCES !l THE SERVICE Portsmouth, Va Mar. 11, 1919. Dear Mother: Well it seems as though I am having bad luck, am in the hospital again with diptheria. We had some on board . ship coming back and of course I had to be on hand to catch the second hand stuff. Have been here five days now and am feeling fine, expect to be sent back to duty in abO'Ut fifteen days; here's hoping. I sure hated to leave the ship and all th boys, mighty fine fellows. Just as I get a genuine liking for sea service and the foreign land they send me to a place like this. I am going to try to get back on the good old Princess Matoika when she comes back. This dry lr-nd sailor stuff doesn't appeal to me very strongly. I haven't seen enough sea service to suit me yet although I have traveled over 56,000 miles of briney deep. You know I have crossed the "big drink" 16 times already and wouldn't would-n't mind crossing it 16 more times. This trip we brought back about S00 wounded and other medical patients pa-tients besides 3000 well troops. We were extremely fortunate this trip, lost only two patients. We passed close to the Azore Islands this trip, so close "we could see the houses on them. We are not so rushed now as we were before the . Armistice was signed. We had submarine drills three times a day and sometimes in the middle of the night. Before that date we had some lively experiences with subs. While about 100 miles from Norfolk, Va., we were attacked by three subs, had ijuite a scrap and we finally hit the periscope of one with a six inch shell from our guns. 1-saw the thing fly in dozens of pieces, the Cruiser Frederick dropped a depth bomb and got another, while the third went ker fluey and got iWay. On another trip in the middle of the ocean we ran into a sub. shelling a tramp steamer but could not get lose enough to get a shot at it. We were in the same convoy as the "Covenington" when she was hit a hundred miles out from Best, France. We were lucky to escape for if the ohips had been in their formation we would all have been sent to Davy Jones' locker. Rumors were that the German government was trying awfully aw-fully hard to get the former German ships that were being used for the transportation of U. S. troops. This ship was the German liner Princess Alice and ran from Germany to points in the Asiatics. We saily guys don't claim any relationship to Kaiser Kai-ser Willie on account of this ship though. He's as good as tagged C. O. D. in care of Satan. Maybe I've told you thee same things before but no matter. The "Eagle Screamed" today (navy lingo) for payday but r.ot loud enough for me to hear it as my accounts are still aboard my ship. We have a fine assortment of hu-mnns hu-mnns in this ward, one "goo goo" (Fhilipino) a couple of "wops" (Ital-inas) (Ital-inas) and one "dark squall" (negro), besides several like myself. Enough for this time, keep the letters coming my way for they sure help. With love from an ex-salty guy. a dry land gob and yours truly for two more years in Uncle Sam's firm. , Your son. FRED STARK. |
