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October 24

Dear Emma and kids:
 I have been very happy to receive your letters quite regularly for some time. Monica, your letters are dandy - long, interesting, and windy. I am always looking for some word from Paul but find none. Maybe the censor stops on the way. Indeed, I am very sorry Paul that the Engine is not running. You should make a great effort to get it going. That is the way the boss of the works should always do. Keep things going.  
 The government, I understand, has some pinheads as censors. There has never been anything in my letter that should be censored but some of the pinhead censors ought to be on the front instead of keeping chained down in a censor office. The letter I sent came to a sudden stop because an auto came along and was going in my direction. My things were shoved in, and I was taken about 20 miles. I slept that night in a hospital. Next morning early I got a chance to take an ambulance to our destination, which was quite a ways form where I last had a foyer. Before night, I had a stove up and fifty quarts of chocolate ready to distribute to the wounded and other soldiers. Back in Montmereil, we thought that serving 2500 cups a day was a big job. 

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me to help us. Here every man is a fighter - no civilians. So we have no help for us two alone to make and give 3 to 4 thousand every day. And to the French boys any time at night. It is a great work, but not a minute to lose. I see so many souveneirs lying around on the ground. I only take what is the most interesting.

 Here we sleep in the cave all the time. We have one that is quite dry. It is better than the last one. We take care of our shoes but never our clothes except when we can get a chance to change them. So one of my suits acts as a working suit in the day time and pajamas at night. So you can imagine it looks frightening. You, Emma, you are thinning down. Well don't get sick any way. I am very happy that you have had such good pleasure in your work this summer with the war going on as it is now, th [[the]] near future looks very bright. I hope we get ahead, though first (before peace comes) to get on German territory and demolish some of the German cities.
 In coming to where we are not, we had to cross No Man's Land for four years? until just the other day. The desolateness of the Plains in the West cannot be compared to it. Yet it can give you an idea of this place. Villages completely wiped out - not a soul anyplace.

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