No insomnia among Uncle Sam's troops

Chester Ambler of the American Expeditionary FOrces in France, has experienced some of the rigors of army life in French camps. A letter to his mother, Mrs. Hubert C. Ambler of 1015 [?] Wilmette avenue, describes vividly, some of the trils and hardships of a young army private who is awaiting the order to take his place in the front line trenches. The leatter reads in part as follows:

Dear Mother:
We left our training camp on Saturday noon and marched about 5 miles and there loaded everyting, and within three hours pulled out for the front, spending three miserable days and nights riding through the country; no sleep at night and during the day viewing the country from a side door "Pullman."
We passed through the poorest section of France, through cities and villages of all descriptions, big, little, wealthy and poor, and saw people, mostly women and children at every crossroads.
At almost every stop of any length we were served with coffee by pretty women of the French Red Cross. We passed several French Red Cross trains and one American, which certainly looked like a palace in comparison to the others.
We landed at..., about midnight, unloaded and were out of the yards and on the way to a place to sleep by 3 o'clock. It was daylight before we had a chance to go in and lie down. I did this but was routed out at 8 o'clock to unload some wagons and then got corned "willy" (beef) and hardtack for breakfast, worked some more and got more corned "willy" for dinner and supper combined, and then went on guard that night and during the next day I had a few hot meals and then to bed for the first real sleep in four days and nights. Oh, boy! such is life in the army.
.....Our camp is in a small town near the front and every night we can hear the guns a-popping and some times it sounds as though they were raising .... up there....
With love,
Chester P. Ambler.