Envelope with Hostess
House scratched out and Fred's return address inserted.
To: Mrs. Fred Frederiksen, Lewisville, Idaho
Postmarked: December 8, 1918
Two Letters: the first from Elda, the second from Fred
DuPont, Wash.
Dec. 7, 1918
Dearest Folks,
We read the letter you
wrote us and it did make me ashamed for not writing but I always think
you would rather hear from the boys.
My, how glad I will be
when we get out of the army. Every day
we hear a new rumor about when we will be sent home but the latest is that we
will be here until spring. We can hardly
stand the idea. It seems now that we are
needed here no longer we ought to be sent home.
Ole and Fred and I have
been together all day today and it is about eight o'clock. We've just had supper and the boys are
playing checkers so I decided to spend my evening writing to you. It seems mighty nice to have Ole here even if
we don't see him real often.
Fred stays at home every
night now. It seems a little better than it was, an awful lot I mean. But I'll be mighty glad when we get out of
it.
We went to Seattle the
week before Thanksgiving and I caught an awful cold and was sick as the devil
for about one week but feel fine now.
We are glad to hear that
you have escaped the flu so far and that Chris is a lot better.
We would certainly like to
be home for Christmas but that is impossible.
It will be a pretty lonely old time for us Christmas but we must be
thankful our boys didn't have to go to France.
I'll tell you that takes an awful load off our shoulders doesn't it.
If you can get head or
tail to this you're going some - the boys are singing and talking so I suppose
I've written half what they've said.
You will certainly be
surprised to see what a marked improvement army had done for the boys. They are so straight and fat and well.
Well, dears, I guess I've
rattled long enough. Fred will write in this letter too. Write to us real soon. Lots of love to you all.
Elda
DuPont, Wn.
December 8, 1918
Dearest Folks, -
In spite of the fact that
I haven't yet received an answer to my last letter I thought I'd better insert a few lines in
Elda's letter anyway, to show you I'm not quite dead yet anyway. We sure enjoyed the letter you sent to Ole
and also his company for most of the day and evening.
This old life sure is
getting monotonous now that we can see nothing to stay here for. It first seems like a frightful waste of
fruitful time and energy. Nothing new
has happened to change my prospects for the better. I have been transferred to the 26th Co. 166
P.B> and have been definitely assigned to the permanent personnel of that
company. Just how soon we will get out
no one seems to know. It sure is tough
to see the rest of my company discharged and I have to stay here indefinitely.
I wouldn't care so much if
I knew was Elda was better provided for.
I think I mentioned in my last letter about her being sick as a result
of our Seattle trip. She is alright now,
but she no longer has a job owing to a slowing in business of the place where she
was working. It has been impossible for
her to get another job since because they don't want to hire solder's wives
around here anymore owing to the uncertainty of how long they will stay. We can't for the life of us see how we can
make ends meet on what Uncle Sam provides when we have to pay six dollars a
week for rent and the other expenses so high too. the thing that eats on me is that I am tied
up here and can't get out and earn anything on the side. It sure makes a hard row of stumps staring at
us in the face now. We have gotten along
fine, tho, up until now and have surely been happier than if we hadn't been
married. But just now it begins to look
like we'll have to call for a little help from the outside until we can get out
where we'll have a chance to really do something for ourselves. Do you understand the situation? What would you do in our place? It sure makes a fellow desperate when he's
tied down like this. Elda has written to
Miss Hargis, Co. Supt. at St. Anthony for a school and if she can get one, she
will probably be home right after Xmas.
But there is also a possibility of me getting discharged by that
time. Can you tell us what to do under
the circumstances, or can you help us out is some way? We would surely appreciate it right now.
Well this letter looks
more like a hard luck story than anything else so I guess I'd better cut it
out. The regular Washington winter has
set in here and it rains about every other day now.
Ole is pretty disgusted
with the life too but this is a job a fellow can't quit of his own free will so
will have to tough it out I guess. Hope
it doesn't last long tho.
Hope you are all well and
happy. Write soon again and tell us what
we'd better do.
Your homesick kids -
Fred and Elda
Oceans of love to you all.
Comment:
This is the last of Fred's
letters from Camp Lewis. The exact date
of Fred's release from the Army is unknown. (Ole, in an interview in 1973 about
his war experiences said he (Ole) was discharged in February of 1919.)
You can see the outline of
their plan and the fact that Elda is a qualified teacher in Idaho.
In April of 1920 at the
time of the 1920 U.S. Census, Fred is farming and Elda is teaching at Heman,
Fremont County, Idaho.
In August of 1923 they
live in Bell, California and are both teaching school.
