[Fragmented letter, undated]

(1)
busy getting things ready for the new Army and making ourselves 
comfortable for the winter.  The weather has been very mild but rainy 
and the mud is our worst trouble.  We have been given grease for our 
shoes and whale-oil for our feet, to prevent trench-feet and the 
whale-oil smells like- well, we'll never get that sardine flavor out of 
our shoes and those army shoes wear like the dickens.  In the British 
army, trench-feet is now punishable by a court-martial and our own 
officers are making awful threats but we have better reasons for not 
getting careless, having to lay around in the hospital being one of 
them.  The box of cigarrettes came since I started this letter and will 
help me to celebrate the holidays but I am going
(2)
to ask another favor.  I wish you would write to the folks and tell 
them that my address is not[underlined] 'First Engineering Corps' but 
'1st U.S. Engineers.'  All the engineer regiments are included in the 
Corps, as I understand it and my mail is liable to go to company 'C' of 
all of them before it get to me.  It must be five or six weeks since I 
had any letters and about a month since a few papers, marked 
'Engineering Corps,' arrived.  I am going to write but two letters are 
more liable to get there.  Tell Aunt Sarah that I received her letter a 
few days ago and that she should get a reply with this letter.  I have 
had several letters from the folks in Wales and two from a Southington 
man in England but I can't help wondering how much mail has gone 
looking for Co. 'C' of the Corps.  I hope you have a pleasant time for 
the holidays and please give my regards to all the folks, and you might 
tell Albert that I will be glad to stand around and give advice while 
he digs his old field-gun out of the mud.  I have lost his address.  
Rob. 

[Transcribed by Lauren Kanne, May 2009]