EYES OF THE ARMY:

WVM Curator:
General Order No. 5, signed By Order of Lieutenant-Colonel Johnson. Paragraph 8 reads:

"First Lieutenants George S. Clark and Mortimer M. Lawrence, pilot and observer respectively and Second Lieutenants George L. Ohrstron and Joseph B. Mallory, pilot and observer respectively, 104th Aero Squadron, 5th Corps Observation Group, are hereby credited with the destruction, in combat, of an enemy Fokker, in the region of Moulins, at 4200 meters altitude, on November 10th, 1918 at 13:15 o'clock."

The third image is a newspaper clipping entitled "Vanquished the Last Boche Plane" and refers to the General Order quoted above.

Dear Folks:-

Nothing new to report. Everything seems to be about the same. We have had a couple of rumors about going home soon, but there are lots of squadrons here, homeward bound, who got in before we did. Still they don’t always go out as they came in. I am inclined to hope that the rumors will come true. I picked them up outside the squadron and they seem to have come from good authority. Let’s hope for the best. I do know that some squadrons are leaving soon but have no definite information that 104 is among them.

But I really don’t know that the movements of 104 are going to concern me much longer. You no doubt remember my saying that I had written a request for a Regular Army commission. The letter came back three days ago with indorsements [sp] from Pershing and Patrick and some forms to fill out. That means that the letter was caught in the A.E.F. instead of going to the States as I had planned. Maybe I’ll be caught here likewise and be sent to the 2nd or 3rd Army. Hope I go to the 3rd Army as they are in Germany. At that it wouldn’t be so bad to stay over here. I would not kick if I were ordered to stay here, but I won’t volunteer.

If I am going to have to stay over here I’ll take a leave and see the Riviera, if possible, before I return to the States, and England, London especially, also. As a matter of fact if I was sure of being able to get seven days leave every four months and being able to go where I pleased, I almost think I’d enjoy staying.

But I am not going to stir things up. I decided several months ago to stick to 104 as long as possible and I haven’t changed my mind. But I’m ready for anything that comes, either way.

As a matter of fact the only thing for me to do is to stay in the Army. I am too much of a roamer to settle down for life in one spot. Everything, too, promises a big future for the Air Service, either as a part of the Army or as a separate branch. Besides I want to learn to fly and I don’t know of a better way. I think I could learn fairly easily after all my time in the air, for I know pretty well the “feel” of the air.

Am waiting for some more mail. I know a fellow here who had letters yesterday of the date of January 4th. Hope ours come tomorrow. If there had been any today they would be here now.

Lots of love to all,

Mortimer.

104th Aero Squadron,
American E.F.

Dear Folks:-

Yesterday was mail day and I managed to catch four letters from you – Dec. 13th, 17th, 20th and 22nd. From them I gathered that you had at last received some mail from me.

There hasn’t anything particular happened here since the last writing. We haven’t had any news as to when we can expect to leave, or even hope to.

Saturday nite we had a dance here which was a great break in the monotony. It was engineered by the staff here. They had a floor put down in a hangar, lots of decorations and everything was fine. Of course we all helped pay for it. There was a forty piece band for music and lots of good tasting but very weak punch. The girls were nurses and Red Cross girls, etc. from all around the surrounding country. Every body had a good time. I met quite a few old friends among the officers.

One of the men I ran on to was Steele Evans, the radio officer here. Steele was at Fort Sill and was also one of the four cooks at Garden City. He has quarters near here, so I have been over to see him. It was our first meeting since August so we had lots to talk over.

I don’t know that I ever mentioned it, but I was at this place for almost two days in August for assignment to a squadron. It was then I saw Steele.

Every time I look around I am struck with the way this place has changed since that time. Then there were five or six squadrons here, now nearly thirty with more coming and the place growing every day.

Well my trip to Cannes has settled itself. Now that I am down here I find that I can get the leave readily enuf [sp] but should the squadron happen to receive orders before I return, my chance of going home with them is lost, for some one of the casuals here will take my place. Gruesome thot [sp], isn’t it. Of course you can guess that I’d not surrender my chance of coming home with 104, not for several leaves. That is what I’ve been waiting for otherwise I’d have left the squadron with the first on November 27th, and been home by now, no one had a better chance to go.

So Dick Beichel and others of the early arrivals are discoursing freely on the horrors of war. Well let them talk everybody tired for when I get home I want to be left absolutely alone as far as war talk is concerned. There is plenty of other stuff I want to talk about, of course it has to do with the war, but not the horrors.

I’ll finish this after dinner, it is now 5:55 and I’m hungry to say the least.

Now that dinner is over I haven’t any more to write than before. Our meals keep good and we have lots of coal, so why worry about anything?

Lots of love to all,

Mortimer.

WVM Curator:
Mortimer mentions his desire to “be left absolutely alone as far as war talk is concerned.” This was, and is, a common feeling shared by many veterans returning home from a conflict. While these feelings are always to be respected, it is often the case that family and friends fail to ask about a service man or woman’s experiences for years or until it is too late. History is commonly lost this way.

Paris Peace Conference

104th Aero Squadron

Dear Folks:-

Well we reached here Okeh on the 14th. The weather was bad so we didn’t fly down. Capt. Reynolds came down ahead in his car and I came along with the truck train. We didn’t leave Belrain till about 2:00 o’clock, stopped at Bar-le-Duc for some lunch and at Vaucouleurs for dinner and reached camp at eight-thirty. Not at all bad time, for we spent fully 2 ¼ hours at Bar-le-Duc and Vaucouleurs. We had a bunch of one-ton G.M.C. trucks which accounts for our speed, but at that they carried nearer two tons than one.

We are well situated here, but in typical military quarters. However, for once, the squadron is all in a bunch. We have a building for headquarters, dining room (?) and kitchen being in the back end. Then come two buildings for the men which gives them ample room, and space at one end for lounging, etc. About fifteen to twenty feet away is our building, same as the others only divided into nice large room by corrugated iron partitions. In the front part of the building is a loafing place about 20x30 with a large stove. George Clark and I live together. Inasmuch as the partitions don’t come to the roof we put a ceiling on our chamber and tar paper on the floor to cut out drafts. We have a small Boche stove which throws a heap of heat and we burn coal, the first I’ve seen since last May. The buildings are all new, never before occupied, in fact just completed, so they are perfectly sanitary.

We still have our mess dishes, etc., also our good cooks and the rest of our mess personnel. We eat at the same place as the men only at different hours, breakfast at 9, lunch at 1, dinner at 6:30, and even tho we are all anxious to get home, are going to be as comfortable as possible.

How long we will be around I can’t say, haven’t any idea. It is all a matter of transport, to the coast and then home. The squadron is ready to move now. We came down here with supplies, records and everything in such good shape that we could have left five minutes after we reported but things aren’t done that way, not in the Army. However we hope for luck.

Just before I left Belrain I received your letter of Dec. 16th. Yesterday, lucky day, I drew two, the family contrib. of Dec. 25th and 26th and the one of Dec. 29th. Today I am hoping for some in between the 16th & 26th.

I am glad you had such a good Christmas, I’m only sorry I wasn’t there too. Better luck next year, maybe. I am glad my cable came so nearly on time.

Thank you all for doing my Christmas shopping for me, I sure appreciate your trouble. Sis said there was some money left, please give it to Dad.

Now that we are on the money question, I don’t know if I told you that my monthly allotment stops with December. The original was only for eleven months and I don’t think it is worth while to renew it now in view of future uncertainty.

Also one of these days Dad may find some money to his credit at the Old National. I think the easiest way to wind up my Guaranty Trust account as I can’t get to Paris, is to have them send it home. I haven’t much of a balance there as I haven’t sent in any pay checks lately but have cashed the vouchers at the Q.M. At present my balance at the Guaranty Trust is a little over $140.00, it may grow larger if the rate of exchange drops any more. Then again I may write another check or so and it may be smaller before it gets to Beaver Dam. But when we leave here for the coast I’ll write them to send my balance to Dad. Then he will have something to apply on my insurance premium in March and the rest to use as he sees fit. By the way please pay my Masonic dues for 1919 out of that money when it comes.

Don’t worry about my stripping myself of cash. I have almost $200.00 (mostly in a Government check) with me and will collect about $218.00 more at the end of this month for I can still collect flying pay this month, tho this is the last in France, unless something happens. It is going to be a little hard to come home and drop from $225.00 to base pay ($166.67). I naturally lose the 10% (16.67) for foreign service and until I get back to work in the States I can’t draw the extra 25% for flying.

If the state of my finances allows, when I get home I’d like to contribute a new boat for Sunnyslope. We will talk it over then. I may collect all or part of that $280.00 back pay before then, hope so.

I sure was tickled with that Dec. 25th and 26th collection of letters. It was like talking to each of you separately. It came as a surprise, for I didn’t look for it so soon.

Did you ever get the little book “Yanks”? It was to come thru Stars and Stripes. How about “Dad’s Christmas Letter”, did that come on time?

No chance for travels now. Anyway I’m satisfied. I’ve seen all I want to see of war-time France. I’ll be back in a few years, maybe, but not until I’ve seen all of America. Wait till you see my map of France with all my trips marked on it, “some bum”, you’ll say.

I’m sorry to hear about Mr. Sharkey, for he surely was a good man. His family will miss him.

I’m glad Dean Birge is to take Van Hise’s place. He is a good man. But what a shame to lose Van Hise.

Must stop now or you’ll be tired out with this letter. Lots of love to all,

Mortimer.

WVM Curator:
The images above showcase Mortimer's current stationary. Note the 104th Aero Squadron insignia featuring a silver sphinx with blue background.