Shaffer and that's a German name because look at Schaefer that use to play
ball in our league and it was spelt different but they called him Germany
and he thought he was funny and use to pull gags on the field but I guess
he didn't feel so funny the day Griffith sent him up to hit against me in
the pinch I day at Washington and if the ball he hit had of went straight
out instead of straight up it would of pretty near cleared the infield. But
any way this bird Shaffer in our Co. is big enough to have a corporal to
himself and they must of spent the first Liberty Loan on his uniform and
he hasn't hardly said a word since we been in France and for a wile we
figured it was just because he was a crab and to grouchy to talk, but now
I wouldn't be supprised Al if the real reason was on acct. of him being a
Dutchman and maybe can't talk English very good. Well I would feel pretty
mean to be spying on most of the boys that's been good pals with me, but
when a man is a pro German spy himself they's no question of friendship and
etc. and whatever I can do to show this bird up I won't hesitate a minute.

Well Al this bird was writeing a letter last night and he didn't have no
envelope and he asked me did I have I and I said no and he wouldn't of
never spoke only to say Gimme but when I told him I didn't have no envelope
he started off somewheres to get 1 and he dropped the last page out of the
letter he had been writeing and it was laying right there along side of me
and of course I wouldn't of paid no tension to it only it was face up so as
I couldn't help from seeing it and what I seen wasn't no words like a man
would write in a letter but it was a bunch of marks like a x down at the
bottom and they was a whole line of them like this
x x x x x x x x x x x

Well that roused up my suspicions and I guess you know I am not the kind
that reads other people's letters even if I don't get none of my own to
read but this here letter I kind of felt like they was something funny