The Frontier Kid

From Pine Camp, NY, we went to Camp Ibis, directly on the Mojave Desert in California, about 80 miles from Needles, CA, which is also on the desert. We were on the desert on maneuvers for seven months. As soon as I got situated out there, I notified Ardis to get on a train and get out to Needles, CA, as soon as possible. I was going to get an apartment for her to stay in. Well, I got one, which was on quite a little hill. It was about a hundred steps to get up to it. We didn't have to stay there long, because Ardis the next day was looking for something else. She found that there were people by name of Samsell looking for a babysitter. They had two children and lived right in Needles. It was a place where she could stay, and take care of the kids at the same time. I could come in and see her whenever I wanted to. So, she stayed there while I was in the desert, and we had many good times out there because we met a couple by the name of Jim and Clara Clark, who were from Sunbury, Pennsylvania. He was in my outfit, but he was in another battery. I was in Headquarters battery, and he was in A Battery. But, anyway, he had his car out there… He had a brand new Buick, and we would come into town about every chance we got. Sometimes it was two or three times a week. Often, we would take the girls out on the desert for a picnic, or something like that, and we would have a good time. Clara and Ardis really hit it off good. That was the full time I was out there, which was about seven months.