Smith, John W.

John W. Smith, Gros Ventre. South Dakota. Not a citizen. Enlisted August 11, 1917 in Bismarck, North Dakota.

 

I am proud that I was the first to enlist and spend more days in trenches than the rest of boys from this Reservation. I’ve had some close calls too. While going over on the Soissons drive July 18, 1918. a big Shell hit ‘bout 2 ft to the right of me and exploded but didn’t kill me. it killed two men on the right of me. I was just black with powder. That’s all, and if you don’t call that luck--- Machine gun bullets tore my breeches all up the same day too.

I think I’m the luckiest Grosventre.