WORLD WAR I SOLDIER'S 77 LETTERS TO GIRLFRIEND AND PARENTS BEFORE BEING KILLED IN BATTLE
SELF PUBLISHED: 1917-1918. Manuscript. Half-bound dark green morocco over light brown woven linen. A large, sturdy hand-crafted book with sewn signatures (11 3/4 in. x 8 in. x 3 in.) housed within a sturdy wooden slipcase, covered with woven linen matching the cover of the book itself. Letters, envelopes, official documents, etc.,are displayed behind within clear plastic "jackets", each mounted to individual pages of thick card stock. The large tipped in photo shows some spotty residue, and the slipcase shows a bit of edgewear.
The archive consists of 77 detailed letters written by Lieutenant Wood (9th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Division) who was commanding his machine gun company, and was killed during combat July 18, 1918, southeast of Soissons, France.
A collection of remarkable letters, reflecting an extraordinarily deep and philosophical grasp of both the lofty purpose, justification, and horrors of war ("I am fighting for our very civilization"), with none of the details left out ("I have seen men die smiling...", or "I haven't been out of my clothes for 30 days..."
Roughly half of this notable 77-letter archive are addressed to both parents, with some addressed individually to "Mother", "Father", "Dad") and the other half -- 36 letters -- addressed to M____S____, his sweetheart. Woven throughout so many of the letters is Lambert Wood's profound and unstoppable sense of duty and responsibility, and consistent view of himself as a crucial component of a much larger, grand effort than merely his individual self -- one utterly dependent upon his steady and ferocious, all-in participation. Further, as an officer, he felt his comportment had to be visibly far and above that required of the ordinary soldier - on a number of occasions, he mentioned to M____S____ depriving himself of sleep and duly awarded leave - because he felt compelled to set an example -- yet with no trace of egoism or grandstanding; Lambert Wood was fighting the good fight, the real fight, and coming to realize (and mentioning) that it was the big, brave two-fisted men who were the wons who would win this very tough war. (Apparently he had encountered those who were ambivalent about what was required for a war effort.
In his absolutely devoted, deep and very sweet letters to M____S____, he explained both the logistics of his various responsibilities and placements -- instructor in Gas warfare for example -- and seldom neglected to delve deeper into the reasons behind war,as if in explaining it to his beloved M____S____, he was also explaining it to himself; the young man was clearly a highly articulate writer who was able - at 22 and 23 - to clearly and convincingly convey the American sense of righteousness against a loathesome enemy. Somewhat alarmingly, reading through the letters, one sees this soldier-leader's growing -- it must be called "joy" (for he himself terms it so, in this and other synonymous words) in KILLING the enemy, the cold and dispassionate"otherizing" which steadily grows to supplant his still youthful and natural 23-year old boyish innocence, and permits the taking of human life, behind a script of justification.
Lambert Alexander Wood, age 23, was killed in action on July 18,1918, southeast of Soissons, France while in command of his machine gun platoon on a flank movement against an enemy group which was enfilading the advancing infantry line (9th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Division).
Reading through this remarkably articulate archive, one follows along the horrific yet fascinating path through the eyes of an educated, and perhaps privileged son of Portland, Oregon, gradually transform into a focused and efficient killing machine, a capable and effective instructor and leader of other men who had no choice but becoming the same, if they were to survive. Their unit was the first in the actual trenches.
Wood was the son of Dr. William Lee Wood, a physician, and Elizabeth Lambert Wood, a Northwest author best known for her adventure stories for boys. His grandfather was J.H. Lambert, Oregon pioneer horticulturist and originator of the Lambert Cherry. He grew up in Portland, Oregon. While attending Willliams College in Massachusetts, Wood enrolled in the vollunteer pre-enlistment training program in Plattsburgh, New York as part of the "Preparedness" movement, before actual U.S. involvement in World War I, sailing for France in March of 1917. Very Good Plus. Item #88062
Note: The soldier, Lambert Alexander Wood, was the son of Oregon/Washington/Arizona author Elizabeth Lambert Wood. Two books comprising excerpts from these very letters were published and are included with the purchase of this letter-archive: The first, entitled HIS JOB: LETTERS WRITTEN BY A 22 YEAR-OLD LIEUTENANT IN THE WORLD WAR TO HIS PARENTS AND OTHERS IN OREGON was published in 1936 by the Metropolitan Press of Portland, OR.
The second, which appears to be a reissue but which may contain an edited selection of letters, is entitled CERTAIN BRIEF CONCLUSIONS: FROM SELECTED LETTERS OF LAMBERT WOOD, was issued by publishers Binfords & Mort (Portland, OR) in 1939 and (also) printed by the Metropolitan Press in Portland (OR).
This copy includes the tipped-in photograph of Lambert Wood opposite the titlepage, and a tipped-in, handwritten presentation slip, written and signed by his mother, Northwest author Elizabeth Lambert Wood ("With the compliments of soldier-author's mother. Elizabeth Lambert Wood".)
Wood served with the Machine Gun Company, 9th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Division.
Price: $5,000.00