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December 20, 1917 -- Across the Atlantic - Day 1

        And then the adventure began of an Atlantic crossing in the middle of a naval war.
Don Martin's diary entry for Thursday, December 20, 1917: 
At sea. 277 miles.
Slept too late to get breakfast but made up for it at 1 o’clock. Spent early part of afternoon walking on deck. Sea pretty rough and a good many persons sick. I haven’t noticed any discomfort yet. Quite a musicale this afternoon. A young artillery lieutenant sang and played very beautifully. Ship has 600 passengers, more that ½ of them being U.S. officers going to France, and a fine looking lot they are. Decks are dark and tonight it was not allowable for people to walk outside on account of the sea. Sat in the smoker a while; then stood on deck a while and went to bed at midnight. No one seems much worried about submarines though everyone realizes there is danger.


Weather rough + windy.

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