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| | PVT. ORA KELTNER
Serial No. 2,046,987
Rose City, Mich.
He came from the 310th Ammunition Train to the Battery in September, 1918.
Before coming into the army he was a fisherman and loved to tell the boys of his fishing trips. Keltner did not take naturally to soldiering but he exhibited a willingness and a spirit to do his duty.
During our period of fighting, Keltner, at the Puvenelle Woods, was detailed to the kitchen, and when we moved into the Euvezin Woods, Keltner was sent, along with Mess Sergt. Belbeck, Sergt. Allen, Privates Olivier, Krauss and Baker, for rations.
In the evening, at Thiacourt, Keltner was on guard and the shells were coming with frequency sufficient to keep any man’s mind in an active state. Someone approached and Keltner proceeded to do his duty as guard. Calling upon them to “Halt,” he reached for his pistol and was about to raise it when, by accident, his finger must have touched the trigger. The weapon discharged, ripping his trouser leg and grazing his flesh. While this was a natural accident, it was sufficiently amusing for the boys not to forget.
He engendered a spirit of friendliness at Ponta-Máusson, for he was the kind who knew everybody. His easy way had acquired for him the nickname of “Huckleberry.” |