Leon R. Wise, a sailor during WWI, writes to his cousin Ruth about his experiences on the sea.

4 March 1919: Sailor Leon Wise, another cousin of Ruth Backof, writes from aboard the U. S. S. "Cumberland" that he has been in the "horse pistol" for a while with influenza. He is waiting to join a ship due to be commissioned and notes that everyone falls in love immediately with Norfolk, Virginia, a "wonderful place."

27 March 1919: Wise describes the process of provisioning his new ship, the U. S. S. "Hopewell", and making ready to sail. He believes that the ship will eventually leave for San Francisco via the Panama Canal, "but one can never tell nowadays where we will wind up."

September 1919: Wise reports that the "Hopewell" was "out for that trans-Atlantic flight," during which period it spent little time in port and was buffeted by rough weather. "Naturally upon our return to New York, we proceeded to paint the town a deep red." He mentions that the "Hopewell" will be testing a new firing arrangement on its guns before these are installed on other destroyers.