Loyola University Maryland - Evergreen / Green and Gray Yearbook (Baltimore, MD)

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Dcriods, etc. But tlic game is worth it all. We have been well taken care of from the beginning — haven’t done much worth while yet, com- pared to the big things that are haj)pening in the “Main Show Over There.” Where do we go from here, and when? Not one of us can even surmise. When he wants to he, your Uncle Sam can he the most close-mouthed old uncle you ever saw — and of course he is right. But how soon “we hit the trail” or how far we go isn’t worrying us. We’ll he “Johnny on the spot” whenever they pass the good word to get ready for overseas duty. The American soldier knows he is in the right — and with a cheerful spirit, a high morale, a love for peace, and a trust in God, why it’s “Good- bye Kaiser Bill” — that’s all. Whenever you get the chance to write about the old place again. Father, just remember that your news is as welcome as the flowers in May. There’s nothing like a good letter to cheer a fellow up. I’ll add a little “doggerel” I composed a short time ago to show you what I mean : THE OLD TIMEB’S ADVICE TO THE BOOKIE. ‘ ' There ain’t no use o’hollerin or spreadin round the gloom. As though the little bugler’s just a sounded eraek o’dooin, ’Cause the eaptain gets a groueh on and he takes it out on you, Or the stable sergeant spots ijuh “Come ’ere, biiek, you’ll do. To ehambermaid them horses and just use some elbow grease A shinin’ up that harness.’’ Why, this is war — we ain’t at peace! S’ pose yiih have to peel the spuds, or scrub the mess-room floor. There ain’t no sense in gettiii peeved, that’s what you’re in here for; You kin drill, and march and hike until your feet are awful sore And you think them thirty bucks a month could be a little more; ’Cause yuh know your Uncle Sammie is a surely on the sguare When he tells yuh it all helps to lick them Fritzes over there. LIEUT. EDWAKI) IIAXLON Eugineer Corps (France) 17

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the road from town and to his challenge, he received the answer “Com- manding Otlieer.” “Well, you ' d hotter sneak in kinda easy, that big top-sergeant ' s been looking tor you all at ternoon.’’ On another occasion one of the guards in our eomi)any challenged three times a dark form ihat he detected gliding by one of the sui)ply buildings and received no answer. Luckily he was an unarmed sentinel or Uncle Sam would have been out a mule that hapi)ened to break loose from the i)icket line. I have walked post a coui)ie of times and one can certainly do a lot of thinking and reviewing the i)ast and searching the future those two hours on in the quite hours of the night. It is practically the only time in the army when a fellow is comi)letely alone with his thoughts. Another experience that I enjoyed very much was when our battalion of the 320th Regimental went to the artillery gun range to get actual firing jiractice. We learned a good deal there and enjoyed the two weeks in the s([uad tents, although the weather was exceptionally cold for this jiart of the country and we were not prepared or equipped for it. But it was something novel and we knocked a dandy time out of it. Each night we were free to go to a nearby quaint old Southern town, where we could sit around the big stove in the court room of the town hall and smoke and swap yarns with the village gossips and celebrities — or, chaperoned by the sheriff or one of his aides, take in a regular Southern “nigger dance. Another welcome addition to our army life was when the horses arrived (for ours was a mounted company). But when we had taken a few trials at them and found they weren ' t like the horses you pay ten cents to ride around the track on at an amusement park, we were not agreed that they were quite so welcome. There was hardly a one of us who didn’t “hit the ground” a few times in learning to c(|uitate and there was absolutely not one who didn’t find it much more inconvenient and uncomfortable to sit down than heretofore. You see we were nearly all “rookies when it came to horsemanship and j our first time on a shy Ijorse, bareback, you feel much like a i)ehhlc on a barrel. One fellow composed a very original ditty to the music of “Tramp, tramp, tramp, the hoys arc marching. “Bump, bump, bump, I got a blister. And my back is far from being well ; And my shoulders they are lame, Kaiser Wilhelm is to blame; All we get is thirty dollars. Ain’t it ?” Well, that is about all the do])c I can give you on army life now. Father, You see I am not in with the old crowd any more — being on ])rohation for the shoulder bars and here in the training school we arc asked to he like the old si)hinx. Enough that I am in excellent health and s])irits and find the work here most interesting. We are ])utting in about ten hours a day with drills, classes, lectures, ins])ections, study 16

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And iidirn yon cross the little pond ond ' (all in ' at the Front, Yon kin stand the gas and guns and shells, and ' dodgin ' bayonet ' slant ' Fanse yah know the old Red, While and Bine ain ' t just the kind of blnjf That Kaiser Willie thought it was — it ' s backed up by fighting sliiff. Bat here ' s the secret, bnddie; what hits yon mighty hard It ' s when the pals yah left behind fergit to drop a card; Or the folks back home don ' t think yon care to hear the old-town news. And the one best girl don ' t write yah, an ' your heart ' s down in your shoes: It ' s then the goin ' s pretty tough — you ' re down an’ oat — aw well. Tins fella Sherman had the dope — he ' s right — war sure is hell. Hen Scanlan. P. S. — Sorry I have no snap-sliots to send you, but there is so inueh red ta])e to taking pictures here that few of us bother with them. I am enclosing a few cartoons from Trench and Camp, which may interest you. H. S. On Board U. S. S. Pennsylvania. Your interesting letter was mighty welcome. It does a fellow good to know ' that he is being remembered. In reply to your request I w ill endeavor to tell you the “Diary of a Marine aboard a U. S. S. Battleship.” First, you w’ill have to picture the crewv sw inging in their hammocks, sleej)ing soundly, then at 5:30 A. M. the bugles sound reveille, d he crew ' get up, lash their hammocks with a long piece of rope and then stow ' them in bins provided for the purpose. Then we have hot coffee and toast before we turn to on bright work that is, the marines. The sailors scrub decks. The marines take care of their own quarters only. Every morning I get some brass j)olish and shine an inch w ide strip of brass on a hatch 3 x 6, w hich takes about five minutes. Then I take my bucket and go to the w ' ash-room w here I get a bucket of fresh w ater and, if I want a hath, there are eight fresh w ' ater show ers available. Then I go helow ' to our quarters to clean my rifle for inspection, bianco my w hite belt and polish my buttons and cap ornaments. By this time Mess Gear sounds and w e clear the mess decks for breakfast at 7:30. Pipe down, mess goes and we eat. Breakfast usually consists of fruit, cereal, fried potatoes, of which there seems to he no scarcity in the Navy, liver and bacon, or navy beans (which are very good), or eggs and coffee. After breakfast, if I am on the guard of the day — Tm on every other day — I get ready to ])arade colors, w hich means a guard of marines pre- senting arms, and the hand playing The Star-Spangled Banner, and 18