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

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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

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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 quartermaster handing up the colors. This is done at 8 o’clock every morning. After “colors” come s “quarters,” when we are in- spected, clean our clothes and rifles, shave and so on. During “quarters” e o m e s physical drill, under arms, and also double time for about ten minutes. Then come other drills until noon. Censorship makes it impos- sible to describe these drills. Then dinner, which is al- ways a good meal. We have meat, potatoes and other vegetables, either ice cream or pie and coffee. Needless to say our ship is the best feeding ship in the Navy. The afternoon is gener- ally devoted to “corking off” - — sleeping, or sometimes we write letters. The hand plays three times a day — after each meal. At 5:30 we have sui)i)er, and after that “evening colors” (sunset), and we present arms as the colors are lowered. Then at 6:30 comes “hammocks”; we stand by them and they are piped down. We then swing them on our billets, two hooks about 8 feet above the deck and 15 feet apart. Each man has a billet. We are then privileged to turn in and go to sleep or go to the movies on the quarterdeck. We have movies nearly every night. My post is Time Orderly. I strike ship hells every half hour and report different things to the officer of the deck. The Marines have a whale boat crew, and have won several races and a cup. At present we hold the General Efficiency Cup of the Atlantic Elect. The Marines also man several 5-inch guns and can handle them very well. My position on a gun is sight setter. I could go on for hours with interesting hits about shi])-lifc, hut naturally, censorshii) forbids. I am sending you under se])aratc cover a few pictures of life aboard ship. I would like to know when the Annual comes out, because I want to get hold of a copy. 19 George T. Bullen.