Omaha daily bee., 1883-11-09
"sOJER BOYS"
How Recruits for the General Army
are Accepted-The Struggles
They Pass Through.

a very entertaining hall hour was
spent yesterday afternoon in the editorial
rooms of The Express with a representa-
tive of this paper. He has been report.
ing about a month, during which he has
attended half a dozen midnight fires, eN-
| plored the interior Of q Sc wer for a dis.
lance of half a mile, was knocked down
and half killed at an enthusiastic First
Ward political gathering, and experienced
several other little pleasures common to
| the profession. Thoroughly broken up
by this rough treatment, he was sent on
another assignment. In passing by the
recruiting station on Franklin street he
saw the advertisement, Men Wanted
for the United States army" and this is
the chat he gave US:
"The good old American flag fioated
over the ash.box on which the bill wa
posted, said our Isaac-that's his name,
and as 4 gazed upon its stars and stripes
fiuttering there in the morning breeze, a
feeling of patriotism anne over me like a
fieecy cloud against a sun.lit sky, don't
| you know, and | resolved to live tho re-
mainder of my earthly days-yes, and
| even to die if need be, in the service of
my country.
81 climbed the stairway to the door
and pulled the bell. A pleasant-appear-
ing baldheaded gentleman came to the
door, wearing military clothes and a
pleasant smile. When look hack l now
think the latter adornment was somewhat
sarcastic. He asked me what he could
do for me, and | began to say something
Of my longing for glory and immortal
fame. But he cut me short with
You want TO JON the army2 all,
l see. Just step this way and
put down your name on the
blotter-don't forget the middle initial"
When | had complied, he--I was told to
call him Sergeant Warren-took out a
book and asked me several questions.
He wanted to know if l had ever been
sick. / told him l was sick now-of
newspaper work-and that l had passed
through q seige of whooping-cough, in
addition to having the measles il. infancy.
Then he asked if 1 had ever had fits.
No quite, but pretty near, I answered,
What do you meant says he. I've been
working on a newspaper says !. Then
he laughed, sobered down, and smiled.
The smile, l believe, meat you'll come
pretty close to those same fits again be-
fore you are much older" The sergeant
wanted to know if l was addicted to
drinking-that was insult enough, but
he asked me if had ever had the 'hor-
rors." After several more questions had
been asked and answered, he took out q
pack of cards with little round spots on
them, and held them up across the room,
II at a time, to see if | could tell the
number Of spots on each. / did this
without anytrouble, butwhen he brought
out a lot of oolored worsteds, l called the
brown green and made one or two other
mistakes. He said l was a little color
blind, but he guessed perhaps I'd do.
81 was next sent into the basement for
a bath, after which, clothed in nothing
save a blush and considerable confusion,
] again returned to the sergeant's room.
A thorough examination he made of me,
from head to foot, to be sure that l was
sound; and then the recruiting officer Col.
Bentzoni, went over me in like manner
/ was then told that DIR. Trevain, the ex-
amining surgeon, would be in shortly, and
that | could sit by the stove till he arriv-
ed. When he showed up he gave a mvre
careful going over than either of my
former t~ormenters. He scvutinized my
nose and ears, looked at my teeth, tapped
my chest, and then felt of my limbs az a
jockey does when he buys a horse. Then
he pulled out an instrumental wasn't q
stereoscope, although the name has a
somewhat similar sound-at any rate he
began testing my heart and lungs. When
he finished I was weighed and measured
nc IN h0,nvhf o-l acknowledgements ~ al1n4
and they said l was all correct, and that
if, after consideration, l still held to my
former determination, l could be sworn
in.
81 returned to the basement, closed
the blinds and dressed myself, when l
again went up stairs and announced my
determination to allow nothing to sever
the bonds which joined my heart to the
welfare of my native land. They looked
as if they wanted to hit me, but instead
they filed out a blank for me to sign,
stating my name, place of birth, age and
occupation, and that l had voluntarily
enlisted this blank, day of blsnk, 1883,
as a soldier in the army of the United
States of America, for the period of five
years, and that | accepted from the
United States such money, pay, ~rations,
and clothing as are or may be established
by law. This the colonel read off to me
i'll a solemn manner, and continued, still
talking IN his throat: Isaac, hold up
your right hand and sweer-you won't
swear? Well, then, you affirm us fol-
lows
Sand i do solemnly affirm that l will
bear trae faith and allegiance to tho
United States of America, and that l wiz
serve them honestly and faithfully against
all their enemies w~homsoever; and thatI
will obey the orders of the President of
the United States, and orders of the ofi-
GERS appointed over me, according to the
rules and articles Of ws-. And thus you
affirm. Do your"
every time," / answered proudly, and
signed MY name.
81 had hoped that this would make me
a soldier without any further questioning,
but the sergeant turned over the paper
we had just filed in and pointed out a
blank form headed, Declaration of a
Recruit By it 4, after filling it out, de-
clared that l had neither wife nor child;
that l was OF legal age to enlist and be-
lieved myself physically qualified to per-
form a soldiers duties, and that / had
never been discharged from the United
States army or navy, or any other service
on account of disability or by sentence of
either civil o. military oovrt except with
good character.
II was now taken to the clothes-roon,
and after trying on any number of gar
ments at last found an entire QUILTED