The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1895-02-28
JACK DIsLIKES IT
,ne mw>NkEy DRILL IS THE eANa
or THE TAR'S EXISTENCE.

A Device bx which Uncle Sam Keeps III
Men on the ships Limhsrrd Up and In
Good Health Tarougk Exercise - Ss
.-SoisiisrinS- Il Allowed Ia the Drill
Good kind Uncle Sam has provided
pnvsical culture for Jack. Folks ashore
pay money for course of physical CULTURE
that isn't any better, II is Is SO good, and
YET Jack tanks he is hardly used in tins
no has 10 90 through it every day THAI
isn't rainy. tic calls it the monkey drill
The average Jack Tar is apt 10 be IN
grateful. wherein he differs little from thu
ress Of mankind The point Of the matter
+ that human beings object very decided
! " TO having things that are for their
good thrust upon them willy niiiy.
Jack is undeniahly picturesque, hus
never is he more interesting 10 look upon
than at this same monkey drill. He
. looks well when ne is swinging The big
guns: Extreme range, forward, Ex-
tresne range, aft Extreme eleyationi Ex-
treIne depression" Then you soo him
putting bis back 10 II and doing his beSs
~ swing the long, glossy steel tube of n
gun in the best possible time. but the gun
itself and the mechanism and the rest OF
the drill distract the mind from the con-
temptation Of Jack himself rs a well pus
up man. The monkey drill accentu
etos that
It comes right after evening quarters, az
O'Clock The marines and sailors have
all lined up on deck. The skipper has
come out Of his cabin and stands ON the
starboard side a little IN front of the gang
way that goes down into the war,lroom
The executive officer stands little in
front Of him and little To the right. Both
men stand with tautness and n crimp
IN the muscles Of the back and legs which
says, This is very Important
The ships writer is on the port side, ~
stiff as a wooden image and apparently
dead 20 the world. The captain Of marines
comes and stands before the executive
officer, salutes and conveys the importans
information that all are present or ac
counted for Then he salntes, rises on
his toes. pivots around and departs in
great sOlemnity. Tho engineer comes up
from the bowels of the ship and says the
boiler Is all right, but there il rust on ths
sshwhip. There Is less style about ths
engineer. because he has been doing this
for many years. His salute is merely q
reminiscencc, not half so pr.m as the
young cadets. who was having collie when
IAlt tnSlslNtE itsNt LIB tlALAAAAHcARGs @tAA hAo
officers report, and then the executive
officer tells the captain as mach as he
thinks iit
Immensely solemn function it IS, al
most pontifcal in its ritual The buglef
toOts q tune, and then begins the monkey
drill The ranks separate. and the space
between each man IS increased, and squads
are formed. with a corporal or bosun's
| mate in command.
There are Is movements which have rs
! be gone through every evening. They are
/ like those that used 70 be taught in the
public schools. only better. The men dou-
! bic I'D their fists and shove out first ono
| arm and then the other with enough yio-
| icnce 70 get the good of it. They extend
the arms horizontally. then reach them
| I'D. then drop them down They reach
the arms out front and swing them back
a. far as possible. They extend the arms
! horizontally and wabble them so ~
| 90 describe small circles IN the air.
/ They bend the body forward as far
/ as possible. then bend back 10 the
Same limit, stopping at straight up bo-
| tween each motion, because Jacks brain
cannot stand being sloshed around vio-
lently any moro than anybody else's. They
/ lean over sidowise so as TO look up 10 thu
/ fighting tops with the right eye and then
! with the ieit eye This motion - almost
duplicated later ON, when the same thing
l. gone through with, but In the later rao-
ton the arms are extended. That opens
the upper part Of the lungs.
Then comes thu hardest movements Of
| all. The men stand stiff legged. heels to
eether. and bend over till the knuckles al
the closed fist touch the deck ft looks
/ easy. Try IT, II you arc not in trimming
! you will find il isn't. Link your thumbs
together AID swing FOR It, and II IL doesn't
strptch the muscles OF your legs and back
/ then Joe's dead, and SAILS widow.
I There arc other motions Of stepping Que
( wide with one foot and then the other that
I show of the muscles Of the upper leg 20
/ the best advantage though the squatting
/ motion perhaps does that best Of oil
The cadets are meanwhile watching the
men, and when they find some lazy lout
( "s0ldieIing'' and showing cut limp arms
/ and squatting down with "A bowed INSTEAD
/ OF a sfif back bone they tell him about It,
/ The skipper keeps al eye on spch a man,
/ and n he thinks Jack is trying 10 Dodge n
/ little health giving exercise tho chances
I are that there win Dc little two hours
\ extra duty ready for him--not enough 20
I hurt him. but just 10 show that there IL
/ balm in Gixad and a physician there
I In the army these setting up dTilis are
I the perquisitc 81 n new recruit They lin
{ Der him up and be Is kept at II tin he 10
/ n sors g. boil all over. But In tho navy
/ it i an everyday thing. II makes a man
ashore wish there was somebody 20 make
him do .he monkey drill every day. May
b. then his stomach would behave better.
and be wouldn't dream about falling OF
suofs and ting. Dke that New YORK
World
Dsciilssd with TizAakA