The Portland daily press., 1898-04-25
RANKS FILL.
The PORTLAND Companies Ready for
War.
Names Quota Will Be Ono Reeiment-Ev
Tomorrow the Boys May Be in Angus

- o--~ A>SJo 1uay 1S6 IN Angus
Ia.
The ar1nory was busy place on Satur-
day. In every company's rooms men
were gathered making arrangements for
call into service. The officers had MANY
applications for admission aud the suroe
on Of the first regiment, DR.. O'Neil. had
many young men sent to him to be ex
amined. Some of the parents of the youns
men who belong to the national guard
have been making desperate efforts to get
their sons out of the service but yery few
discharges have been granted for physical
disqualification. In some cases the Young
men have joined the companies below the
age limit and their parents have signed
documents testifying that the young paen
were of tho right age SO that in these
cases there is little chance of the men be-
ing discharged from the state service.
although it will be optional with them
az far as volunteering is concerned.
All company commanders expect to be
ordered into camp at Augusta by Tuesday
of next week at the latest, although they
may receive orders to leave before that
time. The adjutant general has made
arrangements with the railroads for
special troop trains to Augusta and no
matter what day the call comes this
special will leave Portland at D. m. End
Biddeford at p m, and will run straight
through to Augusta.
Barracks have been erected at Augusta
for the accommodation Of the troops and
the two regiments will here be re.organ-
lied into one regiment. This will of
course neoessitate the dropping of some
of the field and line officers of the two
qualified for active service will undoubt-
eddy be chosen to command the re-orgarl-
lied regiment. AS far as the line officers
are concerned some of them will be re.
tanned and Others will be dropped. The
companies Will be recruited to one
hundred men and as far as possible the
present companies will be enlisted to-
gether. Names quota under the call for
l25, 000 will be about twelve hundred men
This will include one regiment, the am
bulance corps and the signal corps. Port
lands representation in the new regiment
will he large one and the Portland Off
| GERS for the most part will have COM
mands. Some of them may be promoted
| to field officers. The plan now seems to
be to retain the newly organized regiment
at Augusta until it is ordered by the war
| department to some other place and when
| 1t goes it will go as a completely organ
lied regiment and ready for anything
which comes along.
All of the Portland company COM
l 49, Lo@,,
and sickly men and getting strong and
rugged fellows in their places. An
amusing thing occurred at the armory
Saturday afternoon when one of the COM
pany commanders sent one of the mem
bers of his company to the surgeon to be
examined and Instructed the man to tell
the doctor to send him q sealed letter with
the result Of the examination. After a
time the young man returned to the cap
tain of his company and presented him
with a sealed letter. The captain opened
1T and fouad, in a pretty feminine hand
writing, an invitation for some one to call
and see the writer before going to war as
| she had something very important to tell
him and loved him very much.
The captain saw at once that the man
had given him personal note from his
best girl instead of the DOCTORS certificate
and finally told the fellow of the mistake
which had been made. The man turned
every color of the rainbow for few min
utes but finally managed to pull out the
doctors certificate and made his escape
from the captains presence in great
embarrassment.
Employers Of young men who are in
the national guard are showing their pat
riotism now and showing it in a good.
substantial manner. Eastman Brothers
& Bancroft had two young men in their
employ who belonged to the guard. Sat
urday forenoon they called these young
men into the business Office and said to
them:
"If you go to the front in the national
guard your places in this store will be
kept open for you and you will be paid
nalf the wages you are now receiving I'M
til you return. This money will be turned
over to your families. -
These two young men are going and
they will fight all the Estter TOR their
country when they realize what their en-
ployers have done for them. Eastman
Brothers & Bancroft deserve the COM
mendation of the public for this move
and in the long run such a generous spirit
will be suitably rewarded BY the public.
1t has not 5een done as an advertising
scheme either for the members of the
firm were anxious that nothing should
be said about it outside of the store.