River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1899-06-08

their answers almost before made.
Long service on general recruiting duty
had made them experts at judging hui
man nature. Up in one corner of the
room a corporal was putting a rookie
through his PAGES and asking questions
and answering them for him before
the ratified rookie could more than nod
or snake his head. The little room fair
Iy clattered with rapid-fire interroga-
tons.
Had fts-no--drink-m
married-no," and by the time the APP
plicant's chin hit or grazed his collar
the answer was down.
worried looking man marched in
and up to the sergeant's desk. The
sergeant kept on writing a letter at
double time. The man waited until he
had put the flourish to the last word
and then said:
81 want to enlist"
slow old?" asked the sergeant.
"Thirty-four," said the man.
"Y' look So remarked the sergeant,
critically. How many wives have y
got?"
"Only one!" said the worried-looking
man, taken off his guard.
Don't want YOU" said the sergeant,
dipping his pen and starting another
letter. And the worried-Iooking man
went out, looking more detected than
ever.
a ruddyfaced youth of % or % came
minute later. The sergeant wasn't SO
busy that he didn't catch a glimpse of
A.. L.
nc wrote a sentence or two more before
he Strengthened himself up, looking
stern and sCldierly.
Hat off" he ordered, and then: "Do
you know fractions? Yes! Well, how
much is one-third and one-half added2
One-ffth, you say! Guess again! Five
sixths, Ell? Greet, How'd you like the
heavy artillery? Think you'd like it,
Ell? Well, go and ge: letter from
reputable business man, saying that
you are all right, and come back
A shabby individual with frayed
collar slouched in. An odor of five-cent
whisky preceded him. The sergeant's
pen was galloping again, but he found
time at the end of sentences to put
lot of pertinent questions and orders
with hardly lifting of the eyelids.
Throw away that cigar stump! 1
said throw it away! Take off that hat!
Stand up! How old? What year were
YOU born? Don't know, Ell? Well,
don't bother to count on your fingers.
1 said to stand up-straight! Had
bath? You don't look it. When? Do
you drink? You don't! Sure? Don't
want you! G'wan, now! G'waD, say!"
Then the sergeant bent over his desk
and scrubbed for fully two minutes
without interruption. An upright fig
IRE in civilian clothing appeared in the
doorway. The sergeant promptly
dropped his pen and sat up in his chair
with an air of dignified welcome. The
topography of Ireland was lined on the
scanned, set features of the newcomer.
lie was ruddy with health and trifie
more erect than most men of his I'M
disguised years. His jaw was square
and his lips rested against each other
in IA straight line, as if they had habit
of staying there and seldom parted
company to make way for words. 9th
erwise he was an ordinary, everyday,
well-preserved civilian, who had failed
to put on flesh in the forties. At least
that is what he looked to the average
eye. He stopped in the doorway until
the sergeant had swung round in his
chair, and then marched up and stood
erect and attentive, but not at atten-
ton. The sergeant looked him up and
down just once and asked:
How many years service"
"Twinty-wan," said the newcomer.
Then he produced a big, plump en-
velope, and, placing it on the desk, re-
marked, briefly: mic discharges"
The sergeant stuck the envelope, I'M
opened, into pigeon hole and asked:
What regiment do you want to APP
ply for?'
1.-The 'Steenth.''
''All right. Make yourself at home.
1t will take couple OF days to get or
ders from the adjutant general
The sergeant resumed his writing,
and Private Sevenspot, with seven days
coming to him before the expiration
of his reenlistment period, made an
about-face and marched out to the
rockies waiting-room.
When Sevenspot marched in there
were 30-odd rockies and four or five
old soldiers scattered about the room.
The old soldiers were planted in the
contest corners and easiest chairs and
were busily doing and saying nothing.
The rockies were all talking at once.
They were telling their exploits. Pri-
vate Sevenspot took the most comfort
able chair available and said nothing
When rookie got up from a better one
for a moment Sevenspot exchanged and
said nothing. Then he looked out of a
window that faced Third avenue and
kept right on saying nothing for four
straight hours.
Meanwhile the rockies kept on saving
all sorts of things and all at the same
time, like women at church sewing
circle. One rookie had once thrashed
his schoolmaster. who was six feet tall
and so big that he had to be weighed ON
the city scales. Another had called
down his captain in the Umpty-eventh
volunteers so hard that the poor officer
had turned the command over to the
first sergeant. A third told what the
Ninety something volunteers would
have done if they had only reached Gu
ba. Two college men exhibited their
football sears and told all about them.
Stories of the marvellous, miraculous
and heroic followed one another for
four long hours. Then youth from
the hirsute west told how he once killed
two bears at one shot with rifle. At
this Private Sevenspot seemed to wake
up. Edging his chair over toward the
old soldier nearest him. he said in an
undertone:
'Spaykin' av bears remoinds me-
The rockies became suddenly silent,
and Sevenspot continued:
Nv tn tonne whin were sta
toned at Fort Sherman. in Idaho. which
do be mare tn Coor -Ellens. Thot
were before the examinin' surgeon
called me eyes twinty forty. which do
be doctor talk for lopsided. were thin
wearin' me craftsmanship badges on
me blouse instead av hidin' thin in me
chist at barricks for fear nv bein' chal-
lenged.
"Wan day whit out Iuckin' for bear
up be Niggerhead mountain. which
maybe we've seen in your service.
Afther marchin' for may be twinty mile