The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1902-01-24
CHAP TER Iv-Ccntinued.

I'VE have orders to leave tomorrow
We may break camp tonight. Unless
you come down this afternoon you NAV
not see us again." Then, after a pause
he blurted out: ooh, come. won't Won
KISS anu make up? 1t won't hurt Free.
Ola II think Of her while I'm gone. II
may keep me from something worsew
EDWARDS face cleared little. After
all Freeda was not to blame, nor vii.
lis either so far as that went, and with
revulsion of feeling strong in him
he shook Willis hand. There were
real tears In Willis eyes as he looked
around the room.
After all I've had some good times
In the college. Expect I'll miss even
old Quad unless I'm having a good
sized row with the naughty Castll
ians all the time. And | have enjoyed
the club and the tennis and the foot
ball and the society dinners. When
get down to bacon and beans and black
coffee, I'll wish for some college grub,
| guess. But here's to war. glorious
war! Down with Spain! Up with
Cuba!
ooh. Cuba. the land that ought to be free.
We're ready to fght Tor thy libarty!'
he began to sing.
And with the echo of the college
verse celebrating Cuba's freedom vii.
lis marched out into the hall, where a
crowd had gathered to see the volun.
teers off to camp.
The regiment went out that night
and in week was encamped at the
south, waiting orders there, hoping and
praying to be transferred to the seat Of
war. But the days went by, and still
the troops remained in camp. A letter
from Willis to Edward three weeks
later expressed his views of the stua-
ton and gave Edward n strong inn
preston that war, glorious war;" is
not all fun and glory" at least not
that part of 1t spent in camp.
We've been rotting in this hole now until we're
all ready to desert and be shot, just for a change
Willis wrote in great disgust. It's drill, drill,
drill, until I'm sick OF the whole business We've
got a captain that's made of ramrod and pair
OF boots and he trots US out through the broilng
sun and the rain alike and marches us around as
II our legs made OF vulcanized rubber and
our backs Of boiler iron We have plenty to eat,
such as it is and enough what there is OF It, but
I'd give 81 apiece for one Of those club pies that
we used to say were bullet proof and ought to be
made for the United States instead OF the de.
fective armor plates manufactured for the navy.
Send me one OF them in hat box, c. o. D., AMI
throw in a couple dozen doughnuts. We get some
things here, OF course, from the wagons that come
around, but lately most OF the peddlers have been
ordered out Of camp account Of the boys get
N ms nd xyar mad
ice cream.
The worst thing about this waiting is the feel.
ing that at the rate things are moving the war
will be all before we can hit lick at any
thing except the bacon and coffee. There's been
considerable sickness here Winters OF Company
ID died in hospital yesterday, and more than a
dozen Of the fellows in Company II are down with
fever. Not more than half the boys take any
precaution about the water or their diet. We
have orders enough and advice enough, from the
colonel down to sergeant and corporal but there's
lots Of go you please about 1t. For amusements
we play cards and pitch quoits and once in awhile
game Of baseball, but most Of the fellows are
glad to lie still when drill isn't on Won't you
send me a copy OF Comic Sections, any old thing
TO read? One OF the chapel hymnbooks will do.
Old man. ] feel pretty blue at times ! think
mother was right about IL when she said I'd &c.
sick oS5it There's bare chance Of our being
transferred to Tampa within a week. II we are.
that will mean active service. Write me, old
man, and tell me all about. the new president.
1t was rather sudden, wasn't it, the way he was
called2 Don't tell the fellows am blue. But II
any Of them wishes he was down here tell him
the climate Of Hope college is good enough. Your
chum, WILLIS PRESTON.
Willis allusion to the new president
touched upon an event in the college
that would have received much more
attention at the time IL the country had
not been so entirely carried away with
the excitement of the war.
Early In the year the president Of
Hope college had received call to a
larger institution In the east and had
accepted. His place had been. at once
filed by the trustees through the cleo
ton of one of the professors, CON-
young man, who had prov
ed in many ways his fitness for the
position.
The election of this new man meant
In several ways a change of policy In
many directions. Edward was only