Evening star., 1903-08-03
SLANG OF THE ARMY
TERMS GENERALLY UNKNOWN
OUTSIDE THE RANKS.
Trumpeters Are "Wind Jammers''-
When You Enlist You "Take
Blanket"
Fort Leavenworth Corr. Kansas City Star.

Fort Leavenworth Corr. Kansas City Star.
"Shiver my timbers" "cut my backstays,"
"douse my topgallant lights and similar
| slang expressions Of the sailor that smack
| Of the salt water are met with frequently
| in reading. not only in the novels Of Coop
| er and Russell and other writer's Of sea
| life. but in lighter stories of the sea. which
appear in magazines and the press. Why
| is 1t that similar expressions used by the
brother of the sailor. the soldier, are so
| seldom met with? Certainly not because
| the soldier has not "patter'' OF his own.
| for there are to be found in the daily talk
| of the 'wearer OF the army blue (or rath-
| er the wearer Of the olive drab." since the
color of the uniform has been changeO
| many expressions that to the uninitiated
| would need an interpreter.
Few Writers Use These Terms.
| Probably with the exception Of the writ
| ings Of Capt. King. whose stories of army
| life are widely read. there Is not writer
| who makes use Of any Of the odd express
| sions used by the soldier. Many of these
! terms are not "parlor talk" Some are so
| old that when one tries to trace up their
origin the old grayheaded soldier will tell
you that the expression was in use when he
| took his first blanket" which. being trans
| lated. means when he first enlisted Some
| Of the terms have a logical meaning;
| others, If they ever had any, cannot be
traced now. When a man takes a blanket"
| he has enlisted for the regular term Of ser
vice. The government gives to each man
blanket in his clothing allowance when
| he enffsts II he takes on" again he
| takes another blanket" The youngest
| man in the company Is 1.-The kid" the old
est dad" The first sergaent is called the
| top" The captain II he is liked. Is called
| the ''od man." no matter what his age.
What he is called II he is not liked. that is
| among the men in the privacy of the bar
racks. can be better imagined than print
| ed.
| Potatoes Are "Spuds."
| Irish stew. which the men get quite often,
is termed ''slum;" potatoes, "spuds" Many
| officers get the men Of their companies to
do a little work about the house, such as
! attending to the furnace. watering the
grass and going to the quartermaster's for
supplies, for which work these mon are
paid. Many men desirous of getting
this extra money. which they earn outside
OF their regular soldier duty. These men
used to be called dog robbers" This term
| originated In the early days of the army,
| when such men were looked down upon by
| their fellow soldiers, as they were supposed
| to rob the dog Of what came off the table.
| such men getting many a nice meal in the
| kitchen of the officer they worked for. The
| term now more generally used is striker.
| Until man has passed out of the
! awkward squad" into the company he Is
| called a ''rookie," and woe unto the
rookie who tries to talk too much and to
get into discussion too soon with the old
men of the company. One OF the first things
that will be told him is ITO shut up till your
name Is dry your enlistment paper"
| Each man signs to the oath administered
when he is sworn into the service. Two
| men who are chums called "bunkies."
| This term originated in the olden days OF
| ha when fha hunks 0cc1In}o6 hv fho
| enlisted men were double ones. Two men
| slept side by side. Now each man has
! separate bunk. but the term still stays and
| Is often used by men whose hunks are side
| by side "Bunkies' always have a pipeful
| Of tobacco for each other when a moment
| before they may have told some other fell
put under your nail' What one has the
| other shares.
A Deserter "a Skipper"
| A man who enlsts in the winter for a
home and deserts in the spring Is called a
''snowbird." Any deserter is "a skipper"
| The guard house Is called the mill" This
| term must have been first applied by some
! men who thought that the mill Of justice
| ground very slowly as his term of conflne-
| ment went on. If man Is sentenced by
| court-martial to a forfeiture Of one months
| pay and TO be confined in the guard house
| for a month. his sentence is termed "a
| month and MONTH
Trumpeters are called wind tanners"
| and when a man Is told by non-commis-
stoned officer to get your blanket he
| knows he Is going "to the mill"
| When guard tour has been completed
the men say. "One more shingle on the
| White House" What this term means or
| where 1t originated cannot be ascertained
| from the oldest man In the army. 1t has
| been used for generations. A dishonorably
| discharged man Is termed "a bobtail" In
! past years there was only one kind Of
| discharge blank. At the bottom Of the dis
| charge Is blank space under the word
..cha "a ctac.H where fha