New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1915-07-08

with his train from the line. lie is per
haps rising hfty-fvc; he is quite stout
in spite Of an active life. and inclines TO
badness Browne Rhobinson ought to
be Irish, what with his wit. but he il,
as matter Of fact, bluc-blooded Eng
lish. when the war came he was some
whore in South America, where he was
probably preparing TO mingle IN an
other revolution. There rs no age limi,
in South American troubles Now he
is 7. G.. O.. which means Transport
Commanding Officer. As such he mas
charge. supreme charge, OF train. lie
may be gone four or five days toward
the line. during which he works ais
brain like a Wall Street broker and his
body like n longshoreman, and sleeps
In what the army calls a "hea-0ag.'
There follow two or thee days during
which he is the JOY Of the base. and
then he is of again. | suppose that,
ike all raconteurs. he touches up his
best stories; it seems impossible that
so many ridiculous things could COM
under the attention of one man. This
Is his latest:
The special officials in the British
army. and also the service corps OF the
British army, are cursed with clumsy
official designations. II the army
stopped TO pronounce them all IN full
there would be no time left for fight
ing. SO they fall back upon initials
The Royal Army Medical Corps DO
comes the r. A. VI. C.. the Army Ser
vice Corps the A. S. c.. and so IN.
Now it appears that a bewldered civil
ian showed w the other day at rail
head lie had business there some
thing TO do with army supplies but
his papers were irregular and the Army
Intelligence men arrested him and took
him before their chief.
80. s. o. and V. c. and-D. T.'s,"
"Yes," said the chief, 81 am the c. J.
O. | suppose you are all right. but yoI
must straighten out your papers. See
the A. T. VI. You will find him on the
ground floor Of the r. A. VI. G. head
quarters next Office to the G. NJ. o..
Get him TO wise this and get IL counter
signed by the I. c. O. of your tram.
Then see the VI. T. c. O. lie is some
where about town. Do you know him
He's a big fellow with a little mus
tache. majors uniform with the d. $.
O. and the V. c., and
stop" cried the civilian. stop! |
am getting the d. T.'s!"
Also, he brings US always the latest
news from a curious social situation at
one Of the railroads. Here two officers
are associated, as they have been by a
Quirk Of fate associated ever since the
retreat from Mons. One has charge Of
transportation and the other is mill
tary functionary with police powe.s
over the soldiers and civilians Of the
district Both are extremely efficient
officers. When men are so closely asso-
ciated through hard and adventurous
times they end either by becoming
bosom friends or bitter enemies. In
this case the thing has gone the wrong
way. They have not been on speaking
terms for months; but still they 20 OF
with ,1eir respective jobs in the same
office.
The other day the military officer
had some complaint to make concern
ing the running Of the trains into
railhead. Sitting across the desk from
the transport officer, he called his sol
dier-clerk. dictated the complaint,
signed it when II came off the type
writer, folded il. handed II back TO
the clerk, who solcmnly carried it
round the desk and laid it before the
transport officer The transport Off
Ger, who had just heard it dictated, put
on his glasses, read II through TO the
last bitter word, tore il up and dropped
10 on the floor
Whereupon the military officer sent
for his sergeant and had the transport
officer put under arrest for littering up
his majesty's property.
\ University Bred Chauffeur.
Now that the Lost Legion Of Britain
has found itself and gathered again,
some of the middle-aged or c derby
members learn that they are without
any special aptitude for high command.
I'm that case they find something TO do
i'm the ranks. One of them g past nifty.
lie knows nothing of medicine or rail-
roads or languages; but he can run
an automobile. and do it we'll. So, like
many others of his class, he has volun-
tcered as a Red Cross chauffeur. lie
is a university man, Of great breadth
of cultivation and Sc eral pleasant lit
tie intel. ectual hobbies.
Perhaps because he looked too old
to take chances far up toward the line,
the impcrsonal army authorities as
signed him as chauffeur TO medical
officer who must. in the course Of his
duties. do much running about the
base. Now, when he and his othcer are
in company. he is the respectful, obedi-
ent Tommy, always s-luting with that
rather elaborate and fourshing salute
which the privates use in the British
army. It is quite { tferent when they
are alone. Similarly, when there is
company at the hospital he dimes IN
the basement with the Tommies; but
! understand that if you should drop
in unexpectedly you would find hlm
upstairs. like as not, dining with the
officers and surgeons. After all, aru-
fetal rank can be carried only so far.
Stone Blind, Still Soldier.
Finally. there is the most nobly pa
thetic case of all.
When first saw him he came sud
denly int, sight from a doorway, clad
i'm full Highland uniform, even to the
sporran at the belt. ! remember
catching NV breath he was such an
figure of a man. He
stood a full six feet two, and it was
six feet two of muscle and sinew at
that He was broad chested and yet
litbo with that athletic lithencss Of
,,o,,r ft Enplishma.. lie had a fine
face. strong and clean cut, and splrltu-
olIv clean. too. And over IL all was
that kind of light which comes into
human faces only from affection nobly
borne.
For both eyelids were closed sunk
down into the eye sockets. He was
stone blind.
They told me about him later As
captain i'm the Ioer war he won the
Victoria Gross. but during that feat
Of arms he took a rife bullet straight
through the temples. 1t cut both OPP
tic nerves. But he has gone ahead
with his life. And when the wal broke
he asked for something 20 do. He had