Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1915-02-17
BR|TON
DEFENDS WHOLE
VILLAGE ALONE
Wounded Sergeant Changes His
Opinion Respecting Recruit
Called Ellis Lordship."
NOTED FOR HIS LAZINESS
Promise of Good Nights Rest Leads
Him to Distinguish Himself in
Charge on ViIlage-Defends Bed
Against Whole Regiment.

London.-"Never again will judge
a man by his appearance said a
wounded sergeant, when asked for
his most thrilling battle experience.
when we started for the front we
had in our company a man whom
simply could not stand. He was tall,
well built, rather good looking, with
light hair and mustache, and most aw-
fully lazy. There was no mistake
about it-he had wealthy parents, a
man who had never travelled without
a valet.
"On the moment of his arrival in
our midst we named him his lord
ship" and bets were made that he
would succumb after the first days
march. Not bit of it. 1t is true he
looked tired at the start, but he looked
no more so at the finish. But when we
reached the place where we were to
rest for the night, he calmly unwound
his puttees, underneath which he wore
real silk socks. We felt a bit upset.
Silk socks for soldier are clearly
against army regulations.
Manicures His Nails.
But this was nothing to what fol-
lowed. He got out nice leather
box, opened it, extracted some sort OF
instrument and proceeded to manicure
his nails.
"All the boys gathered around him
to watch the performance; but put
an end to it by promising him four
days in the ordinary which he was
to undergo after the taking Of Ber-
lin, for. you see, we could not very
well spare the man just then.
1--WE were finally placed in the
trenches. His lordship did everything
ungrudgingly, but he could not sleep
without a pillow, so he paid four
packets of cigarettes day to a fat
fellow and rested his head on the lat
ters stomach. But we began to re-
spect him from the day when he laid
low 16 Germans with IS cartridges. 1t
was some shooting and he did it as
nonchalantIy as if he were in rifle
gallery
We'll. we left the trenches-that
is some of us did, and some did not
and even then one day we we're or
dered to take by assault village oc-
cupied by a Bavarian regiment.
First in Dash for Bed.
ITO give added courage to the men,
our captain said: You see these
houses? There are beds in them, and
these beds are for your use If we take
the village Take my word for 1t,
we did not lose any time, and If | did
not hustle then, never hustled in all
NV life. / was among the first to
reach the nearest house-at least l
thought l was, but when l dashed n
7 found his lordship' calmly stretched
out on a bed previously occupied by
a German officer, whom he had thrown
out of the window.
We thought that we could have
good nights rest, but about three
o'clock in the morning we were told to
get I'D, as a German regiment was
marching against us. / aWoke my
men. and all rose without murmur,
all except his lordship.'
"Get up!' l shouted.
He opened one eye, looked at me
and said, Not on your life.
What do you mean? | was chok-
ing with anger We must retreat;
whole German regiment is about to
attack u.s.
"Tf it is the whole German army,
7 will not give up my bed to them, he
answered with some heat-the first
time saw him get hot about anything
at all.
Holds Germans Off.
II order you started to sa- but
ne shut his eye. turned on the other
jde and slept. l added eight days to