Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1916-07-21
TROOPS ANXIOUS
TO CROSS BORDER
Harrisburg Soldiers in Fine
Spirits Since Rations
Were Changed
[By Special Correspondence

shape for a strenuous campaign on
| the border, new equipment is being
issued all the troops of the First Penn
sylvania Cavalry here. The Cover
/ nor's Troop of Harrisburg has received
its requisition lists and they are now
being made out so that the men will
he able to draw complete outfits be-
/ fore the week is out.
Captain George c. Jack has started
at work on the requests for equip
ment being assisted by First Lieuten-
ant Edwin A. Nicodemus and Quarter
master Sergeant William N. Wyble.
The lists include everything from a
pair of socks and a pair of gray gaunt-
lets, to tent fly and a saddle.
Some of the State uniforms and
! equipment, which were given the Har-
risburg troop at Mt. Gretna too late
for distribution among the men, are
now being issued the Harrisburgers,
so that the troop now presents good
appearance.
New Ration System
A much wider selection of rations
for the meals is now possible by the
new system of issuance, which per-
mits the various troops to secure
whatever they need daily to the
amount of q cents for each man.
Heretofore the troops were each issued
the same things, and there was little
variance in the meals With the new
system, each troop secures what it
desires. the credit of 27 cents daily per
man being good for the entire troop.
The new system works like a credit
system at a store at home. A troop
quartermaster sergeant may secure
from the regimental quartermaster
sergeant anything from candles to
flour. He is not limited to anything
within reason, but must pay for it out
of his credit of 27 cents a day for each
man.
After living for about two weeks on
tomatoes, beans, hardtack and corned
beef, the Harrisburg troop is now
beginning to live on fresh meat, fresh
bread and potatoes, these things now
being issued by Regimental Quarter
master Sergeant Scott. AS the result,
the Harrisburg men are feeling in bet
ter spirits and life on the Texas bor-
der has taken on a much pleasanter
aspect
Weber Catches Hair and FIeas
Yesterday Cook Frank Weber en-
deavored to capture family of prairie
dogs that have their home underneath
the icebox in the cook tent. The
animals nightly run wild through the
tent and, although the eatables are in
cans and in chests, the little rodents
have done considerable damage.
Weber yesterday saw one OF the little
dogs hustling to his hole and he made
a dive for the creature. He managed
from handful of hairs and fleas he
got nothing for his pains.
Tonight Weber plans to smoke out
the family. After the evening meal is
cooked, a smudge of oil-soaked waste
will be thrust down the hole into the
ground and an effort made to capture
the little creatures.
Troop F of New Castle, which is
situated right next to the Harrisburg
troop, has little prairie dog as a mas
cot, and Troop c, the Governors
Troop, wants one too. If Weber is sue
be placed in a wooden box and kept
as pets.
"Kitchen Police"
Although they enlisted as soldiers,
to fight the enemy on horseback,
Privates Roy Lower. Charles Peters
are spending much of their time at
the esthetic business of peeling
potatoes. They are on Kitchen po-
lice" detail and are supposed to ASSIST
the cooks in preparing and serving
the meals.
Aside from this, their duty consists
of getting the barrels and kettles
! ready for the water from the tank
wagons that furnish the camp with
drinking and cooking water. There
is so very little water available as yet
that it is not worth while saying any
thing about the wash wafer"
For three days the engineers of
Scranton and Philadelphia have been
supervising the digging or the trench
in which the water pipes to furnish
the cavalry camp with water, will be
laid. To-day the pipes were put in
place, so that by tomorrow the water
likely will be ready at the edge of the
camp.
When completed, the line will ex-
tend through the entire camp, each
troop having spigot at the mess
tent
Here water for all purposes will be
secured. Different than at the mobil-
ization camp in Mt. Gretnu, where the
pipes were laid on top of the ground,
the water line in this desert country
is placed beneath the soil a distance
of about two feet. Otherwise the in
tense heat of the sun would have the
water heated to the boiling point be-
fore it ever reached the camp.
Hot? Read This
When 1t melts~ candles in the saddle
pockets of Clyde Fisher and Howard
kaufman, it is pretty hot These men
went to their saddle pockets the other
night to get their candles and found
them both melted so that they were
of no use. Chocolate almond bars.
which are the favorite candy of the
soldier bows can not be kept in this
climate. They melt in the hot weather
in Ell Paso, are kept on ice so as to be
in a salable condition.
To-day the three mascot dogs of
the Harrisburg troop were given their
first bath since reaching Texas. A
little water was spared from the
drinking water barrel and the animals
given a thorough scrubbing. Imme-
diately after their baths. the dogs
went out and rolled in the sand!
The men are looking forward to the
completion of the water line, for they
have been promised their horses when
ever the water supply at camp is
sufficient for the animals.
Thousands of the Eastern troopers
make use of the showers and SWIM
ming pool of the little Y. NJ. c. A. at
Ell Paso daily, paying Is cents for the
privilege and a towel. But from Fort
Bliss, the end of the trolley line from
FL Paso it is a walk of about four
miles through the hot sand to camp,
so that by the time the men reach
home" they are in need of another
bath.
Handling the Mail
Trumpeter Paul E. Kurzenknabe is
handling the mail and the laundry for
the Harrisburg boys. He is being as
sisted in this by Private Wilson Kirk
patrick, his "bunkie."