Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1916-08-04
VERMONT BOYS HAVE WRITING
AND REST BUILDING.
no the Editor of dc Register:

To the Editor of the Register:
At last have my building for the
boys, nice comfortable place for them
to rest and read and play games, and
Henry Chapman is here to help me take
care of it. "Some class" seems to be
the regimenta expression to denote
superior quality, and our building is
pronounced 'some class" Immediately
by every man who enters it, Probably
most of your readers would call it a
shed, but it makes difference whether
you have been living for a month in
tent under Texas sun. The building
is plain enough rough boards, no floor,
plain benches, few kitchen chairs and
tables-but it is a chance to sit down,
and to read or write, and that is a good
deal. have been through the com
pany streets night after night and seen
the boys propped up on blankets on the
ground, eight to twelve of them in
tent, one lantern, trying to write home
or to read a magazine, and | did not
doubt that the building would be pop
ular. So it has proved. The men
crowded in before the carpenters were
out, and last night every seat was
taken-it is "a feet by 70 feet-whie |
read to them Drummond's French
Canadian poems and they sang popular
songs to the accompaniment of our
cabinet organ.
This place makes you write" one
man said to me; IL have sent only
cards before, but to-day have written
four pages home" So it will make a
difference to the folks at home that we
have our Y. NJ. C. A. building. We are
to furnish writing material, but by
mistake envelopes came with our equip
ment, but no paper. bought dozen
thick pads to tide us over Sunday and
put them on the desks at noon. They
were used up before supper and | sent
for more for the Sunday letters.
We have places for about forty men
to write at once, and they are nearly
all taken when the men are off duty.
There are also ten long benches, with
rest for the back, quite comfortable, on
which the men sit and read the maya
zines which have alreany begun to come
in good numbers from home. We have
three plain tables and two dozen chairs,
80 there is chance to use the checkers
and dominoes which came with our Y.
M. c. A. equipment.
We have also a $50 Edison phono-
graph with fifty good records, evidently
well selected for army use. There is
one about the little Ford rambling home
despite the weather and numerous other
difficulties, which particularly enjoy
We have some very good music along
with popular airs and humorous songs.
The music is especially welcome since
we have no regimental band.
Our building is the coolest place
about the camp, being even more com
Portable than Col. Reeves carizzo
pavilion. There are no windows, but it
is entirely open for space three feet
wide on all four sides. Screens keep
out the flies, and board shutters the
rain, serving as awnings to shield from
the sun during pleasant weather But
nothing keeps out the dust during the
sand storms" and there is a big lob
busting after one of these Texas
denominations.
Henry Chapman has been assisted
to-day by jenkins of Co. L, whom Col.
Reeves detailed for that purpose until
the other Y. M. C. A. men arrive. |
expect Mr.. Brown will arrive from
Vermont long before this reaches the
Register, and perhaps also a young