The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1916-08-16
(By Special Correspondent
Llano Grande, Texas,
- Thursday, August 10th.

l am sitting here in tent No.
:. along Company LIS street be-
fore the Company Corona, Won
dering how | shall start over it's
keys this weeks letter to the
folks at home. If it wasn't for
the weather which usually helps
2 conversation out of difficulty
! might not begin. AS it is I
will first tell you something Of
the rain that deluged the camps
a. Liano Grande the past week.
We have had numerous show
ers come and gone of a sudden.
The past week we have had full
grown rains that have been real
events, though not of serious
consequences to Company L Sat-
urday night, after day of in
termittent showers swept across
to us from the Gulf, orders came
to us by reason Of a warning
telephone message from head
quarters at Brownsville, to stake
down the side walls of our tents
and make them generally snug
against a heavy storm which was
headed in our direction. Orders
were obeyed with unusual al
'acrity and thoroughness. Every
opening in the tent was roped
tight. The most of us went to
bed and to sleep in expectation
of the storm. Finally the clouds
broke and poured down their
rain and let loose their winds.
Some of us still slept except
when the rain cannonaded our
canvas roofs too thunderingly,
others awoke and remained on
guard against any possible NOM
ent when their tent fearfully
ashake in the wind might rise
from it's moorings and batter
someone's head with a center
poe or tripod. This storm
roared practically the night
through and with a recess thru
the morning drowned itself out
in the early part of the after
noon.
The morning showed no cas-
ualities along our street. 1t was
learned, however, that in the
night as the storm first broke
the cooks had been called out to
reset-up the supply tent. The
most of the regiment actually
did suffer for the water quick
ly overfowed the trenches dug
around the tents and soaked
men, those who were not fOrtu-
nate to have cots. The boys of
this Company were saved from
a drenching by reason of the
new wooden floors we put in last
week. Over in the Third Regi-
ment grounds and those of the
Indiana soldiers the water Sun
day afternoon stood several inch
es deep, the ground being too
low for any drainage system. An
Indiana man on guard told me
their guard house tents had wa
ter in them to the depth of a
foot the previous night. If such
rains came at respectable rea-
sons and frequent times there
would be no need of the big ir-
rigation canals here.
A little excitement swept over
the camp Tuesday when orders
were issued to send back to Fort
Smelling a detail for recruiting
purposes. All sorts of specula-
ton were rife as to what, if any,
: man would be picked from Com
<pany L, and run particularly
strong when at afternoon drill
Colonel Mollison came to our Of
fcers in regard to the matter.
We were allowed one corporal,
and the final choice alighted on
Bill Carity. The detail as fin
ally selected for the regiment
included Lieutenants Mckenzie
of B. Company, and Cunningham
of D Company, Sergeants Nc
Kay and Johnston of | and G
Companies, respectively, Corpo-
rails Roebeck of K Company and
Carity, and six privates. This
detail sent to Fort Smelling will
go to Minnesota towns where
ever prospects are good to line
up recruits, and to help in drill
ing these new men until they
are brought to the border camps.
New additions are surely neces-
sary now and will continue to be
so as there are constant expira-
tons of the terms of enlistment.
It is probable that this special
detail after a months duty at
Minnesota headquarters will be
returned to the respective COM
mands here.