New Ulm review. (New Ulm, Brown County, Minn.) 1892-1961, 1916-07-26
SOLDIERS DO NOT
EXPECT LONG STAY
SOME INDIANA COMPANIES
% HAVE ALREADY BEEN
MUSTERED OUT.
CONDITIONS ALONG BORDER
PEACEFUL AS A SUNDAY
AT HOME
Llano Grande, Texas


{ Saturday, July %.
Special to the Review.
The End Regiment of the Minnesota
National Guard is encamped about
8 miles southwest of Mercedes, Texas,
and nearly S miles from the Mexican
border. Between the guardsmen and
the border are the regulars and the
Texas Rangers so the boys fear that
they will never see any actual service.
The first battalion train pulled into
Llano Grande at 1920 Wednesday
morning. After unloading all the bag
gage and freight the boys lined up in
heavy marching order and marched
to their camping place, nearly mile
from the station. The day was hot
and the boys had not walked for quite
while, so it was hard for them to march
thru the sand.
Fortunately the camping grounds had
been somewhat cleared. The boys had
to burn the brush piles which made
the day seem doubly hot. After
: the tents were put up the boys had a
light supper.
There was little or no rest for the
Co. A boys the first night as they had
to go on guard at 8 o'clock. The first
relief went on guard with fixed bayonets.
Later on each man received 5 rounds
of ammunition with strict orders to
keep the clip in the belt. The boys
were told to challenge in the following
manner and to fire at the last command
if not obeyed.
! "Halt, who goes there?"
~ HALT" (The boys we're told to
Nload here.)
Halt or 1 fire.
The only one to make use of the last
command was Charles LaDuke. He
claims that he saw Mexican trying
to get thru the line. The officers
seemed to think that LaDuke loaded
and fired and then intended to ask
questions, so he was put in the guard
house over night.
4 "Bloody's" shot wasn't heard around
the world but it was enough to keep
the Co. A boys awake, that is while
on guard. Nothing else happened that
night nor since and nobody expects
anything to happen. The camp is as
peaceful as Camp Bobleter but so far
the boys have had to work hard to
clean up the grounds. The first days
the meals were somewhat irregular
and not up to the standard but now
things are getting back to the former
standard. The water at first seemed
bad but after the boys got used to the
alkali it was not so bad. The water
is warm but there are "canteens'' only
short ways from camp where the
boys can get ice cold lemonade.
The climate does not seem to effect
the boys. The thermometer registers
higher than up north but the heat is
not so oppressive and there is always
breeze. The only things that trouble
the boys, besides work, are the scorpions
and spiders. Many have bought cots
and some have made some. There are
but few mosquitoes.
All the New Ulm boys are now well
tho some of them were feeling rather
bad the first days, from the effects OF
vaccination against small pox and from
the trip.
The boys got their last ''shot" against
typhoid fever Saturday morning.
All that is really hard on the boys
is cleaning up the camp grounds and
drinking warm water. After the
grounds are entirely cleared, there
will be few hours of drill in the fore.
noon and the boys will have more time
to themselves.
Friday morning Lieutenant Publ
mann and Corp. Anton Dewanz in an
attempt to help the cooks made some
biscuits. They turned out hard enough
for Tony to break one of his teeth when
he tried them.
Thursday afternoon Corp. Henry Krie.
ger, James Stevens and Henry Junge
hiked to the border to the regular en-.
campment. The regulars told them
that they have been waiting three years
to get across the border but that there
M doesn't seem to be any chance. The
" regulars can't understand what the
guardsmen want down here as there
is no danger.
The Indiana troops were mustered
out Friday night and sent home. They