New Britain herald., 1916-08-11
CO. ! INDULGES
 IN A RAT HUNT
Rodent Furnishes the Excitement
 in Absence Of MeXiCanS
TO HAVE RIFLE RANGE

lU,
 Last, 9 Mascot-COrporal Eddie Og-
 ron "Greaser' in Disguise.
 Especial Correspondence by J. F.
 Conners.,
 Nogales, Arizona, Aug. 5.-Company I is to have use of the rifle range for the next four days. The men will now have chance to dig up less of the turf and tear the targets to shreds in- stead. The company will spend tho entire day at target work leaving company street at o'clock in the morning. This, of course; necess1tates leaving our cots and the arms of Mor- pheus at a. m. Tn time we will have a full company of sharpshoOters. With such a long siege with rifle practice sore shoulders will undoubtedly be around the camp for the week.
 When our real hike starts on the 2Oth, the men will be given good taste of field work. This trip will take six days of good hiking, eight of rifle drill work and six days to return. The entire regiment will make the trip and the boys are looking forward to it with keen anticipation.
 Exciting Rat Hunt.
 At last the old adage, "Try, try again and you will succeed" has proven a reality in camp. Since ar irving here the men have been looking far and wide for a suitable mascot with but little success. At last when hope was being displaced by despair, our hunt seemed at an end when a stray puppy, scant six inches long and as playful as a kitten, wandered into camp. It is rumOred that when Sergeant Chamberlain was entertain ing. on the hill in back of the camp on his occarina the pup, passing by, re- ceived an earful of the joyous strains as they were being waited over the evening breezes and decided 1t would remain and hear some more of the wonderful music and so ran this way Company M finally claimed the animal after the boys had selected at least dozen cOgnOmens for the welcome cOmrade. Surely, he would have been a good acquisition, for no sooner had the mOngrei made himself familiar with his quarters than he scented rat from the supply tent, a rat that must have seen service in the Mexican war as evidenced by it's gray hair For tunately we have not encamped in anything more than pseudo-civilized community, so that a rat chase did not symbolic the feminine shrieks, tent pole creaking and confusion that might have occurred in a camp such as Mantle. The boys made use of the worked up good sweat and finally speared the rodent.
 Band Displays Enthusiasm.
 This evening the remnants of the band made itself heard. The lads that started for a full nights sleep for got their good resolution as the air became rife Wiht music. The band re- cr1its and seven regulars started to march the entire length of regimental street playing America, I Love You," which filled the camp with marked and a snake dance and shirt tail parade followed.
 There are all sorts of rumors con- cerning our stay here. Some are in- cIined to believe that other quarters will be given Us, some think that we will be packing for north in a short while and others wonder how cold it will be in the winter Take your pick:
 Preparations for the building of new camp are still being rushed. Tel ephOne lines and electric light cOnnec- tions have almost reached to the first regiment camp. There was another inspection of camp today and as usual the men took care that everything was in first class condition.
 Corporal Ogren a Real Mexican.
 We had a close view of a real look ing Mexican soldier today. Sombrero, hat band, rifle, belt, beads and pa jamas made Corporal Eddie Ogren look like the real thing. Every avail able camera in the vicinity kept Eddie in the limelight and hot sun in order that such perfect disguise should not go unnoticed. Eddie now is dreaming of the days when he will master the Spanish lingo and cross the border as a spy.
 An interesting sight was afforded Sergeant Powers and myself this morning as we were traversing the main street of the town. We were at tracted by a drove of burros packed sky high with wood which were being prodded slowly along the thoroughfare by an old decrepit Mexican leading astern a young antelope which was resisting with all it's energy. The bur- ros were not new, by any means, (they have been the cause of many an hours loss of slep) but the antelope's cap- ture had much curiosity for many of the men here.
 Mutache Hobby Discarded.
 Mustaches having grown to mans size ceased to have any novelty. The proud possssors withstood the click of the cameras for proof of their efforts and then went in search of a pair of large sized shears. One hobby has come and gone. The bald-headed fac tion now watches daily the growth that promises to give covering again to the dome that is so susceptible to the scorching rays of the midday sun and when able to use a comb a second fad will be relegated to the discard.