River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1916-07-06
WISCONSIN TROOPS
OFF TO THE FRONT
Badger State Soldiers Sent to
San Antonio, Tex.
O BE HELD FOR EMERGENCY
4st DAYS at Camp Douglas Are De-
voted to Hard Training to Make
Men Fit for Active Service
on Border.

son.-WiscOnsin's troops are on
.ir way to the front. After nearly
weeks Of preparation, the first
it's of the Badger states soldiers
re pronounced ready" and orders
ne from the central department in
icagO for the men to entrain at
e. The First regiment was the first
lntry unit to be mustered into the
eral service and was the first to be
dy for the move TO the front when
orders came. The other units max
up the Wisconsin brigade were not
behind
The Wisconsin troops were sent first
San Antonio, Tex, where, it was an
unced by General Funston, they
ould be held for an emergency. 1t
as announced that the men would
camp at Fort Sam Houston until
ey are ordered to the border.
Tor days before the orders for entrain-
ent came, the men at Camp Douglas
I'd been eagerly awaiting the time
hen they would start for the front.
Ulcers and men alike were impatient
be on their way to the border where
ey might have q chance to see active
rvice. The time spent in camp was
ell utilized, however, for when the
ovement to the border began, the
oops were thoroughly equipped and
pplied with ammunition. At the
me time the training or both the old
embers Of the Guard and the new
cruitS continued without a minutes
tste of time.
Much Target Practice.
For days a continuous stream of
I'd and steel was poured into the tar
IS on the military reservation.
from sunrise until sunset the bluffs
grounding the camp echoed and re-
lOed with the thousands Of reports
IN the firing line. Most deafening
s the roar of the machine guns,
lirts, as the troops call them, as
" sent a steady stream against the
* bluff, as a stream of water comes
IN a hose.
rfectly, and the members of the COM
MES are well drilled and thoroughly
miliar with their work.
The riveting machine up on a sky
raper under construction is what
achine gun sounds like, only the guns
0rk little faster, shooting as many
700 shots per minute.
General H0lWay was determined to
We the recruits as much target prac-
&c as he could crowd into the days
Amaining before the troops moved He
I've them practice at 100 yards and
90 yards, slow fire, and rapid fire at
20 yards. The rockies" got their
rst lesson in how to fire when they
ave to shoot fast to hold off charg-
1g line of foes.
Instructed in Horsemanship.
All the mounted officers of the brig
de, about siXty-tive, were given in
'truction in horsemanship by an ex-
pert in the workout on the parade
yround in front of general headquar-
-erS. This is another of the many i'm
DOrtant things In warfare. Mounted
officers and men must be master rid
ers to handle their mounts in battle.
All officers and men who are armed
with the .45 caliber automatic army
pistol were given range practice and
he reports from their weapons added
to the din that could be heard for
miles.
Well equipped, we'll armed, and
above all, trained and competent fight
ng men, is what Wisconsin has sent
out. The officers wanted only the
best to leave the state so that the
reputation of the Guard would remain
what it has been in the past-the best.
Medical examinations eliminated
many from the ranks. Private John
9. inland, former Milwaukee police
man, member of the First field hos
Dital company, commanded by Maj.
Charles II. Stoddard Milwaukee, was
because he was over the
weight limit and because he had an
attack of appendicitis here and had
had one previously. He weighed $50
pounds.
Weep When Rejected.
Big, strong and apparently healthy
men who were rejected for defective
eyesight, broken-dOwn arches or other
went to their tents and
wept like children when they were in
formed that they could not serve with
the cOlOrs. Married men refused to
forsake their flag, and single men who
are losing well-paying positions
through the mobilization and subse-
luent service refused to take the prof
fered discharge.
In a drawing to determine what reg
iments would receive the new army
the latest army model, Col
0nels John p. Joachim of the First and
Randolph Richards of the Third were
Their regiments received
new equipment. This differs
from the old principally in that the
equipment is carried in a pack on the
back, instead of in a roll over the left
shoulder, in haversack and canteen
All Of this material is combined into
ono n7In(IIo and Gtrappad RI tho ho al