Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1916-10-27
Were going east, they eayr

1IdllSpOTtS jill Ine cdSL eDu OI LOQB
Island, they say"
Jim's soreness and WEAKNESS sud
denly were gone. Instead a hot impulse
of power and passion stirred through
him. It was much more than a re
juvenation of the first excitement of
the camp In Chicago and of carrying
arms through the streets. The enemy
of the United States was landing-or
about to land-upon the shores Of the
country! He was being called, with the
rest of his regiment, to oppose them!
There's been big doings In Washing.
ton tonight Have you heard?'
Nothing much"
.Well. we may get it; we probably
are going to; but they aren't to stick
it to us for nothing like they did with
the navy-poor devils"
Jim choked and swallowed. All the
evening he had been thinking of Bob
and Nellie. Was Bob killed, and did
Nellie know it yet? whats hap
pened in Washington" Tim asked.
"They say Stones In absolute
Charge
Some one else cut In eagerly. "And
the president calls out a million more
men tomorrow
HE don't call. He orders. They're
going to draft by ages right away. No
slackers here, If Stones bossing"
The bugle blew again. Bugles an.
swered all about.
"Say, what was that call2"
THAT was assembly"
"'Twas not. You fool, they don't
blow assembly when they want
"Well, that's boots and saddles
they're blowing over there In the First
cavalry. l know that"
"Hey, sergeant"
Were to get in line, boys-over
there; column fours" the sergeant
suggested optimistically.
The confusion in the camp became
greater and greater. In the weeks
tireless, intensive drill Company T
all raw recruits except the officers and
s~ergeants and corporals who had been
promoted from the Third militia regi-
ment-had only passably mastered
squad drill. Form foursr' still
brought recruits tripping and tum-
bling, passable platoon evolutions by
daylight were still In the future, and
now, in the dark of midnight, a whole
battalion-four companies together
was expected to form and march to
the railroad station and keep from
getting mixed up with the other battal.
ions of the Twentieth and with I'M
counted battaliOns of other regiments.
not to speak of the troops of mounted
men who were on the march at the
same time. There was a great deal
of swearing, and there was little light
to let any one witness just how bad
the formation was-and somehow the
battalion got started.
"Some troupe travelling with us!"
the man marching at Jim's right com
mented. He was Paddy Kilbane, erst-
while shipping clerk and star In
fielder. A scout for the Cubs had con
mended him just before the Salem
located the regents feet. If Kilbane
was in place, Jim was not, but neither
knew who was out of position. But the
fact that "Swedy' Swenson marched
just behind caused Jim to suspect that
both himself and the Irishman be.
longed elsewhere. Swenson was a
large, lacontc man-until eight days
earlier janitor of an apartment build.
ing-who possessed, as his reference
which he brought with him stated, a
passion for orderliness and precision.
Kilbane continued: "And they must
be requiring us bad to start us up SC
this time Of the night. Swedy, me
buckle, It's a rifle ye're marching with
not a mop, and ye're pokin' me shins.
Put it over ye're shoulder like a ball
bat; twill not drip on VEL"
Excuse, Mr.. Kilbane" Swenson
Obliged. '"That ben fire bell. hey?
The battalion Was leaving the park
and turning into Michigan avenue; an
order was shouted down the column;
the changing of a fire bell warned
every one in time how to interpret
the order. The battalion sprang to
the side of the road and let the fire
engine and truck race by. The sky
ahead and also to the west was glar-
ing red in districts where no factory
chimneys should crimson the clouds,
and d~istantly a shot and now a series
of rifle shots echoed out of n Of the
side streets. A number of handbills
were blowing down the boulevard; as
they swirled under the street lamps
they showed great, red letters. Jim
Ashby and others of the soldiers
stopped and picked up some of the
papers. Jim read as he passed the
next light:
"Fellow Citizens-Further resistance
is useless. We are helpless! Let us
make terms before the men of our
army follow the men of the navy to
death in useless Slaughter
Kilbane read it at the same time
and laughed. $50 those are what
fD