Webster City freeman. [volume] (Webster City, Hamilton County, Iowa) 1884-1946, 1916-11-21
RECRUITS ARRIVE
At BROWNSVILLE
Heroes of '16 Will Be Marching
Home in Short Time Ac-
cording to View Of Late
Arrivals.
STORM TURNS BACK HIKERs
Uncle Falstaff and Earl Fort In
dulge in a Long Wading Stunt
to Save Few Steps.
STORM TURNS BACK HIKERs

Gen. Sherman said it all when he
spoke those three immortal-or
were they immoral-words? And
up to yet Wilson has kept us out OF
war-or CarranZa has.
A bunch of new recruits arrived
upon the scene of action a few days
ago and they unanimously insist
that this cruel war is almost at an
end and the heroes of '16" will be
marching home in a short time.
Well, let .em march.
The entire Iowa brigade started
out to Point Isabel Wednesday, a
distance of "a milestone way-and
expected to make four day hike of
it. Arrangements were all complete
to start on the second day hike at
A a. M, when genuine norther
struck camp and the boys put in a
couple hours of shivering and chill
ling, during the rain and cold wind.
General Allen decided that the
brigade should return to their camp,
instead of going on to Point Isabel,
and at 7:15, three thousand men
started to walk back to camp, dis
tance of about IA miles, through
mud and slush that would make
tears come to a sphinX-if he gazed
upon the road that had to be ira
versed.
Several of the boys decided to take
short cut and Earl Fort and yours
truly thought we knew exactly how
we could save two miles of walking
and have better walking, so we
veered to the left-and kept veer-
!. ing to the left-and then veered to
the left some more-and then found
that we had walked about six miles
out on a peninsula. We could
look just one way without looking at
water. Ah-ha, yonder, about two
miles ahead of us, was the railroad
track that rambled through at the
edge of our camp. 1t was two miles
away-but to us it looked like the
Atlantic and Pacific oceans had join
ed forces, just to scare us, yet we
knew we had to cross that eXpanse
of water or walk several miles to go
around. We looked at one another,
grinned, and said we would. We
hunted up barrel stave for guide
as to the depth and started forth.
Thousands of water fowl gave way
for us ere we reached the desired
goal and, when we did reach it, the
water was running out of our pock-
ets-but by grab we made it and
both of us lived to tell it when we
got back to camp. If there was a
muscle in our bodies that didn't
ache, physiology never made any
mention of that muscle.
All of the boys made the trip in
fairly good shape-in excellent
shape considering that this was the
first real nike the band had been
called upon to make.
We reached home at about noon
on Thursday, and on Friday we
started out--the entire brigade
for a two days hike to the outpost,
about ~ miles away.
The walk to that place was really
an enjoyable one and We arrived
there at just little after noon. The
afternoon was spent in lying around,
bathing in the Rio Grande, and quite
a number of the boys went hunting.
Gen. Allen arranged short pro-
gram for the evening and the pro-
gram was given on bridge that
crossed canal. The first and sec
ond bands were on the ground to do
their part toward making the enter
tainment a success, and the scene
was worth I'll the tired feeling one
endured, just TO look at the hundreds
and hundreds of khaki uniformed
men sitting upon the banks of the
canal. There were speeches by Gen
eral Allen and Major Philpot. There
were songs by sextets, quartets and
trios, and Shorty Maxon, a hypno-
fist, gave a splendid demonstration
of his proves, and taken as whole
it was a beaner from start to finish.
The return trip was made in a
roundabout way and we covered a
distance of about 16 miles. In the
four days hike of approximately %
miles, not a band man fell out and
as sert of good fellowship prem
ium, Captain Hale banqueted the
band boys Saturday evening. Ma
iors Lund and Philpot and Lieuten-
ant Colonel Bailey were present, be-
sides Captain Hale and his COM