Judsonia weekly advance., 1917-10-24
CAMP PIKE NEVIS

l would easily form the conclusion that the drafted man was seven-tenths a pool and billiard player and the bal ance an eater, for what buildings do not house really magnificent pool halls are restaurants.
 During the Officers Training Corps school at Fort Logan H. Roots last summer, tie impression the Little Rocker evidently had of the student officer was that nothing so charmed him as a waxed floor, jazz band and l one of Little Rocks fair maidens with whom to trip off the fox trot, one step or waltz.
 At first the War Service Board rather encouraged the dances, for it gave the young officers a pleasant di- version on Saturday afternoon and night, but when it was carried to l the extreme a halt was called that was obeyeJ with the celerity that should accompany an army command.
 There are other ways of entertain 1 ing the young officer, as well as the young soldier. Of course there are 1 dances. but they are under proper su pervision, and if the soldiers go to them, they must pay admission Noth- ing is free any more, because Major l General Samuel D. Sturgis does not want it so. He wants his men to be Independent, not molly-coddles.
 The War Service Board has made an ideal arrangement for the dance hall-or so it has been pronounced by 1 the authorities at Washington, and passed en to New York officials with 1 the request that they profit thereby. The first step by the local War Ser vice Board was to secure an audience With one of Little Rocks wealthy citi- zens, the owner of a building covering almost an entire square. This build ing, erected for market purposes, was only half occupied. The owner was asked to tear out all partitions in this half, and put in a hardwood floor to replace that of Mosaic tile, thus con- yerting 1t into an ideal dance hall. This would require the destruction of at lee"t $20,000 worth of property, but the <itizen saw where he could provide recreation for hundreds of soldiers each evening, and readily agreed.
 The next step was to secure the passage of an ordinance which re- quires the payment of a license of S100 per month for the operation of danee hall. This was for the pur- pose of expressing the small dance halls that would otherwise spring up all over the city, and be policed with difficulty The owner of the large building has also agreed to employ an orchestra of the very finest, and the War Service Board knows that citizen of this kind will keep order at all times. This board does not intend to ereat a mopoly, but any one who will compete for the business will be forced to make equally as ample pro vision, and conduct place upon the same high plane.
 Such questions as these are taken up daily by the War Service Board, one by one they are threshed out, and finally solved to the satisfaction, of Major General Sturgis and his twenty or thirty thousand charges.
 At Camp Pike there are artillery men by the thousands, but so far their artillery drill has all been dependent upon pedal extremities. The men are fully uniformed, but there the equip ment ends. Nevertheless these men are drilled in the art of manning their guns. A member of each company who is nifty with saw and hammer has constructed hexagon shaped frames which answer for the wheels of the gun carriage. The frame work of the gun carriage is then construct ed to look as much like the real thing as possible. A four-inch oak sapling does duty for the field piece The men drill with these guns, becoming familiar with their positions, even though they cannot mount and be joted over the high spots until they learn to stick on.
 This ain't like home," unused an artilleryman on his twelfth day of ser vice. "but the barracks are good anC the meals cannot be complained If, though it is not like home to many of us, What I say though is let's get through with this thing and get back home. If it's fight, let's go out and hoist the American flag in Berlin and then return to our business"
 Just then the mess call was sound ed, and this recruit, who thought the food was not what he was used to at | t,sS,,,o did ,ot boe;ta+o o,o, o L;<, .