The Oklahoma City times. [volume] (Oklahoma City, Okla.) 1908-1984, 1917-09-24


was nothing short OF a sacred privilege
! never listened to her as she talked
with shining eyes and rapt voice abou
the glory OF being an American either
and the blessings fbeing able to lv,
m this land OF liberty, without getting
ohokey in the throat and feeling like
getting up and waving the Stars and
Stripes Oh, she ws the Mrs. George
Cdhan, all right
so, OF course, when the president
called for soldiers to defend the coun,
try against Germany, naturally
thought that Mrs Robinson would be
the first woman to set an inspiring ex-
ample by offering up her son to fight
for freedom and his native land But
nothing OF the kind happened. Mrs
Robinson loved her country and gloried
IN It's freedom, and she was perfectly
willing to offer up every other woman'S :
son on the altar of her country, but no,
her own She was wild with fear until
the draft was drawn, and her Sam
escaped conscription
SIT would kill me she said, 10
think OF my darling boy being in those
dreadful trenches and perhaps getting
MANNED or killed Besides he has got J.
tcn a splendid situation now that so
many men in his office have gone to
the war and don't want him to give il
up
"'You have property | said to her,
you have beautiful, tcnderly-rearcd
young daughters. How would you like
to see everything You possess in ruins
as the Belgians have seen their prop
erty' How would you like your daugh-
ters to be treated as the mothers in
France have seen their girls treatedH
u didn't raise my son to be a SOL
der" she repeated "and arm doing
my bit | roll bandages at the Red
Cross every day"
ayes" | said, "'you roll bandages
for some other woman's son whom you
expect to defend you and yours
"A little further down the street I
met Ann Stebbns who was simply
drooling with Joy because the cxamln-
crs had declared her son to he ex-
cmpt because he had a weak heart in
cipient Brights disease and bad lungs.
Il should think anybody that badly
off would be as safe in first line
trench as anywhere else and ,ha, il
would have been comfort to his moth
er to have thought he died defending
his country instead of merely helping
OUT the undertaken, but she didn't see
il that way She would rather know he
had seven deadly diseases than that he
was exposed to . buliet.
That night little Mamie Jones came
to see me. You know Mamie--a thin,
cowod, scrawny little thing who has
been stcnographer to a big bullying
brute OF an employer until she looks
as il she was so scared she couldn't
say boo" 10 goose. or course | had
heard that Mamie had been married
very suddenly 10 Bob Thomas-,hat she
was one of those war brides who would
never have been brides al all If big
husky man hadn't been hunting for a
pe,,icoat to hide behind to escape the
draft.
II thought pretty badly Of Bob. but
liked Mamie and so congratulated
her and asked after her husband"
"'lle's in training camp He has
enlisted" she said with queer little
smile.
81 am surprised" | exclaimed.
&C. So is he, replied Mamie grimly
"'You know Bob and | had been en-
gagged Tor a long time, she went on
one Of those long drawn out engage
ments that never end at the church Bob
kept putting off getting married. and
putting i, off until war was declared
and the draft ordered and he learned
that married men would be exempt
Th"n nothing would do but We must be
married Immediately.
81 understood why he was suddenly
in such hurry. He thought that mar
riage wouldn't be as bad as the trench
es, But love Bob, and there's To-, In
him. There's the making OF man in
him, and this war and | are going TO do
the job, So | married him and as we
left the preachers said
"'Comc on, there's a recruiting sta
tion on the next block Enlist and
make good days work OF it."
81 have got dependent wife" he
chortled II am exempt"
Nothgg doing in the dependent
wife line" | said "l have earned my
living for ten years and | will earn
it for ten years more il this war lasts
that long and anyhow, | would rather
die OF starvation than be the wife of
Stacker III stand for a lot OF things,
but not for a man who takes all that
his country gives him and turns his
back on her when she needs him.
Well, we walked around the block
six times, arguing It and by the last
time | guess he thought it easier TO
, iigh, for Uncle Sam than with wife
who fei, about it like | did and he went
in and enlisted
II made him go" said Mamie
clutching her little hands together IN
a gesture OF agony. "bu, 30 around
with lump of ice inside OF me, Tor