The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1917-11-14

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his sergeant can count six seconds.
The intensive training program will
soon be on in full force. More than
10 900 rifles, the majority of them Eng.
lish Enfields, have arrived. The first
battery OF artillery four three inch
guns, also reachedh the .cantonment
this week. Pershingss men in France
are now using the, French "75's" for
er the national army artilleryists too
will change guns when they reach the
firing line. VI
Five French officers. every one OF
them veteran Of the, great war and
of the Marne, have arrived to aid the
American officers in the instruction
Of men in, all branches of the service.
On the breast Of each is the French
Croix de Guerre, the badge of honor
that signifies the wearer did some
especially brave and heroic deed for
France. They are here because the
allies believe they can do more for
the cause as instructors than as fight.
lers. And perhaps they've done most
Esi ssssf 81; ls'. fses s.as -;
trench experts, they have builded a
complete set of front, second and
third line bitches, in the most ap-
proved style of the allies. They have
constructed sand bag machine gun
pits as well and everybody is learning
to fight from the trenches. Bayonet
drill, as the writer described it in a
previous letter, goes ON daily, hourly.
AS the several days of training go
on, the spirit of the men grows. A
prominent Des Moine surgeon who has
just returned from Canada told Camp
Dodge officers that the most striking
thing he found was that the most en-
thusiastic supporters of the war are
the soldiers back from the front, Grip
pies and all. One cannot help but
notice the growth Of the enthusiasm
|of the boys at Dodge.
For instance the various units are
getting their marching songs.
Time was when they were too tired
at night to sing. But now they swing
into the wide cantonment streets,
headed for home, with their favorite
song upon their lips. The melodies
and words are not frivolous or funny.
They're written in serious vein and
sung that way. And practically every
one tells story of the time when the
soldiers of the Eighty-eighth get over
there to fight for the cause.
"War would be h-ll il it wasn't for
the laughs said a private to the writ
er. He pointed to line of negro con-
scripts who had just arrived with
some 5000 others from Sunny Ala
,bam' Very few of them had ever
been moth" before. Their mess kits,
the first they had ever seen, were cur
iosities. AS each colored boy found
the combination and opened it he
laughed gleefully.
1t was a bit chilly. &
''They say we all gonna hav snow"
said one. boy. ah nevah seen snow
in all nah life."
One negro in the group assumed an
allwise expression. He had been
north before. And he was asked to
tell what snow looked like. "Boy,
snow Is JUS like rain, only it don't
fall so fast, its white and its sof' and
Lawdy! Lawdy- boy it's cold!"
Everybody shivered. r.
Plans are under way for the erec-
tion of a number of hostess houses"
at Camp Dodge. They are strongly
recommended by General Plummer.
The Y. w. c. A. workers in the war
work campaign that started this week
will get 100000 for the hostess house
fund.
The hostess houses will really be
the front parlors" of Camp Dodge.
Mothers, wives and sweethearts will
visit their soldiers there. They will
be made homelike, as homelike as
possible.
Hostess houses are just another step
in the work Of the government and
the civilian workers of Des Moines in
making things comfy for the men of
the national army. ..