The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1917-10-12

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of course he thought 1t was on the
level and didn't realize what I had de-
cided-had no hint Of it, In fact.
No sooner was he out Of sight than /
began to do some very tall hustling. I
went to a lady barber and told her
wanted my hair cropped close to my
head, soldier style. I had ar unusually
good head Of hair, long, luxuriant and
black. The barber almost wept when
1 insisted it had to go. She cut it so |
could part it on the side. The only
time during the operation I had a pang
Of regret vas when she began shaving
my neck. The z made me realize I
was In for something mighty big. !
had a good laugh when l took my first
peek In the mirror at myself as a boy.
I wasn't bad. The lady barber did not
laugh. The sight Of such a sacrilege
seemed to make her sad. She told me
most folks wanted to grow hair-not
lose 1t. ...tf@..
After the hair cut it did not take me
very long to Jump into my uniform.
have spent much Of my life on a ranch,
where I wore riding breeches or bib
overalls, so the clothes were familiar
to me and did not feel strange. was
right at home In them. l never was
happier In my Life than when l took
stock Of my makeup, a sure enough SOL
der and said to myself-very posi-
lively:
), "I'm going with John and the troop"
left the house just as it was. 1t
seemed q small matter to me at q time
like this. Reluctantly, I had promised
my husband l would 60 to his family
in Kentucky and remain there until his
return. Instead Of this, 1 found myself
in an automobile speeding for Douglas.
where the troops were even D lei en-
training. With me was fluffy my
bulldog. That was the only hurt, leaV'
Ing Tuffy. / would have tried to get
her enlisted In Z company as a mascot
only they do not allow dogs.
Everything was confusion around the
station. Soldiers and civilians were
hurrying here and there. Girls were
bidding their sweethearts clinging
goodbys. Mothers and fathers. sisters
and brothers. friends-every was
there to give godspeed. The soldiers
themselves seemed to be in the best OF
spirits. They laughed and joked and
acted like men who were going away
on a big holiday, although there was a
strain Of seriousness through 1t all that
made a lump rise In your throat every
now and then.
did not linger long outside the train
for fear l might be recognized, though
It was difficult to single out any strange
soldier, because there were so many
raw rockies who had just enlisted and
had not had time to get acquainted
much. I figured that the cook car
would be the safest place, because
there I could be busy doing something,
and 1t would be easier for me to get by
unnoticed.; So when the cooks came
along l fell in with them and went into
the car. They thought l was a new
one and never paid any attention to
me. Of course, my long connection
with the army helped me, since I knew
the regulations and customs better than
most Of the rockies.
Dog Almost Betrays Her.
Tufy almost spilled the beans for
me. She had given the chauffeur who
was to take care Of her while / was
gone the slip and gone out on a still
hunt for me. You can fool a man, but
you cannot fool a dog. The minute she
spied me she came on the run, with a
yelp and leap. Quite a lot Of the older
men knew my dog, and I thought eV-
cry minute they would notice her vio-
lent attentions. l tried to chase her
away. She seemed to regard this as an
invitation and parked happily. l grew
cross and pushed her aside, ordering
her home. She stood and looked at me
in a surprised way. 1 could not seem
too familiar with her and play my part.
l had to treat her as a strange dog. AS
I was boarding the train she came
after me with q bound. l pushed her
away from the steps and walked up.
Poor Tuffy, she wanted to be a soldier
the worst way. I hated to leave her:
She was the only one to say goodby to
me. and l had to treat her as a stran-
ger.
There were some v moments
before that train pulled out I kept in
the background as much as I could.
After what seemed to me years there
came a tense moment and a chorus of
"goodby, good luck, God bless you"
The cars began to move. We were on
our way to join Pershing.
Look out there, rookie, or the first
thing you know you'll be fixing a mess
Of pigs knuckles and sauerkraut for
some Germans"
One Of the old boys from the camp, a
mar in my husbands company, whom
l knew, was speaking. 1t was the first
time I had been directly addressed. /