The Madison daily leader. [volume] (Madison, S.D.) 1890-current, 1917-10-03
HAS ITS own 80
FOREIGN LEGION
Mixture of NationaIities in Amer.
lean Company in France.
MAKE WElL.DRILLED SQUAD
Two Russians, Two Greeks, One Turk,
One Swede and One Norwegian,
Headed by an Irish DriIImaster-
Sergeant Make UP the company's
Jacobs Coat.

Company -- of the - regiment
Infantry. of the American Expeditions
airy Force. has a Foreign Legion of Its
own. Two Russians, two Greeks, one
Turk, one Swede and n Norwegian,
headed by an Irish administrators
geant, make up the company's Jacobs
coat.
None of the seven can speak Eng
llsh sufficiently well to drill with the
company. Accordingly, Sergeant MUIR
ply each day leads his squad to Its
own little parade grounds underneath
some wide-spreading trees, and puts
them through their PAGES.
Sure they're nothin' to brag about
when I only talk to Them" said the
sergeant. but when / show them
what's to be done, faith, sir, there's
not n quicker set OF lads In the whole
company. I'm not braggin' mind you,
bat I'm only sayin' they're as fine a
drilled squad as General Pershing has
with him today. 81
Take salutin', for instance. Some
of these fresh rockies, just because
once In a while they mistake one OF
you soldierly lookin' correspondents
for an officer. and come to a neat
salute, and some grizzly old campaign
er gives them a merry ha ha, they
crouch about for a day or more and
salute no one. Then along comes the
colonel In bis auto and these bright
young boys don't even deign TO notice
him and the company gets the devil
In the morning. NB8F
Play II Safe.
"But these lads of mine, they say:
What difference does 1t make anyhow,
If you waste a salute or two let's play
1t safe. and so everyone who comes
strolling along. be 1t n of our long
cared friends from Missouri or a per-
fectly sweet little French lady, or even
the general himself. sure It's heels at
attention they are with as fine a mill.
tnry salute as any bloomin' Prussian
ever gave the war lord.
"And where they make smart Sam
my from Oshkosh look sharp Is when
one of these French instructors tells
us In machine-fire French just what we
are to do and why. No one under
stands him. but the seven tribes seem
TO sense the meaning and are the first
to catch any new trick the Trenches
teach us.
"And they're learning English fast.
Yesterday I heard Mike, the Greek. tell
a Milwaukee corporal, Run aftc1
Yourself. Me prouder shinea the shoe
than make up German beer In de bot.
Amt dot your job at the brewery?
'This is the same boy who when he
passed an officer on the street the first
day after we had landed didn't know
enough TO salute, and the officer halted
him and said. My man, how long have
you been i'm the servicef' Mike pulled
himself together as best he could and
smilingly replied, Tomorrow Sure.
he didn't have an idea what the man
was asking him."
No one can explain how the men
eve were able to pass the recruiting
officer with their meagre knowledge of
English except that In the heat of the
recruiting campaigns all vas consid-
cred fish that came into the net.
There are numbers of men In the
expeditionGry force who have a higher
sense of patriotism than they have
knowledge OF the English language.
One of the Russian giants whose
unpronounceable name has been soft.
ened by his messmates to "Kansky"
gave me as clear a reply to my Ques-
ton, "Why r you owe here fight
Ing in the American army7" as I re-
ceived In the entire division.
Why He Fights.
Cropping slowly for his words, he
said: 81 came to America seeking a
liberty and freedom that was denied
me In my own country. I found It the
first day / landed In New York. II
became the breath Of my life. I got
away from Russia after the wal start
ed. / could see no difference between
a car and a kaiser. There was moth
Ing / wanted to fight for.
"But when America was forced into
1tuC oil uSSaC = saw - nuu hiIuAiy bul"
rowed itself down to what President
Wilson pronounced 1t, a question
whether democracy or ~autocracy
should rule the world. Ny life has
been a longing for personal liberty.
! had finally tasted of 1t. / knew its
sweetness and its value. ! was ready
to fight so that generations to come
might have the opportunity to enjoy
1t unmolested. America must tri-
umph If the world Is to 60 forward
and upward"
The ring Of the missionary was In
his voice; 1t vibrated with suppressed
intensity. His language was the talk
Of books. He had chiGeled 1t out OF
laborious reading. Better educated
than his six fellows IN arms, he was
daily teaching them the rudiments of
English grammar and Anosricsn his
tory.
Kansky is of the stun that heroes
are made. He il fighting for an ideal
that Is tangible and concrete to him.
r. ~-frI 49, -