The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1917-08-05
MOTHER THINKS OF THE FIRST SOLDIER IN DRAFT ARMY

fesses, quick tears dimming her gray
eyes, but I'm glad he wants to go.
I don't want to lose him. I've lived
and breatheI and had my being in
him for twenty-one years. He's all
I've got But-rd hate to be the
mother OF a son who didn't want to
GO"
But she's quite confident that he'll
come out all right even II he does
ego over" Hasn't he been into ev-
erything-hssn't no had more hair
breadth escapes than usually come
to a growing boy, and hasn't he al
ways managed somehow to come out
on top?
an the FIRST 1ace," this fond
mother relates, hes always been
into everything from the time he
insisted on riding his bicycle back
ward and collided with at ash cart
and broke his leg until he went INTO
football and used to come home with
a multitude of bruises and spraIIs
that had to be bound up-all OF which
was strictly .against orders. At first
declared he shouldn't go into foot
ball, and then I wound up by even
going to see a game, although I eX-
pected he'd be brought off the field
dead any minute. He won his let
tiers both in track and football, was
president OF his fraternity, and the
boys insisted on sending him as a
delegate to the fraternity convention
Enlisted In Canada.
But, OF course, the greatest shock
n srAf rnrha he anIFafaA In
the Canadian army. He had gone up
in Maine to work. and the next thing
knew he sent word he was in Can
ada and had enlisted. There wasn't
an ounce Of patriotism in that en-
listment, of course. It was just the
adventure, and enlisting was in the
air up there. At FIRST, must admit,
wrote the boy pretty Encouraging
letters trying to get him to come
back, and then, somehow, my attitude
changed and 1 decided I had been
doing wrong and / can't too emphati-
cally express my disapproVal Of the
mothers who are discouraging their
boys and holding them back, weak
ening their will and courage now that
we are in this war. Before the thing
started. fully believed we should
keep out OF II. I still think we
could have and should, but the fact
remains we are In II and must do
our best. II the boys must go, the
women should do everything to help
them 90 in the right spirit, in the
winning spirit, the door die and not
q hAlf-hearted. tagging one.
When Harry was in the Canadian
regiment I asked him what 1 could
send him, and smokes seemed to be
the only thing he didn't have. Now,
/ had bitterly opposed Harry's smok-
ing, but ! went down town and sent
the biggest box OF cigars and smok-
ing tobacco I could get, because I
wanted to have him have enough to
share with the other boys. Curiously
enough. they never reached him and
were sent back here. Then, OF
course. I burned them all up. Harry
demonstrated, reminding me what
they had cost, but into the IRE they
went"
All OF which goes to prove how
much more indulgent a woman feels
when her men folks are a long way
on than when they are right under
the home roof. s..- ,-a.|5..
AChase Through Canada.
As gentle as she is, II is perhaps
easy to see how the son OF the house
came by his strong will 1t wasn't
until the boy had been in the Cana
dian regiment some months that she
discovered she could procure his re-
lease because he was under twenty
one His last letter had announced
that his regiment was soon to embark
for Montreal Therefore, with her
husband. who Is a policeman on duty
81 ~ nj nit IaE
from the State Department. she start !
ed for Montreal. disappointment
awaited her, for the troops had been |
ordered to Ottawa for review. On
the anxious parents went to Ottowa,
only to find their sons regiment was
already in Halifax and had probably /
sailed. BY that time Gllbert's fathers |
leave was up and he was obliged to
return to Washington.
Perhaps, man fashion, he had de-
cided that he must bow to the inev-
table and let his son go. Not so the !
little mother. All alone and quite !
unused to long trips, she set out for
Halifax. The city was teeming with |
soldiers. Hardly a man but wore the !
all-leveling khaki until she had !
seen so many of them that she could |
not distinguish one from another.
They were all young and straight (
shouldered, and every khaki-clad FIG
ure made her heart fiutter in hope
that at last she had happened on her
boy. Then she began to see officials, |
one after another. put finding one /
Harry Gilbert in all that mass of men
was like hunting for a needle in a
haystack. Finally she got informa- |
ton. Her boys regiment was already !
on ship at the pier. had been on ,
board three days in fact, all ready to /
sail, but delayed for some unknown !
reason. which may or may not have !
been providentiaI. all depending on !
the way one looks at those things. |
with her letter from the State De |
partment she gained an interview !
with the colonel OF the regiment.
He was kind. He was courteous. /
l.