Cottonwood chronicle. [volume] (Cottonwood, Idaho) 1917-current, 1917-12-14
MAKING REAL
AMERICANS
Cantonment Camps Bring Out
Best Manhood.

Making Americans OF TdJIl6E ueV6I-
oping Americans into a great sturdy
race that will be worth to the country
and posterity many times the cost of
the army cantonments, the expense of
training and other expenses incident
to the great war, is what is taking
place in the great army cantonments.
This is the impression received by DIR.
E. L. White of Lewiston, now at
American Lake as a member of a
special board organized to make exam
nations of the soldiers. DR.. White
has been at the camp for several weeks
and in writing of his impressions to
the Tribune, said:
This is surely a wonderful place
over here. 1t is hard for one to find
words to express the impression it
leaves with you. The enormity of the
thing one notices Immediately, the
next is the good order and possibly
last but not the least, it imparts to
you that it is one great university or
college. Everyone is studying and
learning, true the main study is the
art of war but the method used for
preparation for the bigger things is
most impressive.
The two things which stand out
prominently above all else are obed-
ience and respect to superiors and the
second is the great fight led for the
perfection and care of the human body.
Athletics never attained such proper
tions of volume and height in any col
lege in the land. The colleges would
have no chance in competition with
teams from these cantonments once
they get under way.
There are five to seven football
games going on every. DE- 9c.s.,1t ~ the
size of the basketball situation can be
imagined when it is remembered there
are to be four teams in each company
in the camp and they are to fight it
out to determine the championship
team of the camp Every few days
there are championship boxing and
wrestling matches, there are large
squads Of cross country runners out
each day and preparations have al
ready commenced for the baseball sea-
son.
You know they have some of the
star players from both the Northwest.
ern and Pacific Coast leagues here as
enlisted men,, Another thing that
has been a great boost to sports at the
military camps is the decision Of the
Amateur Athletic Union to hold all
rules in allegiance during the period oI
the war and this allows the amateurs
to compete with professionals in all
contests. This surely opens the way
for some great competition during the
coming months.
Naturally, that which interests me
is the hospital and they have surely
rounded into shape a wonderful insti
tuition here. The base hospital has
over 80 buildings and they are moi
small ones either but are all only one
story. There are something over
1000 patients in now. Colds and foot
troubles are, by far, the most preva
lent, especially the colds, bronchitis
and pneumonia with men who COME
from California. Not so much be
cause of the change Of climate as it il
because California has sent up muct
poorer specimens as far as lungs ar,
concerned. Nearly twenty per cen
of the Golden state" contingent hav'
been unable to get by because of de
fects and perhaps this percentage viii
be augmented when our special board
are there examining them.
We have been studying and prac
ticing on the recruits up to yesterda,
when we started in to examine tn
whole command at Camp Lewis. A
soon as all of the details are WORKED
out, twenty of us will be examinin.
about 1000 men day. Our mail
work is the lungs but we are expected
to detect any defects in any part o
the body and order the transfers t,
the special board the defect comes un
der and the latter board will pass OF