The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1917-05-25
Fort Smelling Is the Real Bee
Hive Of Training
ART OF. WAR IS THE IDEA
Faces Are Sunburned; FeetAre
Blistered and Men TFedat
Night Time
From, Fridays Daily.
RAYMOND cLAPPER.


Fort Smelling. MINI, May 1S.-This
is no recreation camp. Everything
here is in dead earnest. Students,
professional men. Office employees,
business men, statesmen already tan
ned by the bright spring sun are
working sixteen hours q day. But
arms swollen from typhoid fnocula-
tions, blistered feet, sunburned faces,
weary muscles are willingly endured
by the $500 men, many of whom
have left comfortable positions with
high salaries to work for their coun-
try without pay.
This is the fourth day of camp.
. Routine has become fairly well es-
tablished. The first excitement and
novelty have worn away. Ahead
are three months of hard training,
mental and physical work rigidly
exacting. With the arrival of 295
auardsmen tomorrow, the Officers
training camp will have a total en-
rollment of 2,4G8.
rs Show of Intense Eagerness.
b Intense eagerness to master the
art of war is everywhere manifest.
When, squads are given a brief rest
at intervals of hard drilling in the
not sun, groups of two and three take
turns at putting each other through
1.-The manual of arms. Lone rockies
stand around with little blue man
uals. of instruction studying and re-
| hearsing. Two men. who in private
might be successful lawyers, wigwag
to. each other at a distance of three
yards. Few are resting. Then the
order to 'fall in" comes and lines
quickly form for another period of
hard marching drill. 5fts
Many have had no military train
ing. The English language never
had SO many meanings as when a
squad tries 20 interpret marching
command. They split off in all dir
ections, collide, and lose the step.
But through it all officers are pa
tient. 1t is school of war and the
men are students. Their mistakes
are corrected without harsh words or
sarcasm. Democracy is the rule OF
conduct and there is neither servile
indifference on the part of the men
or overbearing conceit on the part
of the officers. Comradship among
81 ~
Iufractions of the rules will be pun
sehed by instant dismissal from camp,
the assumption being that men are
there to learn and will see the value
of all discipline and voluntarily COM
ply il they are worthy of being Of
ficers in the great army which is to
be raised.
Sunday Period of Leisure.
Sunday afternoon is practically the
only period of leisure. Work begins
lat Sis a. m. and continues until 9:15
M m. the last two hours of the day
= Elm devoted to study Of military
f.oschniuue and theory. Men accus--
!. iomed to all the refnements OF good
oafloules wash their own dishes after
'rtrtess. Golf clubs and other Injuries
!; are barred.
J Fifteen companies have been or
eanized. Major Berkeley Enochs,
senior instructor, has organized his
staff who will teach the rules OF war
To the student officers. He predicts
that Camp Smelling will produce
some of the best officers which will
man. the new armies. a score OF
University of Minnesota athletes as
well as. stars from other schools are
enrolled. Captain Halligan, OF the
famous 1914 University of Nebraska
eleven is a corporal: Two fightlng
narsons, Rey. William; H. Nye OF
Sherburne, Mimi. and Rev. T. w.
Feseenden of Minneapolis are in
Khaki.
Among the. Minnesota football stars
registered are Fudge Wyman, all
western fuliback; Jack Townley, all
western tackle; Frank Mayer, all
western tackle; Dudly Nudge, state
golf champion; Coach Louden of st.
Thomas, college, and Rapacz. Gopher
track star are others Of the illus
trious athletics in khaki.