The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1917-12-22

Willie i mdlUeO.
keokuk the Item of the Day.
Th1s developed ar appalling state
OF affairs. The Keokulc men were scat
tered in literally every organization in
the division and all over that camp, a
miles wide and five miles long-that is
What the map shows; after walking
its length and breadth seven times in
deep mud, | am convinced that the
figures are too low. 1t was physically
impossible for any man TO get around
to them all, and to their commanding
officers before Christmas.
The only salvation was Major f. S..
Hayes, the division adjutant. Back to
his office was the next hike-even gen
eral officers walk in the camp to con
serve automobiles for other things.
Major Hayes instantly saw the new
point and began debating to his
stenogTapher. Each commanding Off
Ger soon received an order from Gen
eral Getty authorizing him to grant
leave to the men named therein for a
week, setting out the KeoKuk plan,
naming the point in camp where the
men were to assemble Friday morn
ing at 1870 o'clock, and giving my
down tow4,- hotel address for any con
sultation needed. That completed the
army part Of my work. except several
hours and twenty miles Of muddy
walking getting a list of the officers
from Keokuk, unlisted here, and NOV
ing every day O. two.
From the moment I was drafted for
the duty, I feared most the transpor-
tation problem. AS it turned out, that
would have been awful, If it had not
become almost ludicrous from it's
many discouragements and worries.
Motor Transportation Cornered.
All motor vehicles for hire in Des
Moines are coming money between
the city and Camp Dodge. The size
of the Keok1lk party would paralyze
this traffic for the largest of them.
They would not negotiate with me.
From the arrival Of my train at ;
O'Clock Monday afternoon to 10 o'clock
that night I had talked, argued and
pleaded with nine of them without re-
suit.
Having spent Tuesday hiking over
Camp Dodge and with Major Hayes.
Wednesday was devoted to hunting a
motor vehicle-of any kind that men
could ride in. Sixteen more owners
were seen in the forenoon without re-
suit. Also. some Minneapolis officers
were paying S35 apiece for motor
transportation to Minneapolis, and
bulling the market out Of sight. Fin
ally, I heard of Ole.
Ole deserves a chapter to himself.
He is the big motor u man of Min
neapolis, with some buses in Des
Moines for the camp traffic. Also, he
is the chief Of a group Of Swedish
Minneapolitans, each with a bus IN
Des Moines. No one had enough for
the whole Keokuk party.
Some Of the Details.
After chasing Ole all day-he Is as
elusive as a flea and as canny as a
Yankee peddler-making negotiations,
having them thrown to the winds by
a sudden change in Ole's mind, con-
situations in English and Swedish
with the others. none of whom would
say a word except in Ole's presence,
finally at 9 o'clock at night, in a bus
in a garage, Ole signed a contract to
bring the Keokuk men to Ottumwa,
which contract stated every detail.
That seemed the end, but it was
only the beginning. All day Thursday
was consumed in meeting at the hotel
men from camp who needed informa-
ton or authority to join US, because
not listed-and in keeping telephone
appointments with Ole who is quite a
conversationalist.
That morning 1t looked, like the
thaw had made the roads impossible.
There was a long consultation with
DR.. Chapel YER weather maps in the
weather bureau office and then An au-
tomobile trip Of over twenty miles out
to Prairie City, over the worst Of the
road home. This developed a surpris-
ingly good road. and trouble seemed
to have departed.
A Regular Strike Broken.
But Ole was still there At 6:lO
O'Clock Thursday night, with all the
men ready to come and Charles s.
Abel reporting Keokuk all ready
Ole telephoned that the other men re-
fused to move without a substantial
raise of price, that he could not al
ford to stand the raise himself, n
finally thought he ended the converse
ton by flatly refusing to come unless
the price a raised.
But the conversation dlu HOT exact
ly end there. 1t had only begun. After
Ole had been convinced that absence
from the starting point at 1880 a. m.
would result in his busses all being
tied up under an attachment and in
the hands of a sheriff by 8 o'clock
Friday morning. he began to explain
that he had not said an! thing Of the
kind. He was at the starting point
with His sub-contractors Friday morn
ing, without his breakfast, II was a
very good Ole after that.
Dame Rumor Butts In.
nh an came r1mors-eyery rumOr Is