Mexico weekly ledger., 1917-11-15


! Into the nations crueible there have
poured within a remarkably short pc.
rioa Of time thousands Of units Of hu-
mainly. a part Of the raw material
from which an army is TO be nodded.
Since the first of September, forty
thousand men have been modified at
Camp Funston, and now constitute the
seth Division Of our National Army.
They came from Missouri, Kansas,
Colorado, Nebraska, Arizona and New
Mexico. They came into Camp forty
thousand different men, drawn from
the white races OF inc world. They
came bearing but one common charac-
teristie-that they were between the
ages of twenty-one and thirty-one.
1t is a wonderful thing to stand in
a certain spot and have line after
line of men, in squad formation,
pass by less than three feet away, and
an even more wonderful sight are the
movements of numerous regiments on
the slopes of the surrounding hills.
After a while the widely diverse i'm
pressions begin to merge and only the
mass impression remains - the Kali
ser a not but be overawed on sight
of US. Here is an army brought from
homes far and near to a town Of raw
boards, the second largest in Kansas,
tossed together in a few weeks, where
we are being taught a new system Of
life, new ambitions, and a new mis-
sion.
This unique assemblage of human
units represents the end of a long
struggle in Congress and the news
papers, for and against CONSUMPTION.
These are the first fruits - chosen
from among the many to fit them
selves for the wal that is to perpetu-
ate u liberty and our civilization.
The upper-most thoughts in the mind
of the Nation, are, "How will they
stand it? Who will keep the best
face? And who the worst?"
A thousand new interests, new
thoughts possess the rookie" as he
stands on the brink Of a military Ca
reer. The life he left behind-home,
comrades and pleasures - begins to
unelose before him like the brilliant,
fragrant petals Of a magic flower, to
be appreciated now as never before.
And in this rainbow transformation,
the rockies" mind is always unbal-
anced by the bewildering confusion OF
it all -- for it is he who is changing,
not the world he left behind; he is
merely learning to see, instead Of to
look; TO comprehend, instead Of to
perceive; to realize, instead of to take
for granted, all the wonders and mar
wells and mysteries to which a young
man, entering upon a new and more
rugged phase of life, is here.
1t is drama, comedy, tragedy-this
inevitable awakening; it is the alter
nate calculation and deepening Of
mysteries; it is a day of clear, keen
reasoning succeeding a day of illogical
caprice; an hour aquiver with un-
dreamed of mental torture followed
by an hour of spiritual ~exaltation, for
the homesick lad is but entering upon
an era of magnificent aspirations, of
inexplicable fears, of lofty abnega-
tons, of fierce egotisms, of dreams
and convictions, of faiths for which
his fore-fathers have bled and died,
and, alas, it is the day of pitiless de-
velopment which leaves a shadowy
memory of faith lingering on the
brain, a choked feeling in the throat,
and on the lips the semblance of a
smile.
There are hundreds of faces that
touch the heart, with a look of lost
ness, or loneliness, or inconsistencies.
Homely, honest faces of men that
seemed to have had a desire be-
yond their own fields, and now brought
out on the stage to the cynosure of
the eyes of all the world. No more
touching and pathetic picture can be
drawn than that Of the youth, who,
on his arrival, was wearing clothes of
poor quality and long service, plenty
or ornaments stuck or the lapels of
his coat, and a wide satin tie, upon
which was painted a vivid American
flag. In his hands he carried q ten
foot pole on which was a flag of about
four by six feet, doubtless the gift Of
home-folk. He was a big, deep chest.
ed fellow, and as he trudged along
with his hat on the back of his head,
he was whistling softly, as if to con-
vey the impression that he was per-
pectly at ease. Picture after picture
might be drawn of the various types
of manhood represented here, but the
face of each one of them reflects
thoughts and feelings hard to mask.
All are proud of their manhood and
bent on striking a blow for country
and flag, and the high resolve is evil
dent in speech and action.
Homes, vastly different in their set
ting, in their appointments and FAM
lilies, vastly different in their posi-
tons - but only different in those
things that money buys and culture
adds - are equally represented. And
two men, products of different social
strata, but now endowed with the