The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1917-11-07
Everybody's Column
Do We Love Volunteers Less or Con-
Ii scripts More?

Do We Love Volunteers Less or Con.
5a. scripts More?
Il Tell me not in mOurnful numbers,
Army life is but dream
Where the blizzard sands are blowing
And the conscripts get the cream"
With all due respects to the con-
scripts, and apologies to the poet Long
fellow, it is time for some one to rise
up in behalf of the volunteers, before
they are pushed too far back into
the background of oblivion and public
sentiment, even though they may have
had their day. At least an explanation
is due them regarding some things
that have crept into the home papers,
to reach the eyes and ears and sadden
the hearts of the lads who had the
courage and patriotism to step for
ward and enlist their names as volun-
teers to do their country's bidding
early last April when war was first
declared. ~
While it was in no way the fault
Of those who did VOLUNTEERED that a
I. vast number of young men did not do
the same. and while we do not con-
slider it a disgrace to be drafted
man, we yet wonder why it has come
to be regarded as something of a dis
grace to have been volunteer. What
pity!
but we have read that somewhat over
million men responded to their
country,s first call in the various
branches of service: army, navy, mar
inc and aviation, without waiting to
see whether they might not have been
lucky enough to fall into the tail end |
of the draft" But what reward of
public opinion awaits them? Are they
then to be rated as less honorable, less
patriotic, and less courageous than
their brothers, who waited to see II he]
would be drafted? Are the conseripts
then, dhtitg to all the sympathy and
all the honor Of the people, back home,
while the poor volunteers go without?
Volunteering was never considered
stigma of disgrace in the Civil War
nor in any previous war that we have
ever read >about in U. S. history. OF
course we know that this war is "dif-
ferent," but the qualities that make |
for true courage and patriotism are |
essentially the same today as yestcr
day, and should be the same until the
milleneum.
If true patriotism meant as much
to an American citizen today, as it did
to Roman citizen, at the time of
Julius Caesar, certainly public opinion
would not now be placing the volun-
4 teer so much below par, with the
4, conscript that he is looked down upon
while the latter is figuratively speak
ing, carried about on the shoulders Of
the populace.
What then, we ask, must the feel
tngs Of these same volunteers be, when
!: eagerly scanning the weekly home
paper, not only for news, but also to
see how the folks at home are backing
them up, they are suddenly startled
by such items as we are about to quote
below. They can only say as did
Julius Caesar when thrust with the
dagger Of his supposedly best friend,
Brutus: "Et tn, Brute! Then fall
Caesar!"
In the Denison Bulletin of Septem-
Der 26, which however, was exactly
one month after the boys who enlisted
in the old Ida Grove company, had bid
their loved ones here their last fond
4 farewell, for their camp among sand
billiards. and centipedes, we find the |
two following items:
DenisOn Bulletin, September 60
This community now has SIS times |
as much interest in the war for hui |
/ manity as it had a month ago. 1t will |
\ be Just as much more interested when |
the next 40 men go to camp and will |
add to that again when the last Is |
per cent are certified up to the cap
tain's Office"
There are now 1853 Crawford coun-
ty boys in the service in every part of
the country, and some in France.
Their friends are glad to have them
write little for the paper and give
their addresses to that they can be
communicated with at times"
4 Any one can see that 1853 soldiers
minus SIS conscripts equals 10S SOL
diers, who must necessarily be volun-
according to this, it takes just 1OS
volunteers to equal one conscrpt at
least in the estimate of some Craw-
ford county people. 1t is certainly in
teresting to know how the volunteers
are regarded back there"
Quoting again from recent issue of
the Bulletin, we have another and a
similar slam on the volunteers:
$50 r. M. Babb, of Logan has been
with the regulars several years in the
Philippines, recently returning to San
Francisco. He writes that the regu-
lar soldiers, boys who came in when
there were rumors of war, and those
who came in after war was declared,
voluntarily, are looked down upon by
the people, Of California, but if you
are California National Guard or a
man who has been forced to fight for
his country, there is nothing too good
for you -'
.5If then, this is the true public senti-
ment, it certainly is making the lot of
the volunteer hard one, and is little
less than an outrage against those who
are every whit entitled to their full
of the respect and sympathy
Of the people back home, for whom