The Goldfield news and weekly tribune. [volume] (Goldfield, Nev.) 1911-1947, 1918-04-27
THE REG|MENTAL
CAAPLA|N'S JOB
SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE
WRITER FINDS ONE THAT
GOLDFIELD GAVE

course, interested in the chaplain of
the 143rd, stationed at Camp Kear-
ny, for that chaplain is none other
thar the Rev. Fred Thompson, for
merly of Goldfield. 1t was reported
recently that Mr.. Thompson had APP
piled for service in the aviation
corps and that he would ask to be
relieved of his duties as chaplain for
the more hazardous career of a sky
fighter. About this time he was in
jured in the big football game and
= the Tribune is not advised of the re-
suit of his effort to secure a trans
fer.
Thursdays issue of the San Fran
cisco Chronicle has a feature story
devoted to the young chaplain from
the pen of Helen Davis, staff CORE
spondent of that newspaper. In the
curse of her story she writes:
This being the age of efficiency,
and the war to be won, at least in
part, by Hooverizing, it follows that
in the makeup of the military unit
there must be a return in service
scheduled for every mouth to be
fed-a reason for every ration is
sued. So, in the words of the in
aquiring individual in the caste of
the pantomime rehearsal, it may
seem proper to some to ask, a little
leadingly:
Why have a regimental chap
lain?'
"Is he really a working part of
the regiment or excess baggage
Does he make a bluff at justify
ing his presence by conducting re-
ligious services one morning in the
week, and CONTINUOUSLY clutter up the
military scene the other six and a
half days?
There are those who hold that
hallucination-or would you call it
prejudice?
Having succeeded in pinning
down for investigation n regimen
tai chaplain long enough to get some
enlightment on this perplexing point,
it is at least possible
But, perhaps, it will help to tell
YOU that the heart-to-heart talk
with the chaplain was possible only
because this particular chaplain was
laid up in Camp Kearny's base hos
pital with a broken leg and could
l4ot demonstrate the distractihg elu-
slveness peculiar to the army chap
lain-and the San Francisco flea.
It was a broken leg suffered or,
according to his regiments point of
ball game between two competitive
~ famous California artillery or
g%anizations, the Grizzlies and 143d
Tor self-styled He-Men) Field Ar
tillery, this military parson being
the idolized athletic chaplain of the
143d, Rev. Fred Thompson, that the
He-Men lured away from his church
an Goldfield, New, to minister to
their spiritual and Gas it turns OUT
other needs.
A Champion Athlete
Every amateur (and aspiring)
athlete, from grammar school to
has been, and a good many of the
professionals, know the Rev. Fred
Thomson as the holder of a worlds
champion athletic record. He was
born in Pasadena, ordained at
Princeton and therefore is a record
maker for the Tigers" and if he
hadn't gone into the army in the
capacity he did, would have enlisted
az a sky pilot literally, by reason of
lis inclination toward aviation.
why have ~regimental chap
lains?" l asked him in the hospi-
tai.
We'll, you see,' he explained,
with the grave consideration of his
twenty-eight years, there are a lot
of things a chaplain can do, regular
cuties he has to attend to, in a
regiment besides
What a Chaplain May Do
Checking them off on the fingers
of his firm, slender, efficient hand
he detailed.
There is his religious work, of
course; that naturally m first;
the regular services, those in per-
sonal relations with the men, with
the sick and-the dead
Then he is postmaster, also;
handles and delivers all the mail for
his regiment. He is the statistical
officer. This means that he must
keep a lard index record of the per-