Jackson County journal., 1918-11-22
MOUNTAIN TIMES"
AT NAVAL BASE

Dear Editor:-Please allow me
space for few items regarding my
very limited experience in Uncle
Sans Navy.
| was called to service Sept. Id,
1918. When | started from nv
home among the beautiful hills of
old Western North Carolina, was
thinking that l would meet with
some Of the boys who enlisted with
me, but | haven't seem any of them
yet, When arrived here joined
ia with thirty thousand sailors, all
strangers to me. l had never seen
one Of them before. You readers
eau imagine how offen thought of
NY friends among the beautiful hills
.. old North Carolina. Soon | learned
tllt we are all for one and one for
~. see no strangers in the Navy
nv. When you see a sailor call
han Jack"
The writer would be delighted to
see some Jacksonians visit the
Naval Base. | am sure any of you
would find it pleasure to visit a
navy training station. l hear of
quite number of Jackson folks
visiting army camps, but never did
hear Of any visiting navy camps.
In many ways | find it a pleasure
II be in the service of our country;
s)ne like one branch of the service,
Nalle others like another. Some of
he boys are regretting that they
di | not 90 to the army, but I like
tlc navy. do enjoy going out on
Tie drill fields with sixteen thousand
other sailors, all dressed alike in
clery way. all walking in military
II inner. While four brass bands
are playing we march over the
ll,,da--.E4 see sixteen thousand
drilling, with the bands playing, all
c'rrying guns. is enough to arouse
lae patriotism of any American cit
izan.
Now | will tell you how we sail
o.5 eat and sleep. When the busle
blows for chow we line up in front
O our barracks and when the next
bISle blows we march single file to
tie chow hall; every boy waiting for
Ills turn, we march by a large table
W ere each man gets knife, fork
AID plate, marches on to the next
t4ble, where his plate is filled with
tie best kinds of eats; if he doesn' t
ut enough at the first helping, he
cll 90 back for a second, keeping
ii line. If one steps in front of
G.!other he is made to 90 back to the
rear of the line. One hundred and
Ii y men eat at the same time, in
one chow hall. We sailors certainly
S't good eats and a large quantity
aSo. Everything is kept clean, all
cooking utensils are sanitary in
every respect. You readers car
imagine how much it takes to feeC
tiiry thousand men, tn n think of al
the navy and army camps! 1t surely
take some food for each meal
Regarding our sleeping arrange
Il ents, we have large bungalows
more than one hundred men sleep
inJ in one bungalow. We dom
have beds like we did in civilian
lie; we use hammocks tied up five
leet from the deck.At night, whe1
Inc bugle sounds at nine o'clock
every man must be in his ham
ln3ck-n fifteen minutes afte
II ne. but nine. Sometimes whtl
we climb into our hammocks the.
begin to swing and upset, throwing
Us out. We always have big laug|
WAen anyone falls out. At five
ValVty, not five thirty-five, we mus
ht the deck. fold up our hammock
and carry them out where we han
Them on racks to air during the da,
We sailors have to do all our wash
ias and laundering,
sorry to say l haven't receive
O0t one copy of our dear old count
p'per, but it was lust like 6ettin6