The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1918-01-23
CAMP DODGERS
MOLLYC0DDLED?
Commanding officers, Stern Men Of
Regular Army, Who Have Seen Ser
... a vice, Believe Men Are.
NOT WAY TO MAKE SOLDIERS
Soldiers Are Made by Roushing It
To Coddie Them is to Destroy Dis
cipiine and Hurts Army.


Dodge, Jan. 22--Are the soldiers OF
Camp Dodge being mollycoddled?' u
Many of their commanding officers,
stern men OF the regularly army who
have seen service in the islands OF the
China sea and the South Pacific, be-
lieve they are. They haven't been
used to the feminine touch around
company barracks and mess shacks.
There are four hundred women in
Des Moines and hundreds more in the
cities and towns from whence came
the Dodge men who Indignantly stand
by the contrary. And they stand in
dignantly because the commanders
slap at them when they suggest such
a thing.
The women are the company moth
ers of Camp Dodge. There is one to
every company of soldiers. They have
received their appointments from Mrs.
Zoe Pearl Park, of Des Moines, orig
inator OF the movement and brigadier
general Of the camp mothers. They
wear brown bands upon their arms
with the letters &c. M" sewed there
on g.
Their mission is to minister to the
soldiers as the soldiers mothers would
do were they here Ehe company
mother or some OF her lieutenants go
to the company barracks twice each
week and patch and men and sew for
their boys" They call upon the sick
and carry jelly and cake and ice cream
and other delicacies to them whether
in barracks or in the hospital. They
listen to the soldiers troubles, help
him il they can and comfort him when
its inconsistencies or mental depression.
They take the boys to their homes and
entertain them. They help them with
their laundry. They even help the
cooks get motherly touch in the
meals for the boys. And when the
folks at home are little careless about
writing they drop them a line to jog
attends mess with the boys and there
their memories. Mother" oftimes
is little party. s
But that's not the way to make a
sal ,..sssay .fe-e0nanlandins officers
Soldiers are made by roughing it. To
coddle them is to destroy discipline
and without discipline there is no
army. Many Of the men resent the
idea. They like to think they are big
enough to look out for themselves
without having to reach out for apron
strings When they do get away from
the home state or the home camp 1t
have to care for themselves then, learn
will be the harder for them. They'll
to sew and patch and there won't be
any jelly in the hospitals at the front,
unless the Red Cross can find ships
without something to carry across.
Why not make soldiers of them now?'.
TO which the company mothers in
dignantly reply, "These men have
come from homes where they have had
a mothers care. They have not join
ed the army through desire. perhaps,
but because their country called. 1t
is because they are recruits that their
development into soldiers should be
made as easy and comfortable as pos
sible. It's the little home comforts
that count. 1t improves discipline
rather than destroys it because it inn
proves the spirit and thus the morale,
And il for no other reason, these men
are called upon to offer and many to
sacrifice their lives that the rest OF us
may continue in our freedom. They
are entitled to every comfort and con-
sideration tffey can be given or get
before they start on their 5000 mile
sea journey.
God knows what it will be over
there" a.s..a
And so it goes on. The company
mothers stand their ground while the
commanding officers frown. The
mothers never seem to be out OF some
thing to do so some of the men like
to have them around. Every few days
some one, breaks forth with state
ment in the newspapers, declaring the
boys are being mollycoddled into sol
diers inferior than the standard OF
which the American is capable. And
the company mother comes back with
her defense.
And who knows. now, who is right?
Interest in again manifested in the
hour of the future when the order
comes to start for France. When war
broke and the draft was started on its
way with registration. the plan was
to call the first army in September and
send it to France in the early spring.
The second army was to follow to the
training camps Immediately.
But the time now approaches when
the first army was to start for over
there And not all the first army has
been summoned to the cantonment.
The indications now are tnat tne re-
naming increment of 55 per cent will
not arrive until the first OF March.
They will start training the time they
were to have finished their course
here, and probably to have been near
the firing lines in France, getting the
finishing touches.
Now, with sixteen weeks of intens-
i've training to start Immediately after
arrival, indications are they will not
complete it until midsummer. Hence.
they stand to remain here six months,
unless Hindenburg breaks through on
the west front Then they might go
any time.
The crack Of artillery, the swapping
patter of machine guns and the crack.
crack, crack of musketry resounded
for the first time together over the
rifle range at Camp Dodge this week.
1t was the first artillery firing. The
three inch guns, American made but
mighty like the French 76's. dropped
III