The Leavenworth echo. [volume] (Leavenworth, Wash.) 1904-current, 1918-08-30
OUR SOLDIERS EAT
SkOOKUM APPLES IN
FRONT LINE TRENCHES

1t would take a Kipling to write
this story as it should be written. 1t
is story of soldiers, and Kipling un-
derstands soldiers. Then it is story
of heart-strings and home-strings,
and Kipling understands that part of
life too. In fact the story should be
written in verse. It's story, little
enough but big enough as nations
heart with human feeling, of North
west boys and the Northwest apples
they got in the trenches. It's story
of the horrors of bloody fighting and
boys far away from home and apples
''from their own home town,"-given
to them in the middle of it all.
Rev. DR.. F. A. La Violette was for
merly pastor of Queen Anne Metho-
dist church, Seattle. He is now Y.
M. C. A. secretary to the 10th infan-
try, and under government orders is
passing from city to city telling the
home folks of the deeds of their sons
at the front. For Pastor La Violette
has been at the front and saw lot
of it. He was in Philadelphia telling
the folks there of the way the 18th
Philadelphians have written books of
heroism into the history of the world
war.
Says the Philadelphia Ledger:
"His voice quivering as he recalled
the deeds of gallantry performed in
France by local boys, Doctor LaVio-
lette told of the fighting that repuls
ed the Crown Prince drive begun July
18th. All the officers of companies
B. and C. had been killed or wounded
except one. Many of the men had
fallen. Calling the remnants to-
gether in one company in wheat
field these men delayed the flower of
the German army so that the objec
tives never were reached. One SER
geant came into a Red Cross station
to have shrapnel wounds dressed.
Pastor La Violette attended to him;
told him the ambulance would be
along soon-the man was badly cut
in the side. Ambulance nothing he
said; I'm goin' back there and he
joined his company on the firing line" :"
But now for the apples. For Pastor
La Violette was in Philadelphia dur
ing the big national apple convention
and spoke there. And here is how
the story reaches Seattle.
'He made a very eloquent address
before the apple shippers in conven-
ton. Then he visited the apple eX
hibit on the lobby floor of the Belle
vue- Stratford, the hotel in which the
convention was held. He soon arrived
at the grand exhibit of Northwest ap-
pies. Being from the northwest him.
self this exhibit pleased him greatly
as he passed before its tier of marve-
lous apples; but no one expected the
climax of enthusiasm which burst
from the governments war orator as
he reached the display of 'Skookum'
apples which had been beautifully
dressed with advertising matter.
'Skookum apples he exclaimed.
Why, | gave them out to the boys in
the first line trenches in France. And
there is the smiling little Indian! How
the boys were tickled at that Shook
um Kid and her smile. 1t was really
pathetic to see how eagerly the boys
grasped their Skookum apples. One
big fellow from Oregon hugged his
Skookum to his breast and falling
| down on his knees in the trench, he
sort of petted it and actually sobbed.
| Many of the boys did not eat their
apples Immediately but kept them,
smelled them and seemed to treasure
them as a message from home, or
sort of embodiment of home"
Before the shippers convention
closed the association voted $1,000 and
individual members over $4,000 for a
fund to send more apples to the SOL
diers this season.
w. F. Gwin, general manager of the
Northwestern Fruit Exchange, of Sc
attic, who was in attendance at the
convention which was held the second
week in August, sent the above infor-
nation in letter to his staff, and he
added that this is only the start of a
nationwide fund, which should reach
large proportions, to send more apples
to the soldiers in France. Referring
to the "heart-throbs" that these .p-