Trench and camp. [volume] (Augusta, Ga.) 1917-1919, 1918-09-18

particularly desirable fresh vegetable
or fruit in a limited quantity. he die |
tributes 1t to the men in hts care as
far as it will go. and keeps an accu-
rate record Of the units that enjoyed |
the dainty When the next supply OF
that particular edible is obtained, he
continues the process of distribution
to other regiments.
Within short time, consequently,
every man in his care has enjoyed
the novelty The boys at the front
don't get chickens, eggs, fresh veg
etables and fruits as often as men in
American training camps, but we
have been able to vary their diet far
oftener than we had any reason to
expect.
The American troops in the front
trenches are the aristocrats of the
lighting forces. Every unit behind
them Is working for their comfort.
For that reason. it Is not surprising
that our young men Over There, praC-
ideally without exception, infinitely
prefer the front trenches to the sup
porting stations. The only dissatis-
fed soldiers I found in Franco were
regiments that have been across al
most a year aud have not yet had
front-hne duty.
| suppose a majority OF the men on
the American side have no idea how
We manager to serve hot meals at the
front. 1t is simple trick We use
tiye-gallon thermos containers that
keep meals smoking hot for several
hours, or preserve the frigid qualities
Of ice cream and other cold delicacies
By the use OF these thermos con-
ltaiuers we can, for example, send food
forward at o'clock in the morning
and serve smoking hot breakfasts in
the trenches at the regulation hour.
AS q matter of fact, there are very
few dishes that we cannot put into
our menus
This department surprised an in
quiror very much few days ago by
mentioning the fact that sirloin
steaks, sIuothered in onions, is one
OF the triunphs chat have been
achieved by our front-line chefs.
There is always possibility that,
under particularly trying battle CON
/ dltsons, it may become absolutely inn
possible to get food into the trenches
| for q day or two at time. The
| lines Of communication might be COM
| pletely cut off by heavy baTrage
That annoying situation would play
havoc with our hot meal plans, but
| It wOaId not cause the boys out in
front to 90 hungry Every man, of
course, carries the regulation two
ldays' rations as part of his equipment
In addition to that emergency food
supply, we have a scheme that costs
lot Of money, but it is worth the
cost
The Quartermaster Corps has pur-
/ chased a large supply Of galvanized
/ iron food containers They are made
in this country, filed with food,
packed in heavy crates and shipped
direct TO the trenches,
( Each cOntainer holds twenty-five
rattoDs. These rations, as majority
Of you boys probably know, include
pound OF hard tack, q pound Of
canned meat, a little more than an
ounce Of coffee and proportionate
amount Of sugar and salt Every
/ thing is air-tight and the big contain
/ ers are thoroughly sealed
As result the food is absolutely
/ protected from dampness or gas. The
containers are distributed through
| the trenches and the canned meat in
them is varied to suit any taste It is
not the sort of diet the boys at the
| front prefer, but it comes in mighty
handy whenever the enemy is lucky
enough to break up the routine of
! feeding American soldiers at the
| front