The Madison daily leader. [volume] (Madison, S.D.) 1890-current, 1918-08-24

- AVA We As H
"Can't you do something for these
boys who are being brought In here2"
the officer In charge demanded.
what can we do?"
Something to eat and smoke. Cof-
fee. A bite and a smoke do a wound
ed man more good than anything else.
DO you know, some of those boys have
been out there I'm that for two days
with nothing to eat but hardtack7 2"
/ So the Y sent Its men and It's trucks;
1t made coffee, 1t brought such fruit
as 1t could; 1t carried chocolate bars.
"Here you are, sport" said one Of
them, coming into the courtyard.
Here's a cup of chocolate"
The boy raised himself painfully
on his elbow and reached for the cup
then he motioned 1t away
ST hain't hurt much-and there's a
lot of guys here that's messed bad.
You hain't got enough to go around.
Git busy"
"Tve got smokes and hot chocolate
for every man. Go ahead"
Honest? I won't be robbin' none
Of them birds?"
Honest"
The boy drank-and was transform
ed.
'"That's livin'." he said softly.
One boy was brought In with a
broken leg. Ii had been an accident
and not q wound won In battle. He
had got in the way of a motor
truck,
"Jest fix me up out here what you
can" he said.
"You go to the hospital, son."
"Nix. Hospitals for those fellows
that's hurt. / just got a busted pin.
You fix me here and leave me here
. When you git a chance"
Language Needs New Word.
Somewhere, some time, they had all
got this thing. It had come to
them out of the flame and crash OF
battle; IL had been carried to them
on clouds of soaring, noxious gas; 1t
had awakened In them through suffer-
ing and through the sight of suffering.
They were the same, yet they were
not the same. They were not gentle,
yet one fancied he could detect a gen.
tieness I'm their voices. But out Of
the battle and the suffering. something
better than they had ever known came
to them. There was utter ignoring OF
self. and 1t was a thing wonderful to
witness.
"We've got to have a new word I'm
the language" said a captain-surgeon.
"Game won't do. These boys are some
thing more than game. I've never seen
anything like 1t. I don't know what
Ii Is" Even he. Injured to suffering
and to scenes Of bloodshed, wiped his
eyes. "They're-they're-why, damn
It all, they're 'somethingr Nobody
was ever like them"
One boy lay inside on a mattress
on the floor. His chest was rising
and falling ms ne struggled for breath.
"He's on his way" said the doctor
to a Y man who was acting as orderly,
nurse, assistant, anything.
The Y man went over and touched
the boys forehead.
"How about 1t, old MANI" he said.
"Kind of-lonesome Maybe
you could sit . here
till . :"
The Y man sat down and a hand
struggled toward him. He took II
and held 1t In his own, and he whis-
pered to the boy a moment. Maybe
~ xroc an nrayor uybafavar tho xyordc
1t was a prayer. The wounded man
lay still, his hand in the hand Of the
friend who had come to him i'm his
last dark moInent-his last glorious
moment.
Another Kind Of Courage.
The courage of the battlefield seems
to be a common commodity but the
courage to bear pain without f~iinching ;
to realize the approach Of death with
out crying out; to reach q moment
when you know you must face life
MANNED, without arm, leg. eye-and
not to curse with black rage or cry
out with despair-that is another kind
Of courage. But 1t was there. Not
one man had 1t, but 1t seemed as II
all those wounded had tit was not
the gameness of the bulldog. 1t was
something that had to do with the
soul. 1t was greatness, 1t was fine
ness, 1t was a thing that compelled
the watcher to uncover his head and
stand barred In its presence.
They were Americans. Perhaps II
was their birthright. More likely II
was a new thing; newly born Of the
day and the business Of the day. What.
ever 1t was, whenever and however
1t came, 1t was present. This ma.
been written with repression, with q
striving for understatement, with q
wish to tell the truth. The thing wal
there. They brought It back with
them.
'sHow are You making It. sport
Here's a cup Of coffee"
"Y0u come around to me afteI
you've given some to the boys owe
there. They need it."
That il what was there. It ha,
IL 49, 80