Oxford eagle., 1918-05-30

tongues between your teeth. Under
standT
I'VE understood.
For five weeks afterwards our hat
terry did nothing but extra fatigues.
We were satisfied and so were the
men. 1t was worth It to put one over
on Old Pepper, to say nothing of the
injury caused to Fritz feelings"
When Wilson had finished his story
4 looked up and the dugout was
Jammed. An artillery captain ana rwo
olncers had also entered and stayed
Tor the finish. Wilson spat out an
enormous quid Of tobacco, looked ND,
sd" the captain, and got as red as q
carnatlon. The captain smiled and
ieft. Wilson whispered to me:
"blime me, Yank. see where click
Tor crucihxion. That captain is the
same one that chucked us Goldfiakes
In his dugout and here / have been
'chucking me weight about In his
hearing"
wilson never clicked his crucifixion.
Quite contrast 10 Wilson was an
otner character In our brigade named
Scott; we called him "old Scotty" on
account of his age. He was fifty-seyen.
although looking forty. "Old Scotty-
mac been born In the Northwest and
had served In the Northwest Mounted
police. He was typical cowpuncher
and Indian fighter and was a dead shot
with the rife and took no pains to
disguise this fact from us. He used to
take care Of his rife as II IL were A
baby. In his spare moments ron could
always see him cleaning II or polish
ing the stock. Woe betide the man
who by mistake happened to get hold
OF this rife: he soon found out his
error. Scott was as deaf as a mule.
and IL was amusing at parade to watch
him in the manual OF arms. slyiy
glancing out Of the corner of his eve
at the man next to him TO see what
the order was. How he passed the
doctor was a mystery to us: he must
have bluffed his way through. because
he certainly was independent. Beside
him the Fourth of July looked like
Good Friday. He wore at the time a
large sombrero. had a Mexican stock
saddle over his shoulder. a lariat on
his arm, and a "forty-five'' hanging
from his hip. Dumping this parapher-
MALTA on the floor he went up to the
! recruiting officer and shouted: I'm
from America. west OF the Rockies,
and want TO join your ID army.
I've got no use for German and can
shoot some. At Scotland Yard they
turned me down; said was deaf and
so am. / don't banker to ship In with
ID mud-crunching outfit, but the
cavalry's full. so / guess this regi-
ments better than none. so trot out
your papers and I'll sign EN-" He told
them he WIS forty and slipped by. I
was on recruiting service at the time
he applied for enlistment.
1t was Old Scotty's great ambition
to be sniper or body snatcher," as
Mr.. Atkins calls II. The day that he
was detailed as brigade sniper he cele-
brated his appointment by blowing the
Wnole platoon 10 fags-
Being Yank. Old Scotty took lik-
ing TO me and used TO spin some great
yarns about the plains. and the whole
platoon would drink these In and ask
for more. Ananias was O rookie COM
pared with him.
The ex-plainsman and discipline
could not agree. but the officers all
liked him. even II he was hard to man
age. so when he was detailed as >
sniper q sign or relief went up rom
the officers mess.
Old Scotty had the freedom of the
brigade. He used TO draw two or
three days rations and disappear with
his glass. range finder and rife. and we
would see or hear no more OF him
until suddenly he would reappear
with a couple OF notches added 70
those already on the butt of his rife.
Every time he got a German II NEEDN'T
another notch He was proud OF thSse
notches.
But after a few months Tatder
Rheumatism got him and he was sdht
20 Blighty: the air In the wake Of 4is
stretcher was blue with curses. dd
Scoity surely could swear some Of kis
outbursts actually burned you.
No doubt, at this writing. he is
Somewhere In Blighty" pussy footing
II on a bridge or along the wall Of
some munition plant with the "G. 4"
/ ar Home Defense corps.