The Washington herald., 1918-06-16
To Be Seen This Week
NatIonaI-.Pack Up Your Trouble.

NatlonaIL'Pack Up Your Troubles"
The courage of the American SOL
diers-our singing American soldiers
has made the world sit up and take
notice. Any one who has visited any
of the cantonments in this country is
Immediately impressed with the
sound of rollicking song that n5ats
over the seven square miles of bar
racks. These men are going through
their work and training, happy in the
thought Of coming victory and the
share they will have in it-singins
singing. singing. Now come the
dispatches from the front, on the
Marne:
THE firing began last night and at
3:45 o'clock this morning the Marines
started to advance. singing and vhis-
tling Yankee Doodle as they trotted
across No Mans Land. The infantry.
on the right of the Marines, advanced
singing in the face of heavy fire."
Another one: "Any front, I think.
is probably .he most cheerful place
an earth, although nobody would ever
think so. The farther you get away
from the line the more gloom !iiere is,
But where The shells fly and life is
worth about a nickel, nothing mat
ters to anybody. A laugh and a smile
is the thing. I suppose this is be-
cause the average American soldier
goes into battle or into the front
firmly convinced that he will oaly get
a wound If the luck is right, and at
the same time determined to forget
all about it and enjoy life. !, have
heard more funny .stories and more
laughter among our own men in the
line in one night than I have heard in
all the rest of the time I have ,e.-n
in Europe.
"They are game to the core. cheer
full. happy and have only one thought,
and that is. kill Germans and thev
never overlook a chance. You can't
beat an army that sails into an
enemy with grin on its face and a
chuckle in its heart
With this history in front of him,
George c. Hazelton was directed by
wagenhals and Kemper to write a
comedy based on the facts Of the life
and courage and happy singing quail
ties of our boys over here and over
there. The result was a play called
Pack Up Your Troubles" which
/ 'Wagenhals and Kemper present at
the National Theater this week with
Sergt- Arthur Guy Empey, in person,
and Rose Stahl as costars. Its object
is to show American mothers, sisters
and sweethearts how their boys are
cared for by Uncle Sam in the can
tonments and how their strength and
courage is developed and how they
sing with enjoyment at their work.
Belasco-sShe Burnt Her Fingers, !,
wilful people are quite often In
danger of burning their fingers.
When the wilful one happens to
be. q charming young girl, the pos
sibilities of something of that kind
taking place whenever fire Is play
ed with a bit too carelessly, seems
| to be infinitely greater than when
1t fs anyone else who Is doing the
gambling.
And briefly there you have the
thought back of "She Burns Her
Fingers" the new comedy by Cosmo
Hamilton which, Selwyn and Com
pany are to present at the Belasco
Theater the week of June IT. Not,
mind you. that in the burning of
this particular young lady's fingers
there turks much that is tragedy,
for Mr.. Hamilton doesn't write those
kind Of stories.
He has far too keen a sense of
humor to ever see anything but the
lighter side of life. While per-
force, you must sympathize a Hit
tie with the young lady in her pre-
dicament nevertheless inasmuch a.