Evening capital and Maryland gazette. (Annapolis, Md.) 1910-1922, 1918-07-25
ANNAPOLIS BOYS
ARE BACK FROM
TEN-DAY CAMP
Company M Returned Yesterday
After Strenuous Bit of Mill
tary Work
TRAINING BIG HELP TO
PHYSICAL CONDITION
Final Day Saw A Hike In Heavy
Marching Order Under Try
ing Heat Conditions

Bur8gucd with the pounds and
pounds of heavy marching order equip
ment but minus pounds and pounds
of fat. the men of Company NJ, Second
Infantry Maryland State Guard, un-
der command OF Captain John b.
RIppcrt. returned TO Annapolis yes
,orday afternoon from Camp Waters,
at Tmonium. where they had been
sleeping under canvass and doing a
strenuous bit of military training dur
ing the past ten days.
Muscle hardened. sun-burnt, much
thinner. but happy and healthy, the
boys came into town on a special car
Of the Maryland Electric Railways
Company. singing at the top of their
voices, Hail, hail, the gangs all here. -
However, this was something of a mis-
statement as several of the lads who
leit Annapolis for the camp on Sun
day night, July 14th, had been unable
to stand the strenuous round of mill
ury work put up to them by Col. Clin-
ton L. Riggs. However, those who
came through the experience were
glad they had gotten the training.
AS is the case in all such camps,
there were times when the soldiers
found things to grumble over, but
these were "all in the days work, "
and when camp was broken yesterday
morning these things were forgotten
IN the satisfaction of a hard job well
done
The camp was left at SIS yesterday
morning and the men in heavy march
ing order hiked from four miles be-
yond Towson to the Fifth Regiment
Armory. Baltimore. Despite the in
tense heat the distance of nearly four
teen miles was covered in something
under four hours. and with compara-
lively few heat prostrations. Just how
gamely the men stuck to their strenu-
Gus hike was indicated by the fact that
three Of the local lads practically col
apsod as soon as they got inside the
Fifth Regiment Armory.
After a brief rest, and an opportun-
I,y to leave the armory to get a bite
to eat the local company re-assem-
bled at Camden Station shortly before
4 o'clock and boarded their special
car
Tuesday night the men bivouaked in
their shelter tents, and before o'clock
Che entire camp was astir and bustling
with activity preparatory to the re-
turn march Promptly at sis assem-
bly, was sounded and a few moments
later the head OF the long column
swung out into the dusty road, home
ward bound Exactly four hours later
The Fifth Regiment Armory was
reached, and members OF the Balti-
more companies broke ranks and dis
perSed for their homes.
After a brief rest the companies
from the counties resumed their
march, either to the wharf or railroad
stations, and before nightfall all had
reached their homes. Company c, of
Salisbury, marched to Light street
wharf where il boarded a steamer,
and Companies X. l. and NJ took trains
,or Hagerstown. Frederick and Anna
polls, respectively.
The strength of the regiment when
t lett Baltimore 10 days ago was 40
officers and 7O4 men. When il re-
turned Yesterday it numbered 80 Off
GERS and 691 men. The loss in per-
sonpcl was caused by draft calls which
were received by several of the men,
"ao in consequence, had to return
Rome before the ending of the training
period TO report to their draft boards.
br.E.-Gen. Henry NJ Warfield. Col.
clinton L. Riggs and other officers of
.Ae command expressed the greatest
satisfaction at what had been accom-
HaS1ed i'm the brief period in which
The men had to learn so much of mill
'ary Importance. All of them stated
.-4, they had never seen a body of
men more eager to learn or more apt
IN grasping the matters presented TO
them.
The training was hard and Cruel
ing; the daily routine as severe as
.4-t OF any Of the National Army can
comments And because of the short
ness OF the time. the men were pushed
To The limit. Severe as the training
was there isn't a man in the regiment
VINO isn't proud that he was in it.