Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1918-10-31

we haven't even a bicycle now, so We
are all walking. The men have beer
put on different work, and are doing
construction work, and while it is much
harder than we have been doing, our
| fellows have gotten so used TO the light
work that few months OF heavier work
won't hurt them. Just now they are
pretty sore from handling the heav'
building material and iron, but il won't
take them long to harden up. The fel
lows when you say work begin to ducf
and go on sick call, and all OF the dif-
ferent excuses begin to come to the
front. Once in while new one gets
tried out and the originator may get
away with it once, but seldom moro
than that. OF course we have our share
OF those who love work, and for tina
reason try not abuse it, but since this
is the army and they 60 to the guart
house when they refuse to work, they
all have to make some sort Of an effort
in that direction. Saturday We sent
out small detail to work on one Of the
new steel buildings, and one Of our bes
loafers got sick during the morning
went to the infirmary, and because the
poor doctor did not know how good ar
actor the fellow was, marked him quar-
ters, and So he did not have to work the
rest of that day. Yesterday being Sum-
day, and no work being called for, the
poor fellow was able to make it to the
Office bright and early to ask for pas:
to 60 to town, and he got it, also he did
not even report at sick call. presume
that he would be able to go to work this
morning, so put him on the iron de
tail, and when he found that out he i'm
medately was taken violently i'll, and
came to the orderly room to be put or
the sick book. The hard-hearted top
sergeant refused to let his name appear
at all, and put him in charge Of SER
geant and marched him off to work. AT
last accounts he was the first one back
to the barracks for dinner, although
he was sick, and came back for
seconds" in the mess line. guess he
is on the road to recovery at last. He
sure has fertile mind when it comes to
figuring out ways to keep from work
ing. Another fellow thought he should
be allowed to loaf because he is trying
to get baseball game for next Sunday
and thinks that his position as manager
of the company baseball team entities
him to loaf, but we changed his mind
This morning the men just marched OH
to work in a body. To show you how
hard work makes them sick, for the last
month the greatest number We have had
on the sick book up until Saturday has
been three, and the sudden rise is un-
questonably due to the dislike for work.
But the average army doctor is rather
callous and unsympathetic practitioner
and a man has small chance to get by
with anything. He must usually have
something the matter with him to get
out Of work. | know the men so well
that il is not hard to tell when they are
really sick, and | am getting to be reg
ular diagnostician and don't make
many mistakes. One of the men had q
close call this morning. He was stand
ing at the bottom Of steel structure
and a big bolt fell and hit him on the
head, and if the blow had not been ?
glancing one he might have been SER
iously injured. After he had gone to
the infrmary and had his head bandag-
ed he went back on the job, and one O.
the men remarked to him thusly: "You
blankety- blank blank boob, what were
you standing so close to that Lieutenant
for anyway" And thereby hangs an
other tale. The officer that our men
are working under (not one OF our own
thinks that the way to handle men is to
cuss them, drive them and be as hare
as nails. Well, some OF our men are
good workers, and naturally thev resent
treatment which is like that, especially
when they are doing all they can and
trying to keep the whole bunch working.
That particular officer is not very popu
lar, and | don't doubt for a minute that
that bolt was intended for his head in.
stead Of the poor fellow who got it, and
if the officer is wise he will stay in tho
clear and not get too close to the build
ing. understand that he is supposed
to be an engineer, and the reason the
work seems to 60 slowly Is because the
building We are working on is sever
inches out OF line, and since the steel is
cut to fit, it takes lot of work to get
the beams to fit. The officer in charge.
being responsible for the mistake, just
has to take his spite out on some one.
The only thing the men regret is that
they can't walk out on him, but they are
in the army and they will have to make
the best Of it. Our First Lieutenant
has promised to have talk with him il
conditions do not improve, and know
that he will do some good, for ne is not
man to let anyone treat our men un-
fairly. | remember when we were
coming over on the Vaterland that one
day during the Abandon Ship Drill" a
lieutenant who was in charge OF bunch
Of our men thought they were not NOV
ing fast enough, so he called them g
few names and told them TO get move
on. When our Lieutenant Burbank
heard about it a few minutes later, he
went I'D to the officer who was on the
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