Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1918-02-19
mo Excitement at AL" Says
American Who Went cover
the Top; and Who Spent
Hours in. a Hail of German, and
Allied Barrage Fire; That's the
American Spirit, and He's Go.
ing Back, Says Chester.

The American way is to GET
IT DONE. The French expect
that of us.
That's the moral in this story
by George Randolph Chester,
noted novelist, and creator Of
"Gct-Rich-Quick WallingfOrd."
As tho French expect it of us,
it's up to IS to deliver.
BY George Randolph Chester
n Lillian Chester.
Copyrights 1918, by the Newspaper
Enterprise Association.)
Say. What do you think of the
French?"
Fine! They're immense!"
That's the regular question and the
enthusiastic answer, when Americans
meet over here.
What is the French attitude toward
Americans? Confidence; calm conf
dence; a confidence as superior as that
which they have in themselves! And it
isn't misplaced. Well make good.
That's u pet passion.
On the steamer, coming over, some
OF the helpful ouls conceived and ex-
ecuted q counter irritant to the APP
pretended danger zone, and a mem
Der of the medical staff of the u. S.
army, whom we shall call Lieutenant
DNt' W"' "ppoAAIlCo OAAdlI HILL VI Lie
committee of one on costumes and
properties. from which time forth he
was ANONYMOUSLY called Props" He
was summoned Immediately before
the Libretto committee had held its
preliminary session, n his first and
only question was characteristic.
WELL" he smiled, producing pencil
and paper, give me a list of what you
| want"
They did. They laid it before him,
stupefaction. With reckless disregard
for wartime restrictions, they had
planned a grand, glittering allegorical
masque, combined with a magnificent
male ballet; and all they wanted was
costumes for Neptune, two Golden
tressed he-mermaids. several other
principals, and fourteen beautiful
wavelets >f the Atlantic ocean!
Some five minutes later Lieutenant
Bal came briskly out of that little
salon, and confidently interviewed the
SIX lady passengers of the ship. He
finished o interviews a sadder and
a wiser man. Such ladies' as were
aboard in these strenuous times/were
on no frivolous errands, and they had
not, individually or collectively
enough broad, blue ribbon to make a
t1let for the hair, a bow, a streamer.
and a wide billow for even one beau
tiful wave of the Atlantic ocean, let
alone fourteen. Thought on the part
of Props. He went to the second stew.
ard, who sent him to the first stew
ard. who sent him to the linen stew
ard, who sent him to the purser. The
purser listened attentively, gazing the
While on the unfaltering determine
ton of Lieutenant Bill, and mentioned
the only ray of hope. Among the
i1ags which were used for signals and
SIllCoC. 1hera mjDht ,,occ;J1,, H. ---
blue bunting, but the only man who
could give hin permission to use that.
II there were any, was the skipper,
.Where is the skipper" asked
Lieutenant Bill. ~
Huh" The purser laughed and
shrugged his shoulders. The captain
is on the bridge"
1t was a beautifully clear and star,i+
night, and the sea was calmly glitter
ing It's diamonds from horizon to hort
ION; an ideal night for submarines
mad any CHANGED to cross our nath.
ana we had just entered the SPECIALIZED
uanger zone. Out on the darkened
ueck, where no smokers smoked and
no gleam or crack of light was allow
ed to be visible, from within. Went
Lieutenant Bill, and considered. I'm
tnere IN the dimness was the bridge.
with the head of the skipper motion.
lessly s~llhouetted against the
SKY: 10 port and starboard, amidships
ana fore II aft. We're the gun crews,
IN thelr queer night uniforms like
COLLINS out of some weird fantasy
and all motionless in their cat-Iike
Watchfulness. Equally m%otionless stood
Lieutenant Bill at the bottom of the
narrow companionway, until at last
duty o him on! Slowly he climbed
the steps. On a sudden. like the crack
OF a gun, there came from out of the
C9ol atmosphere up above the irasci-
BILE voice of the nerve-strained skin.
per. mp
Who in blazes is that?"
Lieutenant William So-an-So." re-