The silver state. [volume] (Winnemucca, Nev.) 1909-1925, 1918-07-16
THESE TWO men
REFIT THE ARMY
Lively Work Of Major Fawcett
and Captain Thrall at
Camp Blank.
spRUcED up FOR OVERSEAS
Hungry and IlI-cIad Soldiers Well Fed
and Made Spiek-and-Span for
the Voyage to Battle
Front In France.

washington.-MaJ. George w. Faw-
cett is the camp quartermaster at an
American embarkatioD camp. 1t is his
first business to see that troops going
overseas find comfortable, healthful
temporary quarters, and have plenty Of
food. The camp is more than a rest
resort for travellers. When 1t was
established less than a year ago In
coming troops were warned that they
must not rely on getting any of their
overseas outfit here. This is so com
pletely changed under Major Fawcett's
administration that there is nothing
an organization can possibly need
which this camp will not supply nearly
as fast as the men can be marched
up to his warehouses to take the sup
plies away.
Major Fawcett has a ten-foot square
office in an implanted shack. He sits
at a little desk with two clerks, n be-
hind him and the other at his side. A
telephone receiver Is strapped over his
head all the time. The officers requir-
ing supplies for the present and fu-
ture who come into this camp make
mistakes, big and little, but not n
of them has ever got anything worse
than an amused or an aStonished grin
from the camp q~uartermaster. ut is
easier and quicker to give a mar what
you know he wants." the major says,
"than to waste your time, his, and the
governments, by quarreling with him
because he has not put his needs in
proper shape"
Makes II Easy for Them.
Army regulations require particular
printed formulas for acquisitions, pre-
pared with scrupulous attention to
small details. Major Fawcett has
taught his men to accept any scrubbed
memorandum on the back Of an envel-
ope or a bit of wrapping paper, tell the
applicant for supplies to come back
In half an hour. and, then, when he re-
turns, hand to him a perfectly arranged
form of requisition. stating all his
needs with military exactness. and at
the same time directing him to a store
house where his supply is already
waiting.
The interior traffic of the camp has
increased until 100 big motortrucks
are tearing through the streetsafrom
dawn until dark, and half of them
work far into the night. The more the
camp speeds up the more troops Major
Fawcett invites the war department TO
send through the camp. The ideal of
to 1t that no man crosses the
seas for service with clothing and
which is not new, or as good
as new, has Just about been reached.
Troops are detrained from the interior
dusty. faded clothing. patched and
pulled out Of shape, and go onto their
In ar incredibly short time dress
ed up like a show window display.
His l~ieutenants in charge of money
disbursements, subsistence, construc- |
ton, transportation, and reclamation |
are at his door with brand-new COM
plications every few minutes. Bewil-
supply officers, who have come |
to the camp without the slightest idea |
of what Is expected of them land who
would have resigned before coming had
they known) appear at his door look
Ing scared; they listen for a few min |
utes to the general run of his tele-
phone conversation. forget their scare.
his questions with q prompt
and a def1niteness which seem to
surprise the men themselves, and go
out with their heads up. smiling conf
IDENTIFY, and accomplish changes and
reflttings and substitutions such as
they had never dreamed of.
Work Well Divided.
The work under Major Fawcett sub
divided itself naturally so that no dis
proportionate burden falls on I'M one
department. with n exception. For
accounting purposes II is absolutely
necessary that one man should have
charge of what, in quartermaster lam
guage, is called property" He must
sign every invoice and assume respon-
sibility for 1t financially. This Job
under Major Fawcett Is that of Capt.
@. Il. Thrall. Q. M. r. @. Captain
Thrall has counted II a big night when
he has had more than four hours sleep
since the war started.
Captain Thrall has never been
caught ratified. He swears now and
then. but laughs at himself when he
swears and he never lets anybody else
get ratified. Captain Thrall is a much
more tired looking man than he was a
year ago-but like his chief he has
found that the best way to keep men
moving is to meet ignorance and stu
pidity alike with a friendly grin and
s~traighten them out as they go along.
Major Fawcett left the regular army
IL years ago and was for many years
purchasing agent for the Philippine
constabulary. Captain ThraIl came