Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1919-05-02
AS SEEN BY A COOK.


United States; but very much surpris-
ed to learn how few Of the boys had
already returned before him, Cook
Hugh G. Jackson, Of Filbert, for the
past eleven months with the 57th Pio-
neer Infantry, most Of the time in
France, spent a short while in The
Enquirer office Wednesday morning.
He received his discharge at one Of
the aviation camps on Long Island last
Thursday, and reached home on Sat-
urday.
my, how things have changed since
I went away" said Mr.. Jackson. 1T
has been only eleven months, yet the
changes are startling, even around Fill
bert. People have married, people
have died, the flu has thinned out the
ranks like a battle, and then l notice
considerable building and other i'm
provements. Yes, the changes are
quite noticeable"
After being inducted into the service
Mr.. Jackson was sent to Camp Wads-
worth. He knew a little about cook
ing, was sent to the kitchen as a help
er, soon learned quite good deal from
other cooks, and when he went abroad
few months later, 1t was with rat
ing as cook, which rating he has held
ever since.
mo, have no regrets on account Of
what I have been through" he said,
"but l have plenty. I am sufficiently
amused"
Cook Jackson landed at Brest, was
soon sent to the front, cooked through
the Argonne drive, and was cooking on
the Meuse when the armistice was
signed. He has been under fire time
and again, has had big shells drop
around him, has witnessed numerous
battles between airplanes, has been SO
situated as to be able to see shells OF
both sides dropping in artillery due!s,
has had airplane bombs drop within
forty yards Of him, and has never been
hurt.
Don't you believe the German civil
ians were not hungry when the war
came to an end" said Mr.. Jackson,
because I know better. We were or
dered not to fraternize with the Ger
mans and I would not have dared do
such a thing if I had wanted to; but
I have seen German children swarm
ing around my kitchen and fishing
scraps Of meat and bread and the like
out Of swill barrels. OF course would
not drive them away. That was up to
the military police, and they did not
drive them away either. One day the
doctors condemned about 500 pounds
of bread as unhealthy, because 1t was
little sour. The orders were to throw
it into the Meuse river and this, OF
course, we did, but all of it had not
sunk to the bottom before the German
children, boys, girls, women and men
were fishing it out They got most OF
it, too"
Asked about souvenirs, Mr.. Jackson
replied that the common saying over
there was that the English were fight
ing for the maintenance of their COM
mercial and financial prestige, the
French for their lives, the Italians for
more land, and the Americans for SOU
venirs. II guess that was some SLAM
der on the Americans; but they GER
tainly do not fool anybody about going
after souvenirs"
Mr.. Jackson exhibited an imitation
iron cross that he had bought in Ger
many, and a wicked looking dagger
that he had taken off the body of
dead German soldier. He also has
some rings and specimens Of French,
Luxembourg and German money. He
explained IIldI TIE CEOSScS WSlC pShi6
sold at any little German shop; and
that he had bought the one he had for
about fifteen cents, and that on the
way home he had refused eight dol
lars for it.
81 have witnessed several scrambles
for souvenirs after battle" he said,
"and if you got anything worth while
you had to hurry. One Of the most
sought after pieces was the iron cross
and other similar decorations Next
they went after officers helmets. and
then after getting watches or finger
rings they did not hesitate to go into
pockets for whatever else might be
found. But if you got an iron cross
before q Frenchman gets 1t, you had to
hurry. He wanted it to sell you. and
it was the same with almost every
thing else he took"
Mr.. Jackson said he had two Brown
ing pistols of German manufacture
and a German carbine that he very
much wanted to bring over: but the
American army officials would not let
him take them on the boat.
Speaking of Brest, about which so
much has been published in the pa
pers, he said that when he landed
there it was the dirtiest, filthiest place
he had ever seen: but when he came
back he hardly knew the place. Most
of the streets had been fixed perma-
nently and there were duckboards
along all Of the others. 1t was as
spick and span and as up-to- date as
any city in France, a hundred times
better than most Of them.