The Glasgow courier. [volume] (Glasgow, Mont.) 1913-current, 1919-05-16
MONTANA VOLUNTEERS
: DOING MENIAL DUTIES
HUNDREDS OF MEN WHO WE'RE AMONG FIRST
TO FL1a % COLORs ACTING AS SERVANTS
TON E., COMERS; THIRTEEN GLASGOW
BOYS IN THE LIST.

Attorney Felkner Hayes of For
syth, Montana, and Attorney F. T.
Hooks of Townsend, Montana, both of
whom are acting as instructors in the
college Of law, A. E. F university,
Baunne, Cote de Or, France, have ad-
dressed to Senator Slattery and a
number of other leading citizens of
the state protest over the detention
in France for kitchen police and 9th
er menial duty of 300 members of the
old Second Montana infantry, nation
al guard. Through some shifting of
personnel, they declare, these men,
all of whom have battle records, were
not sent home with their division and
now are doomed to none knows how
long service in occupations highly dis
tasteful to them.
Deeply Humiliated.
Statements in the press that all
Second Montana men except the We
nereals and the A. w. l. LIS. have
returned home also are reaching the
men at Baunne and causing them
deep humiliation, Messrs. Hayes and
Hooks declare. They ask the senator
to lay the matter before the Montana
congressional delegation. Their plea
is that men enlisting late in the war,
or after it's end, should be assigned
to such duties, not volunteers who
were among the first to answer the
call.
The letter follows:
Headquarters A. E. f. University.
Baunne, Cote, Dor, France,
April 18th, 1919.
approximately 300 citizens, men,
bers of the old Second Montana regi-
ment, are doing duty as laborers and
scullions in and around the A. E. F.
university at Baunne, Cote Dor,
France. You know, no doubt, that
this huge university was formed by
detailing of students and instructors
from the various military units in
France, with the result that there are
about fourteen thousand students at
tending school here.
1t is apparent that men attending
usual duties of labor and fatigue
win n usually is performed by details
Of the personnel from military units.
Therefore large number of soldiers
any way associated with the educa-
tional functions of the institution but
whose sole duty involves labor around
the school as in the preparation and
serving of meals, construction work
and general maintenance and opera
tion duties. 1t is among the latter
class that we find so many of Mon
tana's soldier veterans who arrived
in France in 1917 with the 41st di-
vision.
The thing which actuates the writ
ers in this communication is that
there is every indication that these
men will remain here as laborers and
scullions until the late fall of 1919 or
into 1920 unless action is taken in
their behalf by Montanans. You
know possibly that it is one of the
established rules or precedents of en-
barkation for Gods country that SOL
diers shall return with their organ
izations. The 41st division, to which
these soldiers belonged has gone
home, but these soldiers were detailed
to labor battalions and are now ap-
parently chained to the wheels of
the military machine until it stops
running and no one knows when that
blessing shall grace the public It
is further burden on these men that
there appeared in the papers of Mon
tana articles to the effect that all
members of the old Second save We
nereals and A. w. O. LIS, in other
words, men with questionable mill
tary records, had been returned to
the states. This deliberate falsehood
has caused considerable concern
among the men and humiliation has
been frequently evidenced by their
mail.
Records Are Honorable.
These soldiers bear honorable rec
ords and deserve no stigma upon them.
They were among the first to go to
the colors and Montana, when they
left, reverently bowed her head in
supplication to The Deity to guard
and return them It is not our belief
that there exists any express intent
to work injustice upon any soldier,
but the colossal war game and it's op-
Grafton necessarily mean that condi-
tions like this may prevail.
1t needs no discussion to impress
upon anyone the great injustice which
is being perpetrated. Wrong, SER
iously wrong, of course When we go
to our meals we see behind the serv-
ing counters veterans of the Second