The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1919-01-23

siHu not lar from the stove. k;tte was
the only patient able to be on his feet,
so I thought he would have to be my
chief cook and bottle washer for a
while; and, besides, there was some
thing about him that made him look
pretty valuable. had not recognized
his whistling yet, so Slim looked to be
the right name for him.
"Slim, what's that big cupboard
FORT"
How'd known Nuthin' in It."
"Slim, that would make fine box
for coal or wood, wouldn't it?"
"Um. Whar de coal an wood?'
I'm going out and take observa-
tons, Slim. Take the wheel while I'm
gone, and keep your eye peeled for
U-boats." So I sneaked out the door
and began looking around.
If you look at the sketch I have
made, it will not take you long to see
that next to US was vacated Russian
barracks. And 1t did not take me
much longer to see it, too. Back to
the hospital and Slim.
"Slim, what barracks are next to
us?'
Russian burrucks, only dey amt
dere now. Been sick"
"And you mean to tell me you don't
know where to get wood?"
"Sick men been in dem burrucks."
sick men here, aren't there? Let's
CO."
That did the trick. The black boy
would watch from the hospital VIM
dOws until he saw the coast was clear,
then we would slip into the barracks
next door, and he would watch again.
When there was no sentry near
enough to hear us, crash! and out
would come dividing board from the
hunks. When we had an armful
apiece, and had broken them up to the
right lengths, all we needed was lit
tie more watching, and then back to
the hospital and the big cupboard.
! Later on. our men told me they used
to watch the smoke that poured from
the hospital chimney all the time and
wonder where on earth we got the
wood.
We got the same kind of food In the
hospital that was served in the other
barracks, and l would not have had
any more than I used to, except that
sometimes some Of the twenty-six pa
tients could not eat their share, and
then, of course, it was mine. One day,
| though, we all had extra rations.
| / Two Russian doctors came to visit
us each day. and once they were fool
ish enough, or kind enough, to ask If
we had received our rations-we had
received them earlier than usual and
they were finished at the time OF
course. J. said no. SO they ordered the
Russian in the kitchen to deliver
twenty-eight rations to us, which was
not quite three loaves of bread. We
were that much ahead that day, but it
would not work when tried the trick
| again.
One day q German doctor came to
the hospital barracks. He would not
| touch anything while he was there
| not even open the door. ALI of the
| patients had little cards attached to
their beds-charts Of their condition
When the German wanted to see these
charts the Russian doctors had to hold
them for him.
/ was having a great time at the
hospital, wrecking the barracks next
door each day for wood, along with
Kate. and getting little more food
sometimes, and was always nice and
warm. I thought myself quite pet
Compared to what had been uI
against, 1t seemed like real comfort
But the more food I got, the more
wanted. And it was food that brought
me down, after all.
Across from us was q barracks In
/ which there were English officers, ant
somehow it seemed to me that they
must have had drag. Every once ir
while saw what looked like vege
tables and bags of something that was
dead ringer for brown flour. So
told Slim, or Kate, as was calling hin
sneaked out.
After two or three false starts, 60
over our barbed wire and their barbet
wire, and in through q window.
There saw carrots! And graham
flour!
l took all I could carry, to divide W
: with Kate, and then started eating
so as not to waste anything. 1t wa
certainly some feast-the only thin,
, besides mud bread and barley coffe,
/ and shadow" soup that had to ca
, In Germany. Then started hack t
/ the hospital. I got over their barbe'
, wire oil right, and Kate gave me tn
gO-ahead for our entanglements, blu
, just as was going over them sentr
, nabbed me. At first / thought Kat
: had turned traitor, because we ha
had little argument q short time be
!, fore.
But later on / figured that he woul
t not have done a trick like that, an
), besides, he knew l was bringing hir
e something to eat. So the sentry mus
a have sneaked up without Kate seein
J. him. Who got the carrots and gr:
i ham flour that was carrying do nc
i know. The sentries booted me all til
q way Lack to my old barracks.
Continued in merit Heek's Bdnner.1
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