Baraboo weekly news. [volume] (Baraboo, Wis.) 1912-197?, 1919-01-23


and finally lay alongside a little six
thousand ton freight steamer, already
loaded to the guards with a general
cargo We piled aboard, the men
ing below to their sard ne quarters
and | reporting to the captain with
my orders. The ships officials were
aboard so soon, since they were not
yet through coaling and the ship was
in a horrible mess-coal rafting down
through the chutes, the dust flying ev-
erywhere, swarms Of negroes at work
making fact the deck cargo, and fren
zied officers yelling through mega4
phones. However, we added our num-
Der to the confusion, without making
any appreciate difference, became a
part of 1t and were quite blissfully
happy and soon just as dirty as any
sailor on the high seas. The executive
reQuqisitioned gangs Of my men to
help. / am CHARTERED in a tiny state
room with first lieutenant Of the
Quartermaster corps, who is in charge
Of the ships cargo, and it requires
very precise coordination for US to
accomplish the movements incident to
existence without banging into each
other.
The ship is converted German YES
sci, and our dishes bear the name of
Hamburg She rides very low in the
water and already some of my men
have been soaked by waves breaking
over the forward deck II we have
any rough weather well all be CON
fined below decks.
My men, most Of whom had never
seen the ocean before, are all agog
with everything, from lifebelts to gen.
eral alarms, and were delighted when
a call came for lookouts to assist in
the crows nests. We have taken
charge of seven posts aboard ship, and
already two general alarms have been
sounded on account of over-nervous
lookouts.
The crows nests are great fun
cosey steel cubby holes high up on
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up some fifty feet of rope ladder and
as many more Of steel. One can see
about thirty miles from them.
watched the last lighthouse twinkle
disappear before turning in last night
We lay along the coaling pier for
twenty-four hours before sailing, and
the trip down the harbor, with its
camouflaged ships-which look as
though some five-year-old youngster
had been turned loose with bush
and a pot of paint-with it's hydro
planes droning low overhead like great
humble bees-it was all quite gripping
Then we passed through the double
nets which guard the mouth Of the
harbor and were adrift on the deer
and briny.
My principal occupation has been
sleeping. I've quite bit of work to
do before arriving in France, but am
resolved to devote the first week to
Morpheus.
When you read in the papers next
month that so@,many more thousands
of American soldiers have been landed
in France, L and my handful of men
will be part of that number. l am In
finitely glad Of the chance for foreign
service-Pd rather be an overseas
Not that it makes any vital difference
to the service. I'd probably be of just
as much value in Camp Jackson as in
Samur, but it makes a big sentimen,
tai difference to me.
Every now and then one catches a
birds eye view of some phase Of war
work which is very Illuminating. Our
divisional review at Camp Funston
gave me some understanding of the
word army" The replacement de-
pot at Camp Jackson made me- appre-
ciate the labor of making civilians
INTO soldiers. Winchester's great plant
at New Haven helped me to appreciate
the problem Of ordnance supply. My
trip to the port gave me glimpse into
railway transportation. And now
have a vivid picture Of grey white
capped ocean, covered with a thou
sand grotesquely painted ships, each
carrying it's mite of men and supplies
to feed the army in France. Life is
wonderfully rewarding these days.
There is a possibility of my being
able to get this letter ashore before
we finally head for Europe. Just now
we are beating up the coast to join a
convoy at another Atlantic port. There
is a possibility of my being able to
land there, should we have to wait a
day or so for convoy. But the
chances are that this VII be mailed
from France.
Saw Ships Torpedoed