The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1919-07-04
COSTLY TO YOUR UNCLE
BOYS WHO HAVE ILLEGALLY
ENLISTED IN NAVY
More Than Five Hundred Of
Them At the Great Lakes
Station

Camp Farragut, Great Lakes, ILL.,,
June q, 1919.-In imagination one
can easily place himself in October
this morning as far as weather goes
A strong breeze is blowing from cool
Lake Michigan and as it is very
cloudy a heavy coat feels very com
Portable.
have one correction to make In
this letter. Sometime ago wrote
that an under age boy who comes
here is put through certain process
then his, uniform, is taken from him
and he is sent home But in the
Great Lakes Bulletin of June %,
find the following official statement.
Five hundred illegally enlisted boys
have been through this station since
December, 1918. The cost of each to
the navy has been 5000. making a
total of 100000. Whereas. up to
the present date such boys were
given ordinary discharges they will
hereafter be sent out with dishonor
able discharges for classifying. Form
erly they have been given transpor-
tation home at the rate of five cents
per mile as the released sailors are
given. Now they will be given a
ticket and enough money for meals.
But they are allowed to keep the
uniforms and clothing they have re-
ceived. However, if these boys de-
sire to stay in the navy and can get
parents consent they are not dis
charged. There are many, changes
going on now, so it may be but a
short time till we "Y" men will be
back in our old lines of work. 1t
will be pleasure to preach again
to mixed audiences. will be keep
ing my eyes open nowi for a good
pulpit. A great deal of work
here on ,the station - done by civil
ians these day3 an6 the civil service
is taking ovdr a considerable number
of positions. 1t is thought that the
work the Y. M. C. A., the-J. w. B..
and the K. of &c. are doing now will
be put directly under naval manage.
ment.
Yesterday l was called by long
distance phone and had good talk
with Earl Duffield, who is at Fort
Sheridan for treatment for his feet
He arrived there June Is. 1t was a
pleasure to hear familiar voice. He
said his wife was coming soon. We
hope to see them both.
An extra sad accident occurred at
Waukegan beach last week. Three
young ladies were in bathing and
suddenly went beyond their depth
and two drowned before they could
be rescued. The mother Of one of
them is a nurse still in France and
she, the girl, was to be married on
the return of her soldier boy, who
was on His way home at the time OF
the drowning. The blow will be
4doubly hard for the mother and the
future groom.
There seems to be an effort on the
Part of some of the officers and SOL
diers here to spoil as much of the
liquor Chicago has on hand as ,they
possibly can before July 1. Speed
up July /, your coming will be most
welcome
In my whole life have never gone
this far through a summer without
seeing cornfields and grainfields. |
make two round trips daily to Wau-
kegan and there isn't field on the
route. There Is large piece or
ground owned by a corporations and
their employees are allowed to raise
gardens on it. Each family has q
strip of ground about rod wide and
five rods long and raise anything
they wish On it. Some have all po-
tatoes, somA have several different
things, such as cabbage, beans, corn,
radishes, etc. 1t is quite sight TO
see an army Of men, women ana
children at work in these gardens
evenings. / haven't much to say this
time so will call a halt. Sincerely,
J. G. Olmstej,