The Powder River County examiner and the Broadus independent. [volume] (Broadus, Mont.) 1919-1935, 1919-06-20
What Happens When Several
Hundred Jackies Are Turned
Loose for Shore Liberty.
MAKES FOR The HAPPY SHIP
'berality Of Private Citizens Has
t. Given Men Of the Fleet a Big Ath-
Ietic Field for Their
Recreation.


bos'n's whistles are heard piping the
crews OF the mighty dreadnaughts to
the rails and the sing-song cries of
the bosn's mates carry out over the
water Liberty party to muster"
This is the summons given three
times each week to the men of the At
lantic fleet to take their hours of recre-
alton on the immense athletic field pro-
vded for them by the Navy league.
BY the hundreds, on every battleship
and cruiser, the youthful, white-uni-
formed Jackies come rushing on deck |
to form into line for the liberty in
spectiOn.
Two long white lines form on deck
and every man stands rigidly at atten-
ton while officers pass along marking
the appearance Of each one. Their uni
forms are spotlessly white. Their shoes
freshly blackened. Off come their lit
tie round white caps to show that their
the tleet fails to be struck, when he
views That line at inspection, with the
extreme youth of the men, their intelli-
gent faces and happy, smart appear
ance. The average age appears to be
less than twenty years and many of
them seem barely to have passed their
eighteenth birthday on the date Of
their enlistment. From every state in
the Union they hail and thousands of
them from the farms of the middle
West. A collection certainly Of Amer
ica's finest gathered on the deck Of
floating fortress to form the first line
of the nations defense.
Off for Day Of Sport.
On every sun-tanned face is worn a
broad smile in expectation of the sport
that the afternoon will bring. Over
the rail, the visitor sees the ships
launches bobbing about in the seaway
with the bowmen holding fast to the
ships side with their boathooks. Then
the sharp word of command rings out
on deck and the white line Of sailors
begins to move forward toward the
gangway and the men go over the side
to the waiting launches.
Discipline begins to give way lit
tie at this point, although the cox
swain of the boat is all business as
he calls to the bowmen to shove off.
The afternoons recreation has begun.
Thousands of superfluously healthy,
absolutely carefree and very young
men are turned loose. To be sure
there is the provost guard with their
policemen's sticks, but that is only to
guard against the chance of ugly blood
developing from the fun, which does
not happen.
When the dock at the athletic field
is reached the men from the launches
tumble out pell-mell and Immediately
begins a raid upon the canteen. Pop
is sold faster than corks can be pulled.
The man who gets anything over the
canteen counter fights for it. You
must come with your change ready or
go without. There is too much bust
ness to stop to change money.
WatermeIons Last Quick.
A pump receives the overflow from
the canteen and those who have been
pnable to spend their money for candy
u pop take their chances on getting
ducked under the pump. A farmer
driven onto the field with a load OF
waterMelons. At so cents apiece his
watermelons last about fifty seconds
A colored cooks helper buys melor
and dives into it when a huge hant
belonging to Jackie from an indiana
farm buries the dark's face into thu
melon I'D to his ears. Another enter
prising farmer brings some old farm
nags on the field to hire them out fol
"gentfemen's mounts" to the sailors
Obviously the horses are about a
used to their saddles as a hog Is t.
work, But they are hired by the sail
ors at any price the farmer asks. 4
lad mailing from Maine takes his frs
chance on horseback and slides dow
the horses neck. His shipmate yell
at him, go aft, you fool, go aft"
The thousands of jackies swarm
over the field. Hundreds of them breal
and run for the beach for swim.
crowd of them gather at target prae
tice with small rifles. Six of the tel
baseball diamonds are promptly pu
into use by scrub teams.
And then more launches from tn
battleships come in bringing the sta
baseball teams from four of the battle
ships. A double-header is to be playe
between four of the best teams of tn
fleet in a series to determine the flee
championship. The grand stands fl
rapidly and soon they are swellin
sea of white suits and red and brow
faces as the sailors cheer their ship
teams on to victory. Rafting goo
ball is played by these navy team!
The nine men on the diamond repre-
sent the pick of thousand from
battleship and they play with the II
terest and good bit of the money q
the whole crew backing them. The
train and work for months for a chan
pionship series like this.
Pro.ifes the "Happy Ships"
1t is &erality of private Amer
can citizens That has given these me
of the fleet their big athletic fell