The spectator., 1919-03-04

"DeSerted the twelfth; klckeQ out or the Eleventh"
 "What's your name?
 Arthur Guy Empey."
 "You're a German"
 This was too much even for me, and I answered.: You're damned liar" 1 saw my chances of shipping vanishing in smoke.
 The Jew grinned and rubbed his hands and said: "You're all right. Go into that room and get card made out, and come back at two o'clock"
 I received a card and went to a beanery across the street and had a wonderful meal of corned beef hash, muddy coffee and huge slices of bread, minus butter. This cost me fifteen cents.
 At two o'clock I reported back, and with seventy-two others was herded like cattle, and in long, struggling line, fanked by three of the employees of the agency, we marched to the Jersey"
 The ship, huge three-stacker, was lying alongside. We were showed into single file, ready to go up the gang plank. Then our real examination took place. At the foot of the gang plank were group of men around a long table. They certainly put us through a third degree to find out if there was any German blood in us. Several men were turned down. Luck fly, got through and signed for the voyage, and went on board.
 At the head of the gangplank stood the toughest specimen of humanity I have ever seen. He looked like huge gorilla. and had big, crescent-shaped, livid scar running from his left ear under his chin up to his right eye. Every time he spoke the edges of the scar seemed to grow white. His nose was broken and he had huge. shaggy eyebrows. His hand was resting on the rail of the ship. It looked like a ham, and inwardly figured out what would happen to me if that ham-like fist ever came in contact with the point of my jaw. AS We passed him he showered us with a few compli- mentary remarks, such as "Of all the lousy scum have seen, this bunch of lubbers is the worst. and this is what they give me to take thirteen hundred horses over to Bordeaux" Later on I found this individual was foreman of the horse gang.
 We were ordered aft and sat on the after hatch. The fellow on my right was a huge. blue gummed negro. He was continually scratching himself. I unconsciouSly eased away from him and bumped into the fellow sitting on my, left. After q good look at him eased back again in the direction of the negro. don't think that he had taken bath since escaping from the cradle. Right then my uppe~most thought was how I could duck this trip to France. The general conversa- tion among the horse gang was: "When do we eat?"
 We must have sat there about twenty minutes, when the second foreman came aft. took fifteen guesses at his nationality, and at last came to the conclusion that he was cross between a Chinaman and a Mexican. He was thin, about six feet tall, and wore a huge sombrero. His skin was tanned the color of leather. Every time he smiled I had the impression that the next minute he would plant stiletto in my back. His name was Pinero. His introduction to us was very brief: "Get up off of that blankety blank hatch and line up against the rail" We did as ordered. Then he com handed: All the niggers line up alongside of the port rail-" l guess lot of them did not know what he meant by the port rail" because tley looked very much bewildered. With an oath he snapped out. You blank ety blank idiots. The port rail is that rail over there. Come on. Move or I'll soon move you" He looked well able to do this and the niggers prompt ly shuffled over to the place designat- ed. He quickly divided us into squads oI IWeIVP nlPl. tnP1l OTutTeu, All ol you who are deserters from the army or who have seen service in the cav airy step out in front" Four others besides myself stepped out. The first man he came to he informed: You're straw boss. Do you know what straw boss is?" This man meekly answered. "No. sir" With another oath, the second foreman said: "All right, you're not straw boss: fall back" got the cue immediately. My turn came next.
 Do you know what a straw boss is?"
 said: Sure"
 He said: "All right, you're a straw boss"
 I had not the least idea of what he was talking about. but made up my mind that it would not take me long to find out. Then he passed down the line. picking out straw bosses. I asked one of the men in my gang what were the duties of straw