Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1919-02-28
Ehettng Glrat

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pauphin county are making cont
putions to the local history of
war III way that should attract
.Sh'ioH OF newspapermen all ov
.ne state and which is also q sour
Oh pride to Harrisburgers. VIII
.ney are printing now is not on
im.I,e,resting now, but in years to con
win pe important because there
no district in Pennsylvania whe
Deu.er work for the furnishing
en 10 Uncle Sam was done thi
En IL tne section of Dauphin coun
known as local district No. q
sent hundreds of well instructed A
drilied men to the camps of II
National Army as we'll as supplyiI
Nolunteers for the regular arm
navy and marine corps. upholdiI
the traditions of more than a ce
tury. When the United StatU
authorities called for the history
the draft the officers of No. 2 di
trlct mad things prepared and Chat
man w. j. Daniel lost no time
settlnS down the facts. In consu
tation with James f. Lentz, chat
man or the districts enterprisit
ooaro or instruction, he assembl,
q chronicie that tells fine stor
1t gives all the incidents relative
the drafting of the men, the instru
tlon meetings. the drills and the d
partures. with names of everyol
connected with the operation of Il
law In the district and who spoke
worked In the instruction meetina
me story OF the big meeting whid
started the military instruction
iHIlHdoethVllle and several other u
per end towns last August and
lhe demonstrations when the draftt
men left is we'll told and will be
Value long after the men who we
drafted are grandfathers.
Where Harrisburg comes in is
tne mllltary instruction work whit
was handled by the Harrisburg r
serves IN that district on an evt
greater scale than in the Paxta
district and at the high schools
Harrisburg. The upper end new
papers all pay tribute to their wo
ana quotations from the story
! running in the Millersburg Sentin
VIII be OF interest to people in tf
city and vicinity. Editor Hay
Bowman. who took quite a part
the general work for the draft,
men in the upper end, writes til
| way about the August meeting al
the fVc or six weeks of drills whit
| ioliowed at Elizabethville. MillerE
| Durg, Lykens, GratZ, Halifax al
| Willlamstown: This initial dri
although entirely new to the m
!orlty or the men, was greatly
Joyed by them as we'll as appret
ated by all the registrants, and whi
1T continued for but several hours
was nevertheless of great value al
proved beneficial to all the men r
celVinS this instruction. These dri
held on each Saturday afternooE
ana Tor several weeks, were und
the direction of the Harrisburg K
serves, who sent delegations to t
various towns, until some one
each town was capable of doing {
work. The men who were afte
wards induced into the militia
service. and nearly all of them wer
spoke in glowing terms of apprec
alton of the rudiments of militia
drlll. received in their prelimina
drills. They We're of great aid
them upon entering camp, and
abled them to enter into the Ii
of the army from the usual hand
caps so common to new men wi
knew nothing of the life prior
their induction, and the trainir
they received almost invariably |
to noncommission appointment
The chairmen of the local boa
and the chairman of the instructed
| board also stated that special mel
ton should be made, regarding Il
excellent work done by the Harriz
burg Reserves. Without the spiel
| did assistance of the Reserves, an
the cooperation of this body. Il
results atSdined would not hay
been as successful as they othcrwi
were. The trips to and from Hal
risburg were made without eXpenH
to anyone; the Reserves cheerful
gave their services, and time graf
doing this as n patriotic duty. TIL
was greatly appreciated by the loc
board as well as by the cid
zens in general, and usually ligG
lunch was provided for the men
one of the towns in which thu
drilled the registrants. All told. tt
movement for the instruction of t
registrants was a great success. an
did much for the men who we
privileged to enter into it,"
Major w. G. Murdoch, the Statd
chief draft officer. is having quite
few letters sent to him froI
homes of men who We're in the dra|
and when one considers how hal
hundreds of folks tried to ke@
their young men out of the draI
the letters are interesting. Most
the letters are insistent that Il
authorities see that the services
the men drafted are comm EN- orate|
A few give life histories of the md
in the draft and one woman has Sc
notice where her son can be founI