Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1920-04-14
TANK COMPANY
Enthusiastic Meeting of Edge
field Post, American Legion.
Many Enroll in Tank
Company.

Despite the fact that occasional
heavy showers of rain fell, about
fifty young men gathered in the
Court House last Monday night to
further perfect the organization of
tank company of the National Guard
of South Carolina. After much dis
cussion it was decided to elect cap
tain, and this honor fell to James O.
Sheppard.
Another meeting of the company
will be held next Monday night, April
10Th, at 8 p. m., in the Court House
when the organization of the head
quarters and the first platoon will be
completed. 1t is expected that the re-
naming officers-two first and two
second lieutenants, will be elected at
the meeting next Monday night
Tuesday morning the result of the
meeting was telephoned to Adjutant
General w. W. Moore in Columbia,
and he promised his support towards.
getting the headquarters and at least
one platoon fo Edgefeld county; he
stated that Georgetown. S. c., is also
working on this matter and he could
not state at this time whether Edge
field will be able to swing the entire
company.
Adjutant General Moore and an
army officer who has been. detailed
as the Inspector-Instructor of the
National Guard of South Carolina,
will attend the meeting next Monday
night for the purpose of instructing
the members of the company in ref
erence to tanks and to inspect the
company. They will also inspect the
proposed armory.
The Adjutant General has taken
up with the War Department the
proposition of sending to Edgefield
one or two tanks for recruiting pur-
poses. 1t is believed that if several
tanks are. sent here for exhibition,
some men who have 50 far, declined
to join will become sufficiently inter
ested to hand in their names as men,
bers. Even without tanks, eighty-two
men have joined the company and
it seems certain that mere will be-
come interested when they see these
powrful fighting machines.
The meeting last Monday night
was called to order by the Command
er of the local Post, American Le-
gion, as that organization had first
taken steps towards organizing a
tank company. The chairman request
ed Mr.. Hord Allen to act as chair
man. A discussion of the tank COM
pany was then entered into and short
talks were made by Messrs. w. A.
Collett, w. A. Strom, O. P. Bright,
secretary Chamber of Commerce. W.
w. Manson, Wad Allen, A. A. Ed
munds, w. NJ. Bouknight, James D.
Sheppard, Dr.. B. F. Jones, A. B. Car
vile and others.
When enlistments were called for
fifteen men held up their hands, thus
bringing the list of members up to
eighty-three. The minimum strength
of the headquarters and one platoon
lis seventy-seven men, but it is de-
sired to secure more than that num-
ber because of the fact that men Of
ten move to other places and have to
be dropped from the rolls and some
are knocked out on account uAz@ To
are knocked out because of serious
physical defects.
There was great enthusiasm dis
plaved at the meeting and the opin-
ion is that the tank company is prac-
tically sure thing for Edgeheld.
Considerable interest in the tank
company is being taken by the men
from the country districts. j. M. Wal
ton of Meeting Street attended the
first meeting last week and since then
has sent in the names of six men
from the Meeting Street section. Joe
Hammond of Collier is spreading the
news around that section and 1t IS
believed that quite a number of men
will attend the next meeting; the
rain last Monday prevented most
country men from attending the
meeting. Messrs Joe land William
Bouknight represented the Trenton
Johnston section of the county. 1t is
hoped that the out-of-town men will
take an interest in the company and