Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1922-03-14
THE "ToP KICK"
What II Means When the First Ser.
aeant Retires.

Company l., Twenty-second Infantry.
That announcement means little to the
average reader, but glance at the high
lights back of 1t:
In Cuba at II and seeing Roosevelt's
Rough Riders charge up San Juan hill
next to his own company, which also
Joined in the attack.
One hitch" in China, taking part in
the expedition against the Boxers and
making the long, hard march from the
sea to Pekin and back again, with
Chinese bandits waiting on the tanks
of the hard pressed column as it
fought Its way along.
Another "hitch" in the jungles of
the Philippines, where at night men
moved crawling through the grass and
weeds SO that they might not fall be-
meath a sniper's bullet.
Tour after tour OF, weary, heart
breaking guard duty during the world
war in a regiment kept at home sta
ticn which it. vainly scorned. -
When Sergeant William (Toby)
Lyon retired the. other day from the
army he left Company 1 ut Governors
leland as nearly heartbroken as 1t Is
possible for unit of Uncle Sans
Regular Army to be. AS the time for
his retirement approached Sergeant
Lyon sighed and summed. up his ex-
periences in these words: 81
"It doesn't seem that the thirty
years can be up" he grinned, ITS
been fun, every moment OF 1t. Some-
thing has always been happening.
There has always been something to
do. li.f ~
"will I regret having left the SER
vice2 ~ f
The old Top Kick smiled mistily.
'Pll say that / viii. Y'see it's been
meat and drink to me these long years
this old service with Uncle Sam.
I'VE been pretty nearly; every place
where regularp go and I've seen pretty
nearly everything there is to see.
Somehow it feels like leaving home to
go into civilian life. K.
II joined the army In the Spanish
American war; enlisting in the Fifth
Maryland Volunteers. was assigned
to E Company the only company of
the outfit which got into the scrap at
San Juan Hill. remember that just
as If it was yesterday. g
"Roosevelt's Rough Riders was over
on our left and I saw Col. Roosevelt
once or twice just before we went into
the charge. e Company made that
charge along the Rough Riders, and
you ought to have heard us whoop her
up as we went up the hill! hs
After the Fifth Maryland went
home l joined the Seventh Cavalry
and went, back to Cuba in the Army Of
Occupation. From there when my
time was up enlisted in the Twenty
! fourth Coast Artillery and served an
other hitch in Cuba.
II then went out to the PHILIPPINES
with the Twenty-third in 1911 end we
had some hot times there with the
bandits from the hills.
During the world war I was with
the twenty-second. We were stationed
at Fort Niagara, guarding property,
| and this was the, worst experience
guess ever had, for all of US wanted
to go overseas. ~ -
The old Top. Kick sighed.
"But orders are orders and army
luck is army luck and 80 we didn't get
over. And so now my times nearly
I'D. Lord, man. what memories have!
remember many a camp where we
had fun, many hike which ended
around camp fires at night with the
bunch sitting steady and grinning for
the mere joy of the thing. l remem-
Der the time when 1t looked like the
| army was going to be composed OF
men who couldn't read or write Eng
lish. How we'll do remember 1t!
az remember one time that the Of
ficer of the day found one of these
ginnies down on post. The o. D. was
a new officer and he was having trou-
BILE with this geeser who didn't know
English, but could sabe enough to re-
peat anything he heard.
"n'What are your general orders p
asked the o. D. ~ .-...
"'What are your general orders?'
repeated the ginny.
"Damn!' says he, Call the corpor-
al of the guard
"Damn!' said the ginny, repeating
fine. Call the corporal Of the guard.
81 saw what was the trouble then
and 1 led that sentry away careful
like. l was afraid that IL the o. D.
had any more excitement he'd just
naturally explode.
Speaking of sentries, was once
attacked by one IN a peculiarly fero-
cious manner, the attack being de-
livered in the rear so to speak. This
sentry went loco while on post and
began to fire his rife around the post
bullets striking about where they
pleased.
~ was sergeant Of the guard and
It was up to us to get him and get
that gun away from him. 1t was a
pitch dark night. I led my guard to-
Ill. tat. fNt-T, tny, n ~