The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1928-09-14
Men DESERTED
CONSTANTLY AS
NO WAGES CAME:
Refused Coffee in Cold
Winter Weather
(By An Army Correspondent


out Of work, tired and discouraged,
SO when I came across an army
poster was ready to do anything
foolish. There was a sergeant there
and he jumped right on my neck and
told me what a good chance there
was in the army for a young man
like me. l fell for that bunk, and
what fool | was to believe him.
Well, l joined. l have regretted it
ever since.
They sent me to Fort Ethan Allen,
in Vermont. There they threw a
uniform at me. The breeches were
as haggY as h and the coat was
too small. It was misfit all over.
Three days after I was inoeulated
and my arm was stiff for two days
and I was compelled to work. They
said it was to exercise the arm. The
rules say that you are supposed to
rest for twenty-four hours, but they
dan't care. They do as they want
They are the boss and they tell you,
too. Two weeks after was there
= notice was put up that General
Broun was coming to inspect bar
racks and for eight days and nights
v-e worked from seven in the worn
ing TO eight at night, and then an
ether bunch worked until morning
70 get through We worked all day
nd we could not sleep at night be-
ause there was so much noise and
we were so tired. That went on for
aight days and when we were
through and the general came he
found fault with everything and
ever 10 of US got h and K. P.
for a week.
That discouraged US a lot and that
sight 81 soldiers deserted. They
lever came back while l was there
and they never found them. We
went on guard from 4:30 to the
next dav, two hours on and two
Yours off, and, let me tell you, two
Scurs was too much in winter.
Sometimes it was below zero and
''her we asked for coffee they
would laugh and say: What the
p, you think you are home; you
are in the army now" That would
send some more boys over the hill,
hat is, they would desert. Every
aay day three or four would go
Nver the hill, never to come back.
They said they would sooner go to
he puard house than go back, and
believe it, too.
The grub was none too good.
When we did get something that was
rood we did not get enough of it.
my little thing that we did we got
z. P. for two or three weeks, and
lat was that. They were the boss.
'To had nothing to say about it.
e yen did, another K. P. you would
LET. 60 it was no use to kick about
inviting. A dogs life is what I
all it. In May they sent us to
arm. about 10 miles away. We had
o hike it, too, with two horses and
pack to take and cannon to clean.
When we got there our clothes were
III dirty and we were a mess. The
7aeals were rotten, a handful of
leans and a slice of bread and we
we're lucky to get that some times,
md when we did get it it was full
If Grass and oats.
j. was 10 miles to town and they
aid that we could not go there for
smokes. They said that they would
ret them for us. Well, the Y. M.
G. A. came there with the smokes,
md they soaked us good for them.
They soaked us 20 cents for Bull
Durham, 1t only cost them Is cents
FOR two bags, and they soaked US
20 cents. That is what | call rot
ten. We staid there for five weeks,
and 81 men left over the hill. Well,
If they had staid five weeks more,
he whole d troop would have
left.
When we got back to the Fort
eight more left. Well, the captain
started to get kind of worried. He
wanted to know what was the mat
Ter. One of the boys, who was get
ting discharged, went to the cap
tain and said that if the boys did
not get better food and more of it.
md that if we did not do less work
that some morning he would wake
up and, find the army over the hill
MS the rest had gone. The captain
rot wise and after that we got
things little better for about two
weeks, and then things went back
he same. | got discharged six days
,f+cr that ard l was d glad tc
ret out of that hole. / wrote to e
Nuddy of mine there and asked him
how things were, and he said that
ihines were as tough as before.
All the time l was there, when
asked the boys if they were glac
that they joined. they would say
II must have been drunk when
signed for this hole
Let me give you the amount Of
fhings that we must get and pay
for out Of S2l per month. We hav'
% get our uniform cut to fit US
That costs Sc; five cans of sho'
polish. rs cents; two boxes of tootl
paste, 81; laundry, 81 per month
? bottles of brass polish, 10 cents
four sets of brass buttons, S1.25 pc
set: uniform pressed every week
"a 4 60 .nn. month. nNnrcna