The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1928-03-05
Troops Live
Thru He'll
In Panama

blacker yet than they appear on the
printed page, however this has to do
with the U. S. army: "The best army
in the worldw
Why They Join.
There are three classes of men who
join the army. First there are the
young fools, mostly boy scouts who
do not know what to do with them
selves and join for the sake of patrio-
tism and adventure. These soon find
out what army life is, then call to
papa and mama to get them out, as
they are under age. When this can
not be done they get themselves out
by the nearest route: "Over the hill
they go!"
Second, there are the jobless work
ers, hungry, who have to choose be-
tween the army and the river; and
third, there are those, workers, too,
who have the law after them for some
reason or other, and are thus forced
to join.
Defended Union Hall.
When / joined the army l belonged
to this third group of those who have
to join. My crime was that year
before, together with other workers,
1 had defended our union hall, in
town down south, when attacked by
mob of claw and order" minions.
Everything is offered to a man to
make him join. Among these things
are good food, good pay, sports, a
chance to learn a trade, and what
not? 1t costs the recruiting officer
little to make these nice promises.
But once he is in they make him for
get these things, and mighty quick,
too.
Goes To Panama.
Together with about 800 young fell
lows l was sent to the Canal Zone to
serve my three years. Three years
of hell!
Life in the tropics in the army is
terrible thing. There is drilling for a
4 half day, every day. There is work
with the pick and the shovel or the
chopping of trees for the rest of the
day under the blazing sun. Then the
food is disgusting, coffee and hunk
of cake, or flatJacks and molasses
and coffee for breakfast; then beans
and slum and now and then little
roast beef, but never enough of any
of these rotten dishes.
Pay Goes Fast.
The $21 which the soldier gets in
pay is not enough to buy decent food
lat the post restaurant. However,
sometimes the commanding officer
lcompels the soldiers to buy uniforms
of better grade than those supplied by
1.-THE government so that they will look
mice on parade. To do this about SIS
lis taken out from every mans pay
for five or six months until the uni
form is paid for.
The discipline is very tough. For
the least thing a man is sent to the
guard house for a month or two.
While he is there he loses his pay.
The officers do what they please with
their men, and woe to the man whose
face or manners fail to please some
particular officer! They will get him
lsooner or later.
Case of Private an"
I will now give you an Illustration.
Private M. of the 63rd Service Squa-
dron of the Air Service, stationed at
France Field, Canal Zone, failed to
please his officers and N. C. o.
Why, l don't know? He was hard
working man but he never went run
ming after any one to wag like a
puppy. Instead he was very indie
pendent. Well, they gave him all the
dirty jobs around the place and in the
end they "got him." Framed him up
shamefully!
Crude Frame-up.
One night M. came from the town
with me. He was very drunk and
put him to bed. That was about IL
o'clock. He went to sleep dead as
log. His bed was next to mine. A
Jew minutes later | heard a terrible
noise and jumped out of bed to find
The N. C. o. in charge of quarters to-
gether with two friends, standing over
M. and making every one in the bar
racks know that he had caught" M.
with a fellow who slept three beds
away from mine. The guards came
and M, dizzy and not knowing what
had taken place, was led away and
put in the guard house. | realized
the frame-up but could not even
dream it was going to end the way
it did.
Seven Years Hard Labor.
NJ was tried before a general court
martial and sentenced to seven years
hard labor in military prison. He
is now at Fort Jay, Governors Is
land.
They did not call me as witness,
and when told the top sergeant Of
the squadron that knew the man was
innocent, and that / should be called
to tell what knew, he told me that
if knew what was good for me I
should keep my mouth shut.
| MANY Desert.