The Skyland post. [volume] (West Jefferson, N.C.) 193?-1988, 1942-04-02
1T BEGINS

On a recent Friday Is, the Dus
pulled out from the city hall OF
my home town, with me and 9
group of other selectees on board
One of our group had been de-
signated as leader by the local
board. All but one of the fellows
on the bus were laughing, but il
was the kind of laughing one
might have heard on the Sunday
the Japs dropped "pineapples" on
Pearl Harbor. One poor chap was
crying like a six-year-old con-
templating his first day of school,
and his fellow-passengers were
laughing at him in order to boil
ster their own spirits.
Just a few minutes before, we
had stood on the steps of the
municipal building and posed for
couple of local news camera
men. In a way it seemed silly,
and in another way, as Kitty
Foyle would have said, there
seemed to be something courage
Gus about it. The high school
band had turned out. My brother
and few friends were on hand
to say goodbye. Former Cover
nor Clyde r. Hoey had promised
to stop by and say a few words,
but Mrs. Hoey had passed away
early that morning. Odus M.
Null, state speaker of the house,
pinch-hitted for the speaker and
everyone said he made a fine
speech but from where I stood it
was impossible to hear what he
said.
Mothers were there and they
were crying a little, probably see
ing their sons as bullet-riddled
corpses on some far-off front line.
The fathers remained in the back
ground and did not say much, but
they looked proud and when they
shook hands, it was firm, mas
culine handclasp. Girls were
there, too, and when the bus
started they shed a few tears.
They probably visualized a camp
filled with beautiful and unscru-
pulous women, I figured.
But they might just as well
have relaxed.
Their boy friends may never
get to the front lines, and, if they
do, they will be so we'll trained
that they can count their chances
of survival very high. Army dis
cipline is businesslike and intelli-
gent, as our particular group
was later to learn.
AS for the women-on the oc-
casion when a soldier finds them,
he will find dozen other SOL
diers cutting in on his dances.
There is no reason why his home
town girl can't be invited to the
dances, if she can manage the
trip. His family can come to vi
sit him and see with their own
eyes that he is a lively and heal
thy soldier.
Going back to the bus load OF
frightened selectees, our first
contact with the army was at the
induction station at Fort Bragg.
When our bus pulled into that
particular section of camp, we
were met by a representative of
the army who wanted to know
how many boys on the bus were
drunk. AS matter of fact, sew
eral fellows had been pie-eyed
throughout the trip, but the vast
expanse of the nations largest
army camp had apparently sober
ed them up in a hurry. The lit
tie Jewish sergeant looked dis
appointed as he surveyed. the
group of prospective soldiers,
passing out the front of the bus,
and could not find a single can
didate for the guardhouse.
For an hour or so, we sat in
the induction station, awaiting a
detail of men who could use
typewriters and therefore get our
papers into shape. That particu-
lar detail never did show up
good typists are rare indeed in
the army-and so our processing
did not begin until the follow
ing day. At S o'clock that after
noon we lined up in front of a
mess hall, preparatory to eating
our first meal as a guest Of I'm
Gle Sam and his army. Probably
accustomed to the fancy and deli
cate preparations of their mothers
and sisters, the new men quickly
pronounced the food as weak and
watery stuff, unfit for any self
respecting hog. But they were
to see the day when they would
love army food and often fight
for a second helping!
! At the induction station were
groups from many other locai-
4;as Or. ornI1Y1 STAYED together