Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1956-02-28
THE COMPLETE BEST SELLER
No Time for Sergeants
By MAC LYMAN
Copyright, 1854, By Mac lyman
CHAPTER XIV


1t In his hand. and then he tried to pull It
loose, only he couldn't make it as had tied 1t
up real good and then he said You just walt
over here for minute until get the Sergeant
and see what to do about it." So he went over
to the Sergeant and showed it to him and the
Sergeant looked at it and tried to bend 1t and
shook his head and said (Which one done it?"
And the fellow pointed at me and the
Sergeant come over and said. What did you
do to this thing?" and told him the same as
the other, and then he went at 1t some more
but couldn't get it loose neither.
And then they started arguing about 1t,
and the Corporal said. well, how would you
mark him on that?"
Then the Sergeant looked at him and
said, You're supposed to be grading this. Cant
you do a simple job like that?" and kept
twisting 1t and pulling at 1t and getting red
in the face.
And the other fellow said, I'm supposed
to mark it down If they put it back together
or not and there amt supposed to be but one
way of doing it. and he sho didn't do it that
way. How are you going to mark thing like
that?"
So then they called the Lieutenant over
and by that time ! was beginning to think
I hadn't passed it. They all went of in the
corner and talked about it some more. and
then they got together on work bench in
the corner and got pair of pliers and a
MANNER anu the lleuCeUdUG IlelQ Oh 10 ~
while the Sergeant started whamming away
at it, and they mighty near got it loose that
way, only he hit the Lieutenant's hand and
the Lieutenant jumped up in the air and
started GUESSING and singing his hand around;
and they took on that way for while SO
I finally got tired of waiting and left And it
warnt until got back and talked to Sergeant
King that found out had passed it. And
I was right glad had when seen how he
manifest I
had ever seen him; he patted me on the
back and said. ''Yessir Will, I think we are
going to get you classified yet. 1t just goes
to show what the Air Force has come down
to-"
So then we went back to his room and
went over some of the other tests / had to
take.
Peculiar Major
So done right good on all of them and
didn't have no trouble at all to speak Of only
run into this Major at one of the tests and
nearly had some trouble with him. but I
seen there was something the matter with
him and stopped myself. But he was real
peculiar fellow and had a way of saying
rough things at you; he wore those big thick
glasses that made his eyes look about the
size Of a cows, and when We come into this
room, he was standing there with his hands
folded behind his back rocking back and
forth on his feet, staring right at me, like
he might have knowed me from somewhere.
So looked back to him, and he kept stand
ing there looking at me. and thought may
be I had met him from somewhere, so
nodded and said. "Howdy." but all he done
was just keep staring at me, and never
opened his mouth.
So couldn't figger him at first and we
stood around minute and then he turned
and went over to the Corporal at the desk
and started talking to him. looking up at me
nrHan iyn mhti md he
nodded his head. and then the Major turned
back around and looked at me again, and
then went in this other room
And in little bit they led us all in
there where we set down at desks that had
chairs on both sides of them the desks lined
up and down the wall and then bunch of
officers come in and set on the other side of
the desks and then looked UP and seen this
same Major just taking his chair right across
from me. So nodded and said, "Howdy."
again. but he still didn't say nothing He
shufaed some papers around on his desk.
not saying a word and waited until he had
finished. and then he looked up at me. and
started staring again like he did out in the
hall. Then he asked me my name and
told him, and he wrote that down without
even looking at the paper. staring at me all
the time. And I guess he had the most
peculiar eyes ever seen. I said they was like
a cows but they warnt; they was gray and
had black specks in them and he kept them
pointed right at me so looked back at him,
and 1t seemed we done that for minute or
SO until he finally said Where you from,
Stockdale?"
told him Georgia, and he came back
with: That's not much of a state, is it?"
which didn't sound very polite to me.
But said. well, don't live all over the
state Just live in one little place in it."
Then he kept staring and said. That's
where they have the tobacco roads and things.
isn't it?"
Maybe so, but not around my section"
/ said. Il never seen no tobacco planted in
a road. Maybe you from some other part
than me-"
mo, never been there" he said Then
he looked harder and said. And I don't think
l ever would go there. What do you think
about that?"
He let it bust out and kind of leaned over
the table at me, and really didn't know what
TO make of him for a second. The way he
kept making conversation l figgered he was
trying 70 be friendly, but the things he said
didn't make much sense, and / never had
seen anybody stare like that before So
didn't know what to make out of him.
said. We'll, l don't think nothing about It,
Fact is amt ever thought about 1t before"
He said, Il don't think would ever want
TO 1--we In your rotten state. How about that?"
well. guess you know where you want
to live" l told him. Besides that, things
is getting right crowded around home any
how. Some folks moved In not long ago
about two miles down the road from us and
land amt as cheap as it once was. So it
really don't make no difference to me whether
you live there or not. not that we wouldn't
be mighty glad to have you :" finally
quit talking because he didn't seem to be
listening nohow. He kept staring and by
this time ! was staring too.
You mean you don't mind it when some
body says something bad about Georgian"
Il amt heered nobody say nothing bad
about Georgia"
What do you think been talking
about?"
We'll. amt thought too much about it,"
told him. Don't you know"
So he went m that nav for a u,hi1a opd