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AS, ni'T 9i iqri THURSDAY, OCT. 14, 1943. Bi fl f'X,* CHAPTER II 0 See Here, CHAPTER I—Edward Thomai Marion Lawton Hargrove, feature editor of the Charlotte (N. C.) News, receives notice from his draft board that he is to be inducted into the army. Before he begins an account ing of his actual experiences in training camp he issues his quota of free advice to prospective in ductees. After his induction Har grove, with his new buddies, leaves for Fort Bragg, where he is to re ceive his basic training. A soldier stuck his head through the door of our new dormitory u?d gave a sharp whistle. "Nine o’clock!” he yelled. "Lights out and no more ncrise! Go to sleep!” "It has been, withal, a very busy day,” I said to Piel, who was bur ied with his hay fever in the next bunk. “It sure withal has,” he said. “What a day! What a place! What a life! With my eyes wide open I’m dreaming!” “It’s been a little hellish out to day,” I agreed, "although it could have been worse. We actually saw a corporal and he didn’t cuss us. We have eaten Army food twice, and, except for the haphazard way the pineapple was thrown toward the peas, it wasn’t horrifying.” “I am broken and bleeding,” moaned Piel. “Classification tests, typing tests, medical examinations. I think I walked eighteen miles through those medical examina tions. It’s a good thing this is July. I would have frozen in my treks with all that walking and exposure. Nothing I had on, except a thin little iodine number on my chest.” "Funny thing about the medical examination,” a voice broke in from down the line. “Before you get it, .1 '"te' The old sergeant, his face beam ing sweetly, purred, "You are now members of the Army of the United States. Now, damn It, shut up.” you’re afraid you’ll pass. When you go through the examinations, you’re afraid you won’t.” “I noticed that,” I said. "I don’t have any special hankering for a soldier’s life, but I thought when I was going through the hoops this morning that this would be a helluva time for them to back out.” “The little fellow who slept down at the end got sent back,” said a loud whisper from across the room. “One of his legs was shorter than the other. He’s a lucky dog.” “I’ll bet he doesn’t think so,” said Piel. "At this stage of the game, I’m glad it was him instead of me.” A dark form shewed itself in the doorway. "I told you guys to shad dap and go to sleep. Do it!” A respectful silence filled the room for three minutes. “Look at me,” said Piel. “Won’t the folks in Atlanta be proud when they get my letter! Me, Melvin Piel, I’m a perfect physical specimen.” Big Jim Hart, the football star whom I had known in high school, spoke up. “Don’t go Hollywood about it, Piel. Just remember, Har grove’s a perfect specimen too. And just two weeks ago, when we were waiting out in front of the armory for the draft board examiners to get there, he had one foot in the grave.” “And the other foot?” “That’s the one he keeps in his mouth.” “Yessir,” said Piel, “the Army makes men.” The discussion was interrupted by the reappearance of the soldier. “If youse blankety-blanked little dash dashes don’t shut your cuss-cuss yaps and get the btankety-blank to sleep, I’m gonna come back up here and make yez scrub the whole blankety-blanked dash-dash cuss cuss floor with a blankety-blank toothbrush. Now shaddap!” So we quietly went to sleep. This morning we took the Oath. One of the boys was telling me later that when his brother was inducted in Alabama, there was a tough old sergeant who was having an awful time keeping the men quiet. “Gen tlemen,” he would beseech them, "Quiet, please!” They were quiet during the administration of the Oath, after which they burst forth again. The old sergeant, his face beam ing sweetly, purred: “You are now members of the Army of the United States. Now, damn it, SHUT UP.” This morning—our first morning in the Recruit Reception Center— began when we finished breakfast and started cleaning up our squad room. A gray-haired, fatherly old private, who swore that he had been master sergeant four ktmes, lined us up in front of the barracks and took us to the dis pensary. I- line in front of the_mess hall Yf S MzHXK Private Hargrove! by Marion Hargrove SYNOPSIS dwindled as rapidly as the one at the dispensary, life would have love liness to sell above its private con sumption stock. First you’re fifteen feet from the door, then (whiff) you’re inside. Then you’re stand ing between tw-o orderlies and the show is on. The one on my left scratched my arm and applied the smallpox virus. The only thing that kept me from keeling over was the hypodermic needle loaded w-ith typhoid germs, which propped up my right arm. From the dispensary we went to a huge warehouse of a building by the railroad tracks. The place looked like Goldenberg’s Basement on a busy day. A score of fitters measured necks, waists, inseams, heads, and feet. My shoe size, the clerk yelled down the line, was ten and a half. “I beg your pardon,” I prompted, "I wear a size nine.” “Forgive me,” he said, a trifle weary, “the expression is w-ore a size nine.’ These shoes are to walk in, not to make you look like Cin derella. You say size nine your foot says ten and a half.” We filed down a long counter, picking up our allotted khaki and denims, barrack bags and raincoats, mess kits and tent halves. Then we were led into a large room, where we laid aside the vestments of civil life and donned cur new garments. While I stood there, wondering what I was supposed to do next, an attendant caught me from the rear and strapped to my shoulders what felt like the Old Man of the Mountain after forty days. "Straighten up, soldier,” the at tendant said, “and git off the floor. That’s nothing but a full field pack, such as you will tote many miles before you leave this man’s army. Now I want you to walk over to that ramp and over it. That’s just to see if your shoes are comfortable.” "With these Oregon boots and this burden of misery,” I told him firm ly, "I couldn’t even walk over to the thing. As for climbing over it, not even an alpenstock, a burro train, and two St. Bernard dogs complete with brandy could get me over it.” There was something in his quiet, steady answering glance that re assured me. I went over the ramp in short order. On the double, I think the Army calls it. From there we went to the thea ter, where we were given intelli gence tests, and to the classifica tion office, where we were inter viewed by patient and considerate corporals. "And what did you do in civil life?” my corporal asked me. “I xvas feature editor of the Char lotte News.” "And just what sort of work did you do, Private Hargrove? Just give me a brief idea.” Seven minutes later, I had fin ished answering that question. "Let’s just put down here, ‘Edi torial worker.’ He sighed compas sionately. "And what did you do before all that?” I told him. I brought in the pub licity work, the soda-jerking, the theater ushering, and the printer’s deviling. "Private Hargrove,” he said, "the army is just what you have needed "Straighten up, soldier, and git off the floor. That’s nothing but a full field pack.” to ease the burdens of your exist ence. Look no farther, Private Har grove, you have found a home.” Ka This was a lovely morning. Wc began at daybreak and devoted all the time until noon to enjoying the beauties of nature. We had a drill sergeant to point them out to us. We marched a full twenty miles without leaving the drill field. Lunch, needless to say, was deli cious. We fell into bed, after lunch, de termined to spend the afternoon in dreamland. Two minutes later, that infernal whistle blew. Melvin Piel, guardhouse lawyer for Company A, explained it all on the way down stairs. We were going to be as signed to our permanent stations. I fell in and a corporal led us off down the street. I could feel the California palm trees fanning my face. We stopped at Barracks 17 and the corporal led us inside. “Do we go to California, cor poral?” I asked. "Naah,” he said. “Where do we go?” I asked him, a little disappointed. “To the garbage rack,” he said. “Double quick.” He thumbed John ny Lisk and me to the back of the barracks. At the garbage rack we found three extremely fragrant garbage cans. Outside, wre found more. Lisk and I, citizen-soldiers, stared at them. The overcheerful private to v»hnm we were, ar^i^n^d told us, “When you finish cleaning those, I want to be able to see my face in them!” “There’s no accounting for tastes,” Lisk whispered. Neverthe less, we cleaned them and polished them and left them spick and span. “Now take ’em outside and paint em,” said the private. “White. Git the black paint and paint ‘HQCO RRC’ on both sides of all of them!” “This is summer,” I suggested. “Wouldn’t something pastel look better?” The sun was affecting the private. "I think you’re right,” he said. So we painted them cream and lettered them in brilliant orange. All afternoon, in a blistering sun. we painted garbage cans. The othei Charlotte boys w’aved to us as they passed on their way to the ball park. Happy voices floated to us from the post exchange. The sup per hour neared. The straw-boss private woke up, yawned and went away, telling us what would happen if we did like wise. He returned soon in a truck. He motioned peremptorily to us and we loaded the cans into the truck. Away we went to headquarers com pany—and painted more garbage cans. It was definitely suppertime by now*. “Now can we go home, Private Dooley, sir?” asked Lisk. I looked at Lisk every time the blindness left me, and I could see the boy was tired. The private sighed wearily. “Git in the truck,” he said. Away we went back to our street. We stopped in front of our barracks and Pri vate Dooley dismounted. "The truck driver,” he said, “would ap preciate it if you boys would go and help him wash the truck.” We sat in the back of the truck and watched the mess hall fade away behind us. Two, three, four miles we left it behind us. We had to wait ten minutes before we could get the wash-pit. It took us fifteen minutes to wash the truck. By the time we got back to the mess hall, we were too tired to eat. But we ate. On the way to our barracks we met Yardbird Fred McPhail, neat and cool, on his way to the recrea tion hall. "Good news, soldiers,” said Yardbird McPhail. "We don’t have to drill tomorrow.” We halted and sighed blissfully. "No, sir,” said McPhail. "They can’t lay a hand on us from sunup until sundown. The whole barracks is on kitchen duty all day.” It was through no fault of mine that I was a kitchen pd^ceman on my sixth day. The whole barracks got the grind. And it was duty, not punishment. It was all very simple, this KP business. All you have to do is to get up an hour earlier, serve the food, and keep the mess hall clean. After we served breakfast, I found a very easy job in the dining hall, where life is much pinker than it is in the kitchen. A quartet was formed and we w’ere singing “Home on the Range.” A corporal passed by just as I hit a sour note. He put the broom into my left hand, the mop into my right There was a citizen-soldier from Kannapolis to help me clean the cooks’ barracks. For a time it was awful. We tried to concentrate on the floor while a news broadcaster almost tore up the radio trying to 1 decide whether we were to be in the Army ten-years or twenty. We finished the job in an extreme ly short time to impress the cor poral. This, W’e found later, is a serious tactical blunder and a dis credit to the ethics of gold-brick ing. The sooner you finish a job the sooner you start in on the next. The corporal liked our work, un fortunately. Kannapolis was allowed to sort garbage and I was promoted to the pot-and-pan polishing section. I was Themos Kokenes’ assistant. He w’ashed and I dried. Later we formed a goldbricking entente. We both washed and made Conrad Wil son dry. Pollyanna the glad girl would have found something silver-lined about the hot sink. So did I. “At least,” I told Kokenes, “this will give me back a chance to recover from that mop.” When I said “mop,” the mess ser geant handed me one. He wanted to be able to see his face in the kitchen floor. After lunch he want ed the back porch polished. We left the Reception Center mess hall a better place to eat in, at mtin *»r the 11 & "When you finish cleaning those cans, I want to be able to see my face in them.” any rate. But KP is like a woman’s work—never really done. Conrad Wilson marked one caldron and at the end of the day we found that we had washed it twenty-two times. Jack Mulligan helped me up the last ten steps to the squadroom. I finally got to the side of my bunk. “Gentlemen,” I said to the group which gathered around to scoop me off the floor, “I don’t ever want to see another kitchen!” The next morning we were clas sified and assigned to the Field Ar tillery Replacement Center. Gene Shumate and I were classified as cooks. I am a semi-skilled cook, they say, although the only egg I ever tried to fry was later used as a tire patch. The other cooks in clude postal clerks, tractor sales U1SIL. railroad enrin^M's* riveters, Mainly BLUFFTON NEWS, BLUFFTON, OHIO Heard on Main street that Lloyd Murray is Bluffton’s oldest native born resident that Mr. and Mrs M. M. “Dode" Murray who celebrated their 54th wedding anni versary last summer are the oldest couple who were married in Bluffton that there are 36 men students in Bluffton college—there were 90 last year that groceries are stocked with all the coffee they can handle—remember when it was ra tioned—and customers now only mildly interested in buying that cider season will be the shortest in years—one press will complete its run next Wednesday nearly a month ahead of the regular schedule that College frosh look like other folks now since they discarded those green caps last Saturday that this school and w'ork program is making headaches for the high school truant officer Appearing in a Birmingham, Ala bama newspaper last week was a picture of James “Jimmy” Basinger, former Bluffton youth, son of Mr. and Mrs. Noah Basinger, instructing students in a college airplane class in the operation of a Pratt & Whitney engine Looking at the picture our mind went back some ten years or so when Jimmy, then a high school student with a flair for airplane mechanics wheedled an old & W motor from Wright field and installed it in the family garage on Lawn avenue then proceeded to take it apart and get a look at its innards. And by the time he finished Jimmy knew a lot of things about that Pratt and Whit ney job. Later he graduated from Parks Air college, but we’ll wager that most of what he told that class last week about the motor was what he learned in the garage at home on Lawn avenue. By a strange quirk of fate two Bluffton boys stationed at Camp Barkeley, Texas, one of the largest army camps, work just across the road from each other. They are Sgt. Racine Warren and Cpl. Eddie Schu macher. And Eddie says they read the Bluffton News from cover to cover. You’ve heard the old saying about riding for a fall—well that’s what happened at Ottawa fair last week when two Bluffton women rode pranc ing steeds on the merry-go-round and one of them a grandmother, took a spill. No casualties were reported. We can’t turn out this column without calling attention to the un usually fine October weather, prob ably in compensation for a particu larly rainy spring and early summer. No rain here since September 25, and this a light shower. Corn crop matured and victory gardens replant ed after washed out are making an unexpectedly good showing. Sixteen points for a pound of but ter doesn’t bother Rev. A. K. Bei sheim, formerly of Bluffton, now fill ing a Buffalo pulpit. The former minister who also knows his butter making, writes this column that he took a quart of cream from the top of a dozen quarts of milk, ut it in a two-quart fruit jar, closed the lid and after thirty minutes of shaking had more than a half-pound of fine golden yellow butter. A little work ing with a spoon and cold water to get the milk out and it was all ready for the table, all without 16 points. And now come reports that some of the boys are detaching the rake from the auto buckrake chassis and using the car to drive to town—with out license plates and using non highway gas. Officials are said to be checking on it. A six-man football game between freshmen and sophomore teams as one of the features of Bluffton col lege homecoming last weekend de cided whether the freshmen would have to continue wearing their green caps until Thanksgiving. The out come—well, as one sophomore put it, “We certainly decapitated the fresh men,” the score standing 18 to 6 in favor of the first-year students. NOTICE OF ELECTION ON TAX LEVY IN EXCESS OF THE TEN MILL LIMITATION Ohio Ger.’l Code, Secs. 4735-13-g, 5625-17 NOTICE is hereby given that in pursuance of a Resolution of the Council of the Village of Beaverdam. Ohio, pas-ed on the 17th day of August, 1943, theie will he submitted to a vote of the jieople of said Village of Beav erdam at the General Election to he held in the Village of Beaverdam. Ohio, at the regu lar place of voting- therein on Tuesday, the 2nd daj of November. 1943, the question of levying a tax in excess of the ten mill limi tation for the benefit of the Village of Beav erdam, Ohio, for the purpose of paying cur rent expenses at a rate not exceeding 3 mill* for each one dollar of valuation which amounts to 30 cents for each one hundred dollars of valuation, for a period of 5 years. The Polls for said Election will be open at 6:30 o’clock A. M. and remain ofien until 6:30 P. M. (Ohio Time) of said day. By Order of the Board of Elections, of Allen County. Ohio. DAVID O. STEINER, Clerk. Dated October 5. 1943. October 7, 14, 21. 23 Second Allen County War Chest campaign now on. Do your part. bricklayers, and one blacksmith. But we’ll learn. Already I’ve learned to make beds, sweep, mop, wash windows and sew a fine seam. When Congress lets me go home, will i make some woman a good wife! October 10, 1918 Fourth Liberty Loan drive reached its goal and went over the top for Bluffton and Richland North. The drive called for an initial fund of $105,000 to be raised. Following the announcement a bedlam of screeching whistles, bells ringing, and a din raised by auto horns proclaimed the news. The reaching of the quota fol lowed a week of intense driving with nearly every house in Bluffton own ing one or more of the bonds. Appli cation has been made for a Liberty Loan Honor flag for the district. Jesse C. Lehman, a former Settle ment boy now in Cleveland, has en rolled .in the merchant marine service. He entered in a course of training at the Case School of Applied Science. “Although it is nervous work at first, stalking Germans in no man’s land comes to be a great sport”, writes Elmer Bowers from France. “The other night while out on patrol we met the Germans and drove them back to their own trenches.” You can’t help but grow when you carry 100 pound shells all day writes Rene Klay, son of Mr. and Mrs. An drew Klay. Rene is one of he young er Bluffton boys in the service, and finds that carrying shells around builds up a man in short order. Dr. R. E. Hughson has been reco mmended for a commission in the Ar my medical service. Other Bluffton physicians who are in the service are Dr. J. S. Steiner and Dr. M. D. Soash. The Red Cross requests those boys who have returned from camp because of physical disability, and to whom a comfort kit was given by the local chapter, to return the kit together with other articles which they may not have use of if they have not al ready done so. John Spangler who has been ill at Camp Sherman is improving and ex pects to leave the hospital in the near future. Word has been received of the safe arrival of Burley Wilkins to an over seas destination. Wilkins formerly lived at the Jesse Mohler farm. Bluffton In First World War Jeromme Hermann of Camp Tay lor was home on a furlough the first of the week. Herrman visited his parents Mr. and Mrs. Frank Herrman. What Happened Here Twenty-five Years Ago This Week RUPTURE SHIELD EXPERT HERE H. M. SHEVNAN, widely known expert of Chicago, will personally be at Barr Hotel, Lima, Saturday, only, October 23, from 9 A. M. to 5 P. M. Mr. Shevnan says: The Zoetic Shield is a tremendous improvement over all former methods, effecting immediate results. It will not only hold the rupture perfectly but in crease the circulation, strengthens the weakened parts, thereby closing the opening in ten days on the aver age case, regardless of heavy lifting, straining or any position the body may assume no matter the size or location. A nationally known scien tific method. No under straps or cumbersome arrangements and ab solutely no medicines or medical treatments. Mr. Shevnan will be glad to dem onstrate without charge. Add. 6509 N. Artesian Ave.. Chicago. Large incisional Hernia or rupture following surgical operation especial ly solicited. LOCAL AND LONG DISTANCE HAULING Every Load Insured STAGER BROS. Bluffton. Ohio For Vigor and Health— include meat in your menu. Always ready to serve you. Bigler Bros. Fresh and Salt Meats i Mrs. George Barnes has received word of the safe arrival of her son, Monroe Amstutz, overseas. Another son, Arthur Amstutz in the mecanized department of the army has been in France since last spring. Donald West, son of Mr and Mrs. Fletch W’efd, who has been with the motor truck division at Fort Leaven worth, Kansas, arrived home for a 5 day furlough. The service flag made by Miss Reba Purdy for the First Mennonite Church, contains 46 stars. Because of ill health I will offer at public sale at my farm 1*/S miles east of Beaverdam on Route 30N on Thursday, October 28, 1943 Beginning at 1 P. M. The following property: 2 HORSES—Sorrel mare 8 years old colt 5 months old. 11 CATTLE—Brown Swiss milk cow coming 7 yrs. old, fresh Oct. 3, with calf by side Shorthorn cow 5 yrs. old giving good flow of milk roan milk cow 4 yrs. old giving good flow milk brindle cow 4 yrs. old giving good flow of milk black heifer 2 yrs. old fresh Sept. 26 with calf by side Guernsey heifer coming 2 yrs. old red heifer coming 2 yrs old Spotted heifer coming 2 yrs old red heifer com ing 2 yrs old all coming fresh from January to March 2 heifer 5 months old. This is a promising herd raised by the owner. SHEEP—18 Shropshire ewes 2 to 5 years old. 8 HOGS—3 Chester White sows with pigs by side 6 weeks old by day of sale 2 Chester White sows due to far row by sale day black sow due to farrow by sale day 2 Chester White sows due to farow in middle of November. 150 White Rock AAA pullets starting to lay. HAY—8 to 10 Tons. MACHINERY—Deering wheat binder Nessco manure spreader, spring tooth harrow P. & 0. Little Wonder 14 inch tractor plow 250 chick electric battery one row cul tivator Economy King cream separator almost new. HOUSEHOLD GOODS— Rug 9 12. TERMS—CASH. Harold McClain, Auct. Mrs. Lillie Manahan, Owner Public Sale We, the undersigned will sell at public auction at our farm 6 miles east of Bluffton, or 7 miles west of Arlington on Route 103 Friday, October 22,1943 Sale to begin at 12:30 p. The following property: LIVE STOCK 2 HORSES—Bay mare, wt. 1500 lbs. roan mare, wt. 1600 lbs. 22 CATTLE—6 Jersey cows 1 Holstein cow 1 red cow 7 Jersey heifers, some bred 2 Guernsey heifers 1 roan bull 2 years old 1 red steer 1 Jersey bull calf. 20 HOGS—5 brood sows 1 O. I. C. male hog 14 pigs. 10 SHEEP—9 Shropshire ewes 1 Shropshire buck. CHICKENS—170 White Rock pullets 50 White Rock yearling hens. FARM EQUIPMENT—Ford-Ferguson tractor on rub ber, set of steel skeleton wheels, 14 inch breaking plow, cul tivator weeder, buckrake, dump scraper, all these at tachments for Ford tractor. Roderick Lean tractor disc 9 ft. cultipacker spring tooth harrow 7 ft. John Deere grain binder McCormick corn binder, reconditioned Mc Cormick mower Dain hay loader side delivery rake hay tedder John Deere corn planter with fertilizer attachment John Deere manure spreader Hoosier fertilizer grain drill Shunk 12 in. breaking plow shovel plows, single and double low wheel wagon with hay rack, bob sled mud boat corn sheller with pulley platform scales grind stone cream separator sap pails 2 hog crates hog troughs feeders and fountains one set of double harness horse collars log chains meat planks and trestles potato crates new Klein electric brooder (500 size) coal brooder chicken feeder and fountains ladder lawn roller clover buncher. HAY & GRAIN—15 tons hay 150 bushels oats 3 bushels hybrid seed corn. HOUSEHOLD GOODS—New studio couch library table porch chair Morris chair 2 rockers cabinet radio 2 pedestals, and many other articles. TERMS—CASH. Practise Typing Paper Standard Size 8 1-2 11 Inches 500 Sheets .. 25c (No Broken Packages) PI iff ton News Office HOWARD SMITH (Q MRS. MINNIE SMITH) Auctioneers—Thrapp & Warren Clerk—Russell Elzay PAGE SEVFW News want-ads bring results. MARGARINE Public Sale