Evening Republican, Volume 21, Number 179, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 8 August 1918 — “Khaki” Means Mud, or Muddy, and Said to Be a Hindu Word [ARTICLE]

“Khaki” Means Mud, or Muddy, and Said to Be a Hindu Word

The British soldiers in India used to wear white uniforms. It was a lot of trouble to /keep clean, and the snipers were always picking off men who exposed themselves. One day a of soldiers who proposed to sneak up on a nest of Hindus who were picking them off,, went down to the muddy banks of a stream and daubed their white uniforms with the yellow mud—and marched away. From that day to this, the mud-colored uniform has been popular with the British in India —and it isn’t necessary to state that it is popular with the soldiers of the United States. “Khaki” means mud, or muddy, and is a Hindu word. But it is going to mean something more in the days to come. It is going to mean exactly what the blue used to mean—victory. It is going to stand for courage, and patriotism, and sacrifice, and no greater tribute can be paid to men in the future than to say they wore the khaki.—Columbus Dispatch.