Rensselaer Republican, Volume 22, Number 46, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 17 July 1890 — Recruiting for the Army. [ARTICLE]

Recruiting for the Army.

Chatting with the Sergeant in charge of recruiting for the United States army at the station in Park Row, says a New York Star writer, he told roe some curious things about the new and old soldiers.

“During the summer months,” said he, recruiting is practically at a standstill in New York, but during the fall, and especially in the winter months,, the new soldiers flock in upon us. Of course a larger percentage of men are recruited in midwinter, and this fact is easily accounted for, as many a homeless wanderer prefers the severe discipline of Uncle Sam to the more vigorous discipline of old Boreas, with hu biting winds and inelement blizzards.' Really our soldiers are better off ini every way than thousands of their civilian brethern, but the idea of doing: “as we please,” and quitting a boss when we feel “good and ready,” is so firmly rooted in the anatomy of the average American citizen that desertions are more common than in any other army in the wprld. There are four non-commissioned officers always on duty here, and when a batch of five recruits has been gotten together one of the soldiers takes them to headquarters on Governor’s Island, to go into training. Men can not enlist who' are over 35 years of age. and the! majority of recruits have not seen over! twenty-one summers. Every nation-j ality is represented, but mostly Ameri-j cans, .t Fully five thousand men in > the United States army have re-eniisted 1 when their time expired, and most ofj them continue to do so until age prevents further service.”

“Do any of them save money?” | “Why, certainly,” answered the. Sergeant; “and on this point let me* toll you a story. Last month a friend! of mine, coming from San Francisco,! met on the train a private soldier whoj showed him government warrants' amounting to $1,500. The soldier was on his way to re-enlist, informed myl friend that service in the army was as! good a thing as any J man ought to desire. “I was rather surprised at the $1,500) part of the story, and asked my friend! if the soldier had given his name. He had and the moment I heard it pronounced I knew him. and remembered that he used to deal faro for the boys at Fort Pierre, Dak., and that they played a pretty stiff game.”