Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 41, Number 4, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 22 September 1908 — Letter from Captain of Co. M [ARTICLE]

Letter from Captain of Co. M

Fort Benjamin Harrison, „ ,—, Sept i 6, 1908. In the great army maneuvers that are to be pulled off by the combined regular and militia troops Friday of tbis week, the 3rd regiment of the Indiana National Guard proposes to pull off a stunt in modern wartare that should make it easy for our troops to win the decision over the enemy. The plan is tt> send u> a couple of war balloons, are aranauts being volunteers from the unmarried lieutenants. The balloons are procured from Plymouth and Monticello and the expense of getting them here and having the ascensions made wag provided for by an assessment against the officers of tbe regiment Chaplain Evej-son assisted Colonel Thayer in making the arrangements and the maneuver ground, which will be several miles from the camp, will., be the scene of the ascension. When th© project was announced this morning -by Colonel Thayer it called forth the greatest amount of approval, as there is splendid pride, existing among all the officers in the of the regiment and anythfogauggested by Colonel Thayer Js heartily endorsed. 'When he suggested that the lnformation desiwjd could best be procured by a lieutenant and asked for volunteers to maks th« ascension several responded, and. the name of Lieutenant Brenner , was second on the list, that of Lieutenant Vain Auken, of Aqburn, being first As there are two balloons, it. Is quite probable that Company M’s second lieutenant will get a ride in the big gas bag. The balloons will probably be sent up ah about three or clock Friday and the interest the erent will create will cause every* soldier to desire to witness the ascensions.

As today is my tour of duty as officer' of the day, which requires me to Remain within the regimental bounds, and as Lieutenant Woodworth is acting battalion adjutant, the company maneuvers today are in the charge of Lieutenant Brenner, but Sergeants Chestnut, Arthur end Herman Tuteur and Gangloff and Corporals Zea, Gray and Crosscup have the best knowledge of the duty of non-commissioned officers that any M

co&pany soldiers have had within the past three years, and they are placed in charge of squads and give the squad commands in all extended order and battle formations. Thus, the instruction the soldiers have had has been very beneficial and as the squad organisations are permanent : the corporals are getting the very best results in discipline, and are a great aid to the officer command ng the company. Two former Rensveiaer boys, art here with other organizations. Chase Day is with the 4th Illinois, and Lawrence Giver, son of Peter Giver, is here with L company from Peru. Lawrence is now a barber and picks up considerable extra money with his kit of tools. Corporal Frank Croescup is a natural born soldier and in every point of discipline has the bearing of a regular of many years service. So pleased Is be with the service that he states that he will enlist in the regular army before returning to Rensselaer, but will be given a long

enough furlough to go home and leav# his militia clothing. He will probably join the 10th regiment, which will be stationed in the barracks at this pest for two and one-half years. Tbag will leave him only three months for service out of the post Possibly, how ever, he may join the hospital corps, which is regularly stationed at the barracks at Washington, D. C., but is now here on detailed duty for the camp of Instruction. The barracks are practically completed at this post, except for tbe landscaping of the grounds. The great buildings are arranged dong the winding avenues of macadam, with wide parking places and broad cement walks. * Where there was mud ankle deep two years ago there are now the finest streets, and the stone gutters along the side assure that the streets will always be In the best condition, .Q.—. £ I borrowed Adjutant Woodworth’s horse and in company with Captain Markley, who ba& Mhjor Harrißtm’* smount, we visited the port and saw the quarters of the enlisted man and the- borne* >of tbe ofneere;, also the stables, the engine house 'an<! tie. hospital. It is all very fine. The new plan of the army provides barracks quarters for non-commis. stoned married then. This permits a sergeant or corpora) to have hie family with him whenever he ta at a stationary pdkt and one frequently sees at the barracks an enlisted noncommissioned officer sitting in went of his pdlatial quarters With a baby on each knee. Thug is tbe rivaliy of the men to attain the highest degree of soldierly perfection inspired. " Last Friday eyjminq; I conversed with a sergeant who has been In the service eleven years. He has a wife and two children and received S4B a month besides his own clothing allow* ance and commutation for rations. His wife and little ones are now in Alaska, where he was last stationed, but he is planning for a reunion with them soon after his work at this poet closes with the maneuvers on Sept. 30th. He is a fine, clear headed fellow, and said the army had been his redemption, as when he enlisted be was not walking the narrow pathway, but determined to make the most of his army life and the result wae that he is abundantly satisfied with the returns.

In the hospital corps the men ar* required to put in three hours each day in studying the essentials of nursing, involving first aid to fhf injured and a knowledge of primraf medicine.Materia medica, baeteroicgy and simple surgery are compahMry | studies, and if the soldier desires; he can come out ’from -two enlistmeaftt a quite good doctor. A jiK | This is a fine camp and M co&naW boys are haying a fine time,' and it is frequent that some are expressing regret that the camp is to cfoee Sat* urday. . The “grub” is'good and splendidly cooked. Sergeant Wiltshire went to Lawrence last evening and bought sausage for breakfast, as the government side meat ration was running short. Our boys are good feeders and lick the platter clean but don’t kick. - CAPT. GEO. H. HEALET.