Page 10
f[ RELIGIOUS NEWS
AND NOTES
There were no unusual events in the
religious activities at the csunp during
th?- ;-u?t week. The program comPiitiee
found it imperative to make a
change in the schedule in force in order
that the motion picture program
be carried out without conftict
li th?- future the religious services
of the week nights will be held as folTuesday
evening 10t>: Wednesday
and 103; Friday 103 and base hos
!were conducted by the regular camp
A conference was held at the city
tended by representatives of the various
young peoples societies of Charlotte
and the religious workers of the
camp. Dr. J. 0. Grogan. the camp
secretary, and Dr. H. P. McKeen. the
religious director, presented the opportunity
these societies have in a
service to the cantp through the home
hour. Arrangements were made for
the home hour programs to be put on
Sunday. .March 17. and each succeeding
week for 18 weeks. The camp secretaries
are anaious to work in cooperation
with the city societies to the
Plans have been completed for holy
week services to be held in each
hut in the camp beginning Sunday.
March 2 4. and continuing unail March
II TVfl 31. Everything on the camp program
|| ||H will give way to this intensive reII
MS ligious drive. Among the speakers
U /A will be Dr. C. L. Jackson. Dr. Thomas
A 7A Spragne, Dr. J. O. Grogan, Dr. C. J.
McClang and several others. Bach of
these men will speak in one building
(luring the entire week.
^1 |l T>? During this week at least three preSparatory
meetings will be held in each
hut. It is urged that every soldier
who is a church member will atteud
these preparatory services at the hut
nearest to him and get in conference
with the secretaries as there is work
for every man to do in making this
serfcs of meetings a success.
Another feature that is attracting
wide interest among the officers in
the special meetings that will be held
Sunday. March 24 and 31. for the commissioned
officers. This hour at huts
102. 103 and 106 will be for officers
and their friends only. The regular
home hour program will be rendered
and an address given by prominent
speakers. This meeting for officers
and their friends will probably become
a part of the regular schedule
I Ir^D sufficient interest is shown In this
48 initial meeting.
At the same hour that the officers
"H * ff ^ nre holding their meetings the other
huts will be open for privates and
their friends and unusually good pro;
KJBI grains have been arranged. The religious
department is anxious that
these services be attended by every
officer and soldier in carap as outlined
above. In addition to the addresses
uH special musical numbers will be rcn\
dered.
WB Reports filed with the New York
signed during the month of February
than in any month since the camp
w;ts opened.
Rev. U B. Padgett, religious direcyiftX
tor at hut 105. has been confined to
his lied at the Presbyterian hospital
\ vlfJa the past week, suffering from stomach
trouble. He is better and hopes
to be back at work again in a few
Jt WX days.
1/ W| A summary of the 821 war roll
? jr rW^ cards signed for the month of Febru4
W| ury "hows denominational preferences
AH as follows:
list 134. Presbyterians 62. Lutheran
|IF Y ?. Congregational 32. Christian 32.
if * I Episcopal 29. Protestant 2-1. Reformed
11; Evangelical 4. Christian Science
[I Ifc 3. Creek Orthodox 3.
I B Two each: United Brethren, Universalist.
Y. M. C. A.. Jewish.
One each: Unitarian. Adventist. SalIH
vation army. Dunkard.
CLASSIC OCCASIOX.
"Stunt" night at the base hospital
raY. M. C. A. varied last week from its
usual role of jazz and wierd jokes
and the rattle of the clog dance to a
afsnm classical entertainment by the reputed
quartet froin the First army beadquarters
company and a talk by Mrs.
Ill II Cluis. of Atlanta. Ga., field director
HI n* for the Red Cross.
Every number by the soldier quarU
II tet was a gem of harmony. The talU
en ted oliigers were called back time
H I and again. The vote of thanks which
the base hospital attaches give to the
D B obliging musicians is the statement
ij H that we are all proud to belong to
the same camp with these men.
I R Mrs. Cluis spoke with intense
earnestness on the work of the Red
fTyyH Cross and the effort which the wo"
men all over the land are making to
i 11 Duly soldiers with comforts.
TRENCH ;
,
THE BOHUHK
BY PRIVATE JL1XUEL COHN.
] W? ftrat glimpse of the State of
I Liberty." which. Symbolized, his en1
trance into the Land of the Free and
: the Home of the Brave, was from
j the steerage of the Mesopotamia.
) Together with his father and mother.
Jan Crotowski had made bis trip
j to the Promsied I .and from the small
Kingdom of Croatia.
It had been a year of hardship?
j and almost starvation in Croatia, and
when enough had been accumulated
I by his father, the trip was made to
what they understood as the Land of
| Plenty.
j The old adage. "It never rains but
' it pours." seemed to be holding full
| sway, as a panic had been raging, not
I oniy in Croatia, but hi the whole
i world.
Jan Crotowski. though nineteen
J years of age. with his white face,
j pule blue eye* and bionC hair, looked
j like a lad of fjfteen and instead of
I being sent to school, had to do hi*
1 share toward keeping the wolf from
' the door.
I For two years he worked at odd
Jobs here and there which would not
impair his health, wheff suddenly war
broke out in this grand and glorious
country which had already come to
mean so much to Jan.
When the call for volunteers came.
Jan decided that If the flag of Red.
White and Blue was good enough to
live under, it was good enough to
fight for. So. witbdOt a moment's
hesitation, he gave himself to his
country and as volunteers were scarce.
Jan was passed where ordinarily he
would have been rejected.
Scarcely realizing what it all meant
and hardly being able to write his
name, the proudest moment of his
life was when he was given a uniform
and on his collar was a little
button bearing the simple letters, "U.
a"
The next few days were bliss indeed
to poor little Jan. In a tent with
plenty of fresh air and plenty of good,
solid food, he thought he would make
the enemy flee in all directions. But,
j alas, all the soldiering Jan did. was
I marching to and from "chow" and
receiving his shots anc vaccination.
Things were going fast in those
days, and before many days had passI
edfi Jan found himself in Caijip Washington
and things took on a decided
| change. Instead of the kind old sergeant
and the non-coms, he was taken
in charge by an altogether rougher
element.
I When first he heard the command
j "Squad right, march." poor Jan stood
| bewildered and the next remark that
came to his ears were: "Come on |
| your old Bohunk, snap out of your:
; dope. Some day you will wake up and
j find yourself In the crmy."
I From that day on Jan became the
center of the first sergeant's wrath
; and no occasion was overlooked to
i make Jan the goat, on the part of
the other men of the company.
I Hardly understanding English, poor
? Jan was at a lose to comprehend
j what it was all about, and trying days
followed.
Hardly able to keep on his feet,
j poor Jan performed fatigue after faI
tigue and at night after eating his kit
of slum, his bunk surely felt good.
| In this condition, Jan one night
' found his way to the Y. M. C. A.
| building and as he opened the door
the sweet refrain, "Come to Jesus"
i to his ears. Finding an empty
scat in the rear of the hut. he sat
down. Song after song cheered him
| up and at the end of the service he
, was greeted by the secretary, whose
; business h is to recognise strange
) faces and told about trie work of the
I Y. M. C. A. and asked to come again.
It was in this way that Jan became
aware that the Y. M. C. A. was carrying
on an Knglish class for foreign[
ers. There was no hesitancy on Jan's
part in becoming at once enrolled in
| the class.
I Although day after he was made
I the center of all remarks and of all
the hard labor, at night the Y. M.
I C. A. was in haven and with patriotism
burning in his breast he
! would go to bed with a smile on his
j face. He smiled for he felt that
j some day the time woura come when
I before the entire company, he would
: make the top cutter swallow his remarks
and prove that although of
foreign birth, he was willing to give
I his life for the country he loved,
j The end came one day when poor
Jan came straggling into the street
after chopping trees all day. His
foot seemed to weigh a ton and he
I could hardly stand up. The companywas
formed in the street for retreat
and when Jan came trudging into
I sight the Top Cutter spied him and
; through the air rang his none too
I voice. "Come on, you
behunk and get Into line. As if
touched by some spring. Jan fairly
flew through the air until he had
come face to face with the sergeant
and without batting an eye he said
in a calm, forceful voice. "Sergeant,
my name is Private Cbotowsky and
it is your duty to address me by tliat
title and no other when calling me."
A silence fell on the company as Jan
stood there with his eyes burning
and his fists clenched, scarcely coming
up to the chest of the tall husky
sergeant.
Without a word, and with one
sweep of his hairy fist the sergeant
laid Jan out and two of the men carried
him into his tent and placed him
on his bunk. When Jan opened Ms!
iND CAMP
'eyes aad his thoughtt cams back to
hira be thought this was surety not
;tlie army ho figured, it out to be. Ho
was an army to fight an alien enemy,
and hero the array was fighting
among itself, and one elaia. of men
getting all the sweets and the other
alt tho bitter. StflT he had sworn to
protect hla flag, and biting hia lips,
he slipped into unconsciousness ,
gain.
When Jan a wok a. the flolowlng
morning, the entire company was
made happy by.hearing the trumpeters
play ""pay day.1' .Pay day being a
holiday in the array. Jan took his
pay and going to town sent all except
what he possibly needed to bis
mother.
Once more In camp he was greeted
by sounds of "seven come eleven" and
hitting blackjack. Long into the night
the sounds of husky voices came of
men who had partaken too freely of
the fire of life. At last sloop came
to Jan and It seemed that be had
hardly closed his eyes, when he wagawakened
by the can of gre.
Jumping into his trousers and
shoes, he made his way quickly into
v.- --'l h?K?M to?l of th?
first sergeant on Are. Going to bed
late and having drunk more than was
healthy for him, the sergeant had
thrown himself upon his bunk In a
drunken stupor and with cigarette between
his lips was soon fast asleep.
The cigarette had fallen and set the
sack of straw on fire and tn a very
few seconds the entire tent was
ablaze and the sergeant soronly slumbering
enveloped In flames and dead
to the world.
The water bucket brigade was
formed but It helped but little and
in a few moments it was plainly seen
that unless someone would dash into
the blazing tent and drag out the sergeant
he would be burned to a crisp.
Everyone seemed to sense the significance
of the entire affair, yet no one .
was #11 tin gto make the dash Into the
flames.
Suddenly, without a word, a figure
dashed in, and with head bowed low,
he fought his way blindly into the
burning tent. His arms and face became
blistered ere he was inside and
with clothes half scorched on his lit- .
tie body, Jan fought to save the Ufe
of the man who had made his life in
the army so miserable. Finding the
sergeant lying across the bunk, he
grasped1 him around the chest and
started to drag him to the door. It
was a task which would have taxed
an ordinary man and poor little Jan
bravely fought until at last be reached
the door when suddenly all went
black before his eyes.
When Jan awoke, he found himself
in a white bed with the sun
streaming through the window and a
nurse bending over him. He tried to '
lift himself but found that he was all
swathed in bandages and as the recollections
of what had happened passed
before him. he smiled and laid his
head once more upon the pillow with
the question. "Is be alright?"
Later, Jan heard a sob as he opened
his eyes. lie beheld the sergeant on
his knees at the foot of the bed with
his eyes intently fastened upon his ,
own. Jan smiled and the sergeant
slowly rose and grasped the bandaged
right hand and again dropping to his
knees, sobbed as only one can soli
when begging for forgiveness at the
hands of one who has been grievously
wronged.
When Jan recovered sufficiently to
leave the hospital, he wore straps on
his arms and on his chest was a gold ,
medal presented to him for bravery,
together with a list of those men who
bad contributed to its purchase and
the name of the first-sergeant led the
list.
The above manuscript is entered in
The Trench and Camp short story
contest by Private Manual Cohn, Battery
B. Thirteenth field artillery.
A CAMP PICTURE.
By Puul Ilubbell.
Among the miles of trenches in
Camp Greene on a balmy spring
morning a gas attack took place. The
previous day the wind had piled the
dust inches deep along the front and ;
this increased the danger of this terrible
"sham battle." Not a man but
quaked with terror as the cloud of '
gas rolled slowly caroas the brook
to the foot of the hills where the salient
of the line, conspicuous by the
farm-famed red mud of Camp Greene
piled before the trenches was ex
And there was hurrying to and fro
in the communication trenches, and
news of the attack was carried to ,
headquarters, and three majors were
qeen hurrying up to direct their respective
battalions to adjust their gas
masks in four seconds time. There
was nothing to spoil the splendor and
the terror of the situation. Here in
front of us the gas had already reached
the first ditches, and a Red Cross
stretcher with four bearers and some
attendants were taking a "top-sergeant"
to the field hospital.
The machine guns on the left broke
out with their rapid fire upon a column
of the enemy, debouching from 1
under the hill opposite, and the sight
of the silent men advancing with fixed
bayonets to be mown down ia the ratal
of fire was too awful. I turned away
and met a green recruit to the T. M.
C. A. who said to me:
"Look here, soldier. Is this a real
attack or only * a practice? I think
that man over there is Just shamming,
because he hasnt got his eyes shut
even."
(But the next time it happens,
there'll be a casualty In that "Y. M."
bunch.)
IHMWll
ilOSSBM 115 THE HOSE ^
All Men of Detachment Are >5#
Taking Interest in
Improvements.
"The hospital beautiful" is the
name whcih the enlisted men at the
Camp Greene base hospital hope to
make applicable to the. institution
they represent. Nearly every man is
joins in the wholesale landscaping
movement which is taking place about
the hospital grounds.
The entire plat has been carefully j
raked and grass seend sowed. Every
bit of unsightly rubbish has been re
movea. Tne trains of tie Dig drainage
ditches have been obliterated.
In front of the row of detachment
barracks there have been flower beds
of varied designs formed. Later In
the summer they will bloom with a
riot of color. Roee bushes have been
planted to trail up over the terraces.
Fruit trees have been set out.
With Its natural advantages of being
set in among the bright pine trees
and being located at the top of a gently
sloping hill there la every reason
to expect that the ambition of "the
hospital beautiful" will soon apply
to the Camp Greene plant.
THE REMEDY. *
When a day's hard drill Is over an' a
feller's feelin' bum.
An' everything seems out of order,
you're tired and sick and glum, %g
An' all the other fellers Just like you
are feelin' tough.
As you go to cieanin' rifles, shoes an'
legglns an* that stuff.
An' somehow, you seep on b rood in'
over what the cap'n said.
When you failed to hold the pivot an'
kep' movin' straight ahead.
An' when they went maneuvering and
used you for a scout,
fou failed to use your eyes an* head
and got a bawlin' out. ^
fou wash the sand an' an' sweat out of
your eyes and ears.
Brush up your breeches, sew on buttons
an' straighten up your .
hair; y
I"he tent's to clean, some socks to
wash and a million other thing3
To keep your brain a buzzin' an' your
head all fall of pains. .
Then ymt get a don't-care feeling', an'
you wouldn't give ?
and get," "Double time."
Smith and Jones and James and
Johnson.
Here's one for you bunkin' Jack.
Well yon know that sweet
handwriting. (Vertical and
slanted black.)
Fool, to fret because of something to
do.
Coward, to frown at a task a nation
has set you to.
What burning coals arc heaped upon
my head
By this sweet message, the letter I've
Just read!
A woman, fair and Innocent of grumbling,
slang and oaths;
No thought of vice nor deed of wrong
within her pure heart glows.
Yet she a burden lias to bear e'en
greater than my own.
And she in tears and prayers awaits
and waits for me alone.
Now let me "here" at duty's call and
dare a soldier's lot.
Should I dishonor her fair name, let ;
me go down forgot?
Ah. let me be worthy of my country
and her tears,
And If I live, or If I die. I'm not my
own, but theirs.
CORPORAL GEO B. GUNTER,
Co. H, 7th Infantry.
MIL THURSTON PROMOTED.
Be it resolved, by the secretaries of
the Y. M. C. A. of Camp Greene. N.
C., That In H. M. Thurston, director
of education In thto camp, we have
hnA an efficient director, on earnest
teacher, a wholesome companion and
t. good friend, and that we regret hla
going from the camp into another
Held of activities and only wish that
he might have remained in among vs.
However, we rejoice in his advancement
and commend him to the friendihip
and fellowship of the eastern department,
knowing full well that our
loss Is their gain and that he will fulfil
the duties of his new position with
satisfaction to the department and
honor to himself.
Sincerely submitted,
J. O. GROG AN. - - /J
T. J. MANGUM,
H. R. McKEEN,
Committee. __
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