{ title: 'The Rio Grande rattler. ([McAllen], Hidalgo County, Tex.) 1916-1917, November 08, 1916, Page 6, Image 6', download_links: [ { link: 'http://www.loc.gov/rss/ndnp/ndnp.xml', label: 'application/rss+xml', meta: 'News about NYS Historic Newspapers - RSS Feed', }, { link: '/lccn/sn87030234/1916-11-08/ed-1/seq-6/png/', label: 'image/png', meta: '', }, { link: '/lccn/sn87030234/1916-11-08/ed-1/seq-6.pdf', label: 'application/pdf', meta: '', }, { link: '/lccn/sn87030234/1916-11-08/ed-1/seq-6/ocr.xml', label: 'application/xml', meta: '', }, { link: '/lccn/sn87030234/1916-11-08/ed-1/seq-6/ocr.txt', label: 'text/plain', meta: '', }, ] }
Image provided by: New York State Military History Museum
PAGE 6 THE RIO GRANDE RATTLER News From Our Division Units 9 9 • ® 9 ® 9 0 < S ® a 9 0 0 0 ® 0 9 « 9 9 ( 9 9 @ ® ® 9 < ^ ® ® 0 9 e ® 9 e ® 9 ® • 9 9 9 9 9 « ® ® 9 © ® 0 ® @ < ^ ® e& @ O O& 90B9e& &9® @ @ 9»»9@ aO ®O SECOND FIELD HOSPITAL. The 2nd Field Hospital celebrated Halloween by giving an entertain- nient the night of the 31st at the camp quarters. It was enjoyed by a large crowd from the 4th Ambulance Co, 3rd Ambulance Co., 3rd Field Hospital, Troop B, First Cavalry, Wagon Sup ply train and some men from the vari ous regimentdb A three-hour showq comprising the following bits of talent shook off any gloom th a t might have been running around camp. Sergeant _Joe Crook made a very able announcer Anil many of bis sallies were regarded as part of the performance. The com m ittee in charge was Joseph H a rri son, Joseph Crook, William McGill and Frank McCullough. The overture by the camp orchestra opened the show and the first act on the bill was Messrs, “^ e r n e y , Henn & Company, in a comedy sketch, entitled “ The B a ttle of Too Soon.” Comedy ran amuck in this fareial gem and the j)articipants were hardly to be classed as amateurs. The cast consisted of Privates Jam es Demi, F rank Nerney, John Prescott, Thomas McConnell, Henry Kelly, and Joe C h aplain” Waugh. The work of Prof. Farnett, a hyp notist, from the 4th Ambulance Com pany was one of the features of the evening. He put a couple of subjects to sleep and after demonstrating a number of. scientific problems he put them through some comic antics that put Charlie Chaplin in the shade. A quartette from Troop B, 1st Cav alry, was easily the stellar vocal hit of the evening. Three numbers were put over to the complete satisfaction of the audience. Don Woods, Eeggie Woods, Corporal Priez, and Private H a rris were the able entertainers and are conceded to be the best quartette on the Border. I t was greatly appre ciated by the 2nd Field Hospital as the true Albany spirit as usual came to the front. Troopi B Boys, we thank you. Private Coster, Third Field Hospital, sang “ The N ight That Murphy D ied.” in a pleasing and very entertaining- manner. A sketch depicting studio life of a movie company was put on by Ser geant Stark of the Third Field Hos pital. He is an actor connected with the V itagraph Company, and his im personation of Lionel Bellmore was almost perfect. The sketch was a home scene iu any large city, w ith the ab duction of the fair maiden and the ul tim a te captiire of the villian. When the fair maiden appeared on the scene the boys w-ondered how it was possible for a female to enter the lines through ;^.e guard. The camera consisted of a weuty-five pound Q. M., R-G, 0-D Coffee can, mounted on a p)yramidal tent tripjod with the handle of a meat chopper for a crank and a bunch of nails as a rachet. The company in cluded: Lionel Bellmore, Sergt. Starks, 3 F. H. r!nmc'.-mQn TTrank McCullonorh. 9 , T’ --- 1. town the 2nd Field Hospital hails from. FTerney and Goodrich, camp boot blacks, have the “ Chine Cineo” mar- chants of McAllen, lashed to the mast for efficiency. They do a rushing bus iness on and immediately after pay day, but after that they do not work. A big election parade, comprising men of all the sanitary units, paraded into McAllen the night of November 3rd, and amid many speeches and much merry-making, the parade finally broke up in McAllen Park, Avhere 5 . mass meeting of prominent speakers rvas being held. The Democratic donkey was brought up on the Repub lican platform and caused many a laugh by the presence of the Demo cratic emblem in the enemies camp. BATTALION SIGNAL CORPS. Last week the B attalion hiked from ■Wednesday morning to Saturday noon, camping at different sites each night. It gave the fire and radio companies a chance to' solve a field problem w^hich Major Hallahan had prepared. It re minded the veterans of the Massa chusetts Maneuvers of more or less fond memory. The wmather, however, was, far different from the Massa chusetts’ rainy season, but reveille was sounded before the sun appeared. Radio and wire communications were m aintained rvith the camp during the hike. Sergeant Conner has returned after his extended vacation, which he en joyed at Monte Cristo and Browns ville. Sergeant Fay and his chief assistant, Alotley, have been busy m aintaining the Border line and detached post tele phone system from their Headquarters at Mission, w ith excellent results. Lieutenant Colonel Edgar Russell, Department Signal Officer and Major F. E. Hopkins, D istrict Signal Officer were recent visitors We regret that illness prevented Major Wildman from being w ith them. Yes, our overcoats came last week. Our Supply Sergeants are prepared for the severest weather conditions. Call early and obtain a selection from the latest styles. 2ND AMBULANCE COMPANY As has been the case ever since its arriv.al at Pharr, last July, the Second Ambulance Company is, still keeping busy. A detachment of the Compeny is still at La Gloria an df our ambulances are with th a t detail—In addition to these, one ambulance of the company has accompanied ea^h 'battalion of the 23rd and 74th regiments th a t have gone to the range so far, and one will go with .each of the remaining b a ttal ions of these regiments. The Spanish class is making won derful progress and students are al- ■^ready practising ^ he natives in he vie’u i n . DIVISION! i U-eptc' hd Lieu- E, F, C, and H pulled out of McAllen early Friday morning, November 3rd, with the firm conviction th a t they were Mdding goodbye to their vote. Each troop carried with it four or five of the big pyram idal tents, leaving the frame work, like demolished umbrellas, behind them. Supplies to last them during their stay in the field were al so carried on the transport wagons. Forage for the horses has been sent by train. A detail of eleven men was sent to PoB-na the day before to take care of this. The 3rd Squadron, under Major To bin, will leave on Friday, November 10th, to relieve this guard. I troop will guard the sector to the west of the Donna Canal, while K, L and M will go to Penitas. The distance from McAllen to each of these points is somewhat over 20 miles, and will be covered in one day. Strict orders have been issued to al low no one to cross the river except at Hidalgo, where the U. S. Customs’ House is located. Anyone caught in the act of crossing at any other point will be taken to the immigration au thorities at th a t point. All floating logs which attem p t the river journey to Brownsville during the next few weeks do so at their own risk. The target practice at La Gloria which has been discussed so long that it is assuming the nature of folk lore, will of necessity be postponed. It is expected th a t the troops will he sent there upon their return. And the Mis sion Guard, -which for many weeks have preserved the fourteen blades of grass to the west of the railroad sta tion from the clutches of the persist ant nature fakirs, has been discontin ued. This should prove a serious de pressant to the Mission ice cream m ar ket. The all too rapid approach of the big gridiron battles in the North has be gun to quicken the football instincts in our blood at a time when we would ordinarily begin wondering where we packed those skates last fall, and whether they could be made to slide over another winter. Since the football season officially opened six weeks ago, the Rochester men have been booting a football back and forth with a faithful monotony, broken only when the ball, sliced by the toe of an army shoe, finds a rest ing place between the tents where some lathering shaver gazes into a 10- cent, mirror, searchinp anxiously for some sign of th a t drawn look for home consumption. As the ball displaces the water in the basin like a fa t man in a bath tub and caroming drives the shaving brush down his throat the realization th a t the football season is really on is driven home. I troop has begun to select candi dates for a first and second team. Dur ing the last week, they have been run ning through prelim inary practice out side the Machine Gun Troop’s camp. The tendency toward concrete of Tex as soil when not rained on every day 1 V O > l H T i n ^ ■ i l r into the impenetrable fog with con siderable interest as to whether those turkey wings which we see flapping faintly ahead belong to New Y\ork or Texas birds, or even birds of other places. As we wake up about four in the morning under the impression th a t we have been cast adrift on an ice floe only to find that the edges of the blan kets have parted company in the back it is hard to realize th a t less than 90 days ago w'e lay w ith astonishingly little over us but mosquito netting, trying to decide whether it was best to leave the netting on and disolve like a candle, or remove it and be con sumed like a hamburger steak. We can even imagine a time when setting up exercises may be a pleasure. E. S. 69TH INFANTRY Co. M. Lieut. W. S. P a tten command ing, did some excellent shooting while on the rifle range at La Gloria, last week. The exercise on the range consisted of combat firing under direction of Major Chandler, range officer, and was one of the most interesting pieces of work the regiment has done since ar riving at the Border. Starting a company on the range, first a squad is deployed as an advance guard and goes into action at once. The first targets represent an enemy advance guard and as they spring up out of the brush firing starts. The targets remain exposed for a short time then disappear and the advance guard goes forward reinforced by its support only to have larger targets appear. Then the reserve is advanced and so on until the whole company is on the fir ing line. The enemy is represented by about fifty small silhouette targets. Twenty rounds of ammunition j>er man is allowed and all advances have to be made as if the company was actual ly under fire taking advantage of cov er, squad column movements through the brush, proper carrying of the rifle, fire discipline and control are all con sidered in giving a company its per centage. Each target, of course, had its different marks of value and hits were counted accordingly. Each of the companies of the 3rd battalion in which Co. M belongs, had two days on the range and after the first days firing when Co. M ’s score looked big 1st Sergt. Connelly of Co. L rallied his forces together for a drive that would beat the boys from M Com pany. While Co. L in the second days firing had the highest score of one days work, the previous days lead ob tained by Co. M wa too much for them to overcome and Sergt. Connelly had to admit defeat. Major Chandler complimented Co. M not only for its good scores, but its work in general on the range, such as taking advantage of cover, good work by s^ (ad and platoon leaders and niain ining perfect disr- Hne while on PHARR DRUG STORE Your Business Appreciated EASTMAN KODAKS TOO Folsom Hardware Co. The finest line of Meican d raw^ work in the city. Hardware for the carpenterH^HSoldiers. Blankets for everybody* Chairs for your tents* Pharr 'If we haven’t got it, we’ll get it for you” The Brightest Spot in Pharr is LINESETTER’S Palm Garden Adjoining Pharr Hotel Orches % Music Best Cuisine With Evv :y Meal
