Adventure Magazine Cover, November 10, 1924 — page 12: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

Io anything over there that’s worse than this I’d like to know what it is.” The doctor came down the line, working in sweating haste, and having spattered a little vaccine on each arm where the blood was, directed the men to let it dry. The man in front of Eadie took one look at the doctor and went over sidewise like a felled tree. “Carry him out,” directed the doctor. “Just let me put a little stuff on his arm first.” He bent over and applied the vac- cine to the prostrate man. “Now take him away,” he directed. No one moved. “Come, come,” cried the doctor, dabbing at Eadie’s arm, “‘carry out that man! What are you waiting fore? You two men, grab hold of him!” The doctor indicated two sad _ soldiers who had had their shot and vaccination. “We gotta couple o’ sore arms,”’ these two informed him. ‘We can’t carry nothin’.”’ The truth of their statement was apparent even to the doctor. Eadie bent over the fallen man and as he did so his sleeve slipped down. He hurriedly caught it back again and resumed his former position. After a while he stole a cautious look at his arm and his heart rose. The vaccine was all gone. A quick movement as he bent over had transferred it from his arm to his shirt sleeve, where it could do no harm. More men fell heavily to the floor, but they lay where they fell this time. No one aided them. Feet clattered up the steps and the door swung open with a loud bellow of “’Tenshun!” Appeared four or five offi- cers, evidently of high rank, and clumpe:l across the room to the office in the corner. The acting top came out at once and blew his whistle. “Every one at the foot of their bunks as soon as the doctor is finished with them,” he directed. ‘Blouse, campaign hats, belts and bayonets. Rifles in the hand. Show- down inspection in five minutes.” Tne showdown did not take a great deal of time after all. The officers went around to each bunk, checked the articles thereon, looked at each man’s rifle and took them- selves off. When they were gone, the first sergeant called up the stairway— “That’s all tonight, men.” Eadie swept his things into his shelter half and thrust them under the bunk. “Better not do that,” advised one of the other men. “Orders is to have your pack Adventure made up all the time. They'll nail you good for not havin’ it done.” ‘‘Who ever heard of a bunch of prisoners being armed with rifles and bayonets?” “‘We ain’t real prisoners,’’ answered the other. ‘This is just kind of a disciplinary company. The real hard eggs ain’t got no rifles, nor no uniforms, neither. They live in the next block.” “Want a hand on that pack?” asked Jake Brown, who was watching Eadie’s crude efforts at rolling his blankets. ‘My head is goin’ round Jike a pair o’ bones. Maybe rollin’ a pack would help quiet it. Man, i thought that bird was shovin’ a bayonet in my arm. How come you don’t know how to roll a pack and you a sergeant?”’ “T’ve always been with a mounted outfit,” said Eadie, ‘‘where they don’t use these fearful things. What the deuce are all these loops for? Toilet articles?”’ “Naw, they’re to make your haversack whatever size you want it. Put your bacon and condiment can an’ razor and things in the top and just keep out your blankets. What you goin’ to sleep in if you put your blankets in the roll?” ‘“That’s right,” said Eadie, “I never thought of that.” “I won’t be surprized if we got sent over after all,’’ said Brown, feeling in his pockets for a chew. ‘‘Keepin’ us full pack all the time looks like it. JI used up all my chewin’, but I got somethin’ as good if I can find it”’ “We ain’t goin’ nowhere,” spoke up one of the men on a bunk across the aisle. ‘We been doin’ this thing for a month now and here we are. I heard we wouldr’t go till we finished gradin’ that baseball field, and that’ll take us all summer.” “Suits me,” said Brown, “I don’t hanker for no ocean trip anyway. I bet I put that thing in my hat. Sure thing, there it is. Keeps it coc] an’ moist, puttin’ it in a hat- band.” From the band of his hat he extracted the end of a cigar, a piece about an inch long, and this he inserted in his mouth, where he chewed on it pleasantly. Eadie could still hear him grinding away after the lights went out and the sergeant had gone to bed. een LIGHT shining in his eyes awak- jg ened Eadie. He rolled his face into — the pillow, thinking some one re- turning from a pass to New York had turned on the light. He remembered CoMmicbook ) (© 5}