GOOD ROADS,
GOOD HOMES,
BEST CHEESE
C loverdale
VOL. 13.
The Nestucca Valley First,
Last and all the
Time.
CLOVERDALE, TILLAMOOK COUNTY, OREOON, N0 V EM 3 E R 1,11917
s M Y
s
FOURTEEN
M onths
THE-FRONT
\\ A T
A n American B o y ’«
Baptism o f Fire
By WILLIAM J. ROBINSON
Copyright, Little, Brown & Co.
W ILLIA M
J
ROBINSON
The most graphic account of tho
great war that has yet been written
comes from the pen of a twenty-two-
year-old Boston boy, who has iust re
turned from France, where as dragoon
guardsman, dispatch rider and motor
car driver he served fourteen months
under the British flag. Out of thirty-
one motorcycle d'spatch rider» he waa
one of four suivivoia,
0-------------------------------------------- 0
C H APTE R I.
Sent to the Front.
X A C T L Y one week from a certain
day tv Lieu I landed in England
r r i o r to my arrival in Eng
from the United States I was
land the idea\of participating in
notified that my job was gone, as the
the great tear hud never entered
company that I represented was in
my head. I went abroad on busi
the hands o f receivers.
ness, and 1 expected to return
I was disappointed, o f course, trot
to this country as soon as my
tried to look ut the thing philosophical
Mark was compu ted. It seemed,
ly and to make the best o f it. 1 bought
though, that fute decreed other
my ticket for home, but as the boat
wise. I had been i/i England a
on which 1 intended sailing did not
good many times before, and in
leave for several days I proceeded to
France and Belgium, too, for
enjoy the remainder of my stay in
that matter.
My father was a
England.
sea captain, and I was bom
Things were certainly moving at that
aboard his ship. In fact, I lived
time. Very soon I was as enthusiastic
| as any o f them, and in. London I made
the first six years of my life on
inquiries a9 to whether I could J o I d
shipboard. This last trip across
the army.
the Atlantic made the twenty-
I was toid that I wouVI have no d if
third time for rnr, so I teas quite
ficulty at all. but on second thought I
at home in the British isles. Al
decide 1 to let we/D enough alone. The
most before I knew it I had tak
day before 1 was to sail from Liver
en the step that was responsible
pool I hesitr.ted again and talked it
for the most terrible yht won
over with an army officer. H e was so
derful experience that ever came
nice about explaining everything to me
to me.
that I decided that 1 might do lota of
In telling my story I hare tried
worse things than to see a little of
to take the important events and
the biggest scrap the world had ever
sc.t them down in chronological
known.
order. I have endeavored alio
That night. I thought about rhe mut
to link them together so as to
ter
some more und esirne to the conclu
jnake it possible for the reader
sion that if they would take toe into
to follow me thnr.igli the princi
a cavalry regiment J would Imre a
pal happenings during my time
try at It. Th/- next ¡morning i enlisted
of service.
Many of the more
and was ma*le a trooper in the Fifth
sordid details of this great war
Dragoon guards. T in t same afternoon
I have been obliged to hare out.
I was on my way no Alderahot, but
I have dwelt neither on the hor
had I known w hat I was going to go
rors of war nor yet on the glory,
through L don't think l would have
but I have hied to picture the
been so light hearted ius I was. In the
daily routine - of the fighting
evening I was fitted oirt with my en
mun's life as it really is.
tire kit and informed that from now on
I was a soldier.
1 was unsigned to a bed In tfcw bar
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S i t Taylor, at tho Courier office for racks, and from that time my trou
bles commenced,
I was in v.dth a
File Insurance.
PREFACE.
E
Teach Your Boy the Balue of a
Bank Account .
T A R T vour boy oil right in the battle o f life. Deposit
something to his credit in the bank. I f he is working for
a salary, ask him to place something aside weekly. If be
is in business, show him the importance o f keeping a
goodlv balance in bank. There’s no telling when ad opportunity
may present itself whereby a little ready cash may be the foun
dation of a fortune. We do all kinds of banking.
S'
NESTUCCA VALLEY BANK
Cloverdale,
Oregon.
♦
NO. 14
crowd of old soldiers, rneu who had
served from two to twenty years In
the army, and, while they were very
decent chaps, they seemed to resent
the fact that a "eivie" had been pushed
in ou them. 1 was at onco christened
A widow in speaking o( her late husband said: “ He was always a good
'"Yank,” and 1 believe they found a
provider." In tho mind of ties bereave 1 woman, this was a high tribute to
few other things to call me too.
iter husband's dim actor. It is often true that flic best husband is the one
The next morning at f> o'clock the
sergeant came around and dug me out.
who saves a part of his income for the future. By this plan lie is able to
He took me down to the stuldes and
provide all nece-i ities mul many of the luxuries; but constantly accumulate
put me in w Itb a bunch o f rookies who
money and property that will safeguard his family against want when he is
weren’t any happier thnn l was. \Ve
were then Instructed in the gentle nrt
unable to work or after W s death.
of grooming n horse. I couldn't seem
to do anything right, and they didn't
4 Per Cent Paid on Savings and Tim e Deposits. Best Banking Facil
hesitate to tel! me so either.
ities in Town.
Then we were marched down to a
breakfast of bread, bacon end tea. but
we had ns much ns we wanted. I felt
a w hole lot better after eating. Hreak-
Established in 15 02
fast over, we had room inspection, and
as soon as that was over we w ho wera
Tillamook,
Oregon
rookies were marched down to the rid-
■ ing school and handed over to the ty
rant who ruled there.
| I had expected to find horses all sad
Is bound to bear o f It from Hie men of
| died, and it certainly
Quite a shock i Well, I didn't know whethci I'd haw other units, mid if any derogatory re
to learn that we got our saddles only l tlie* nerve to do it or not, blit tilt’ mop* marks are passed he feels himself boil.
when we hnd earned them. In other I I thought about it the more I thought • >r bound to fight the one who Is re
I he might lie right. I hadn't passed
words, we had to pass the bareback ' through the door to the barracks lie sponsible for the retnartc.
I f you should chance to ask a Royal
test before we even felt a saddle.
fore the kidding started again, and 1
Horse
artilleryman what regiment ho
There were no long explanations as to knew what would follow.
belonged to he would immediately
how a thing should be done. We were
So I screwed up all the courage I
told once uud in as few words as pos hnd, and, seeing n big chap who was straighten tip and answer you some
what after this fashion:
sible. ~ Then we had to do it.
making a lot of talk, 1 swung as hard
“ I belong to the Jtoyal Horse artil
A fter we had mastered the art of us I could anil let him have It. 1
vaulting on a horse's back we got the wou't say anything about wbnt hap lery, the extreme right of the line
"walk march,” then the “ trot march.” pened to me, but the next afternoon l and the pride of the British array."
Then we hnd to drop the reins and ride found I'd beer, unlucky, as usual. The Then he would go on to tell when
with folded arms, and so it went until man I had picked was a heavyweight his regiment was formed, what it had
12 o'clock, when we got an hour's rest. champion o f the British army in South accomplished, how ninny honors It has,
It was the same thing in the after Africa during the Boer war! Things how many Victoria crosses *the men be
longing to it have won, how many tl-
noon.
were much better after that, though,
A ll one could hear was the rid and I made some mighty good friends tlcd officers belong to it, und so on, al
most indefinitely.
ing master singing his commands: among tbor* fellows.
Nearly all tlie regiments have nick
''Walk, march. Trot, march! H alt!”
At first it amused me greatly to hoar
names,
and these names ure very pop
And every once In awhile he’d yell: the men talk about the rt intents they
"Hollow your backs!
Hollow your belonged to, but latoF 1 came to under ular. The ltoy a I Scots claim to lie tho
backs! You’re not driving a cab now. stand that their regiments meant more oldest regiment lu the British anu.v,
ho they are popularly known as “ Pon
That’s a horse you're on. He's got a to them than anything e! e. In peace
tius Pilate's bodyguard." The tSIoucea-
tint“ when a mail Joins the army lie 1-,
ter regiment is tile only one in the
ibllged to learn the h. .¡,.iy of the rc;:l
British army entitled to wear cap
merit he Joins from the day It was
badges in tho back as well as in the
formed to the present day Tr- dill* :i
front, and the reason this privilege has
plays a great part to the life of a reg
been granted them Is that in some pre-
ular so.dter, mill If the e is a delicate
spot In the history of h.s regiment he
Continaed on last page.
($ (Boob (protnber for (0e jE)ome
T I L L A M O O K COUNTY B A N K
T H R E E GOOD ONES
287 Acres
(«ood house, two burns and
other buildings. 15 bead cat
tle« J) horses. Plenty of Feed
to winter stock. Price, $6.500
Full uarticulars at this office,
I W a» Christened “ Yank," «nd They
Found Other Thing* to CeM Mo.
head and tall and legs and everything.
Why, I wouldn't trust yflii blighters to
drives my duck to water. There Isn’t
one o f you who could ride a table,”
etc. W e were dismissed at 4.30 and
told that this was our routine for ev
ery day until we bad passed out and
earned our saddles.
I don't think I was ever so tired in
my life ss I was that night, and I de
cided to turn In right after supper.
That shows how much I knew about a
barrack room. After supper all those
who couldn't get pci-mission to go out
eeemed to blame it on me. for I was
battered around until they were tired
o f it, and when I finally got into my
bed I was In a pretty bad way.
I soon found out that It w as futile
to try to get even. Such an attempt
only made matters worse, and the only
thing to do seemed to la* to gTin ar.d
bear it. The next morning we went
down to riding school again and bad
the same <dd drill all day. ex.e;>t that
In the afternoon they turned us around
so that our backs were toward the
bodies' beads and made os ride that
way tbe rest o f the ftny.
As I w a« crossing the parade ground
In tbe evening a fellow who was In
my room asked me how I felt. I tol l
him in two words.
#
‘ Well,” be said. " If you want to be
let alone you do as I tell you. Tonight
when you go Into the room pick out
the biggest man you <an find and don't
say anything, but Just walk up and
paste him with all your might. You
may get licked, and you may not, but
you won’t have much trouble l i
' ward, whichever wav it come« out.'*
258 Acres
This ranch is now support
ing tO head o f stoek. House
and good barn. It takes $17,-
500 to buy this ranch. This
ranch has a quantity o f fine
spruce timber.
R
rd
m
$
Small Ranch
House and barn, .fust the
place to make a good living.
W ill runabout 1 0 head. Price,
* 3 , 000 .
m
«
«
n
Taylor
Real
Estate
Agency
CLOVERDALE,
OREGON