A Maid and a Million Men

ce for

1

d to this army life, for it was getting so that I didn't notice how fast the days flew by. There w

s no place for a woman-at least, not a nice woman, I mean a decent girl like me. Of all the rough-necks-I never imagined there were so many in the Land of the Free and Home of the Brave. I was meeting them here, though. I was thrown in with people that I'd never meet in

stomary French year. Up around that part of Brittany, the natives must be thankful that Leap Year doesn't come every year, because the chances are it would be just another rainy day. The usual quota of

s built by Napoleon more than a hundred years ago. This place is four miles out of Brest, and it wouldn't have been such a bad walk if there hadn't been so much mud and other contributing causes for discomfort. We never had any adequate drill on board the transport, most of

cks bag and observed very sourly, "If this ain't a hell of a fin

, Ben?" the man on the other side of him inquired

the fourth and fifth generations, to tell us about his "old man" who, it seems, was a remarkably able man who never got a nickel for fighting but could beat the daylights out of his prize-fighting son any time he became drunk enough to so desire. Anyone would have to read between the lines of t

hour waiting to be assigned to quarters, while rumors of all kinds were running around and considerable confusion arose as a result of someone's remark that we'd probably have to sleep in pup tents outside the walls because the barracks within were all filled. This rumor threw Ben into a fit of profanity that could not be stopped until orders

ron building around the corner. The dysentery was still operative.... Nob

out any warning and told the top-kicker he had come over to see that the men got a work-out. "They might catch cold if they remain id

ymen? Some of these fellows couldn't do much better than I did, and I had some tall and quick thinking to do to keep in line as we marched up and down and back and forth the length and breadth of that parade ground. Chilblaines ke

made me deaf. Ben's opinion sounded literary and mild compared to the others, and he sa

of his own importance in this army and that he pro

told me to go forward I'd turn around and knock his teeth down his throat so he couldn't give orders." The thought of such a golden pleasure, however remote as a possibility, was a n

. At four A.M. we were called up by the top-kick, who was very apparently pretty mad about

's blood in that whorehound's veins!" He cursed him, between shivers, for all he had around his huge frame was the far too small slicker

he front of the shed. "There's only one bath and

ighty!" he exclaimed. "You'd think we was crimina

o it and I had to suppose that he would wait at the door to see that everyone went. I waited until Ben started for the door, then when he was directly between me and the serge

as convinced that he was inspecting my bunk with suspicion. Then suddenly he turned and went

my head in one of them and poured the other over my legs. Then I ran back to my bunk and pulled off my shirt, and back to the buckets again.

s returned, but as soon as the door opened I started a vigorous rubbing, and slipped into my clea

stopped rather suspiciously near me. I thought he was going to say something, but I exclaimed, "God, but that water was cold, sergeant

unk and said, very confidentially, "He asked me where you was and I said 'He's been here and gone

ation and let it go at that. And he took pleasure in helping to slip anything over on anyone in authority. I thanked him sincerely for telling the top-kicker that lie and we pro

et out, but he had simply been marking time for the most part and when he marked time I exhibited

that ... that ... that ... and so on almost ad infinitum. And I knew that all of them were entirely false and without foundation. I don't understand how rumors traveled so well in the army, but they certainly did spring up and cover the camp overnight. The whol

he hadn't seen a single one of these mademoiselles that looked clean enough to be of interest to a man of his tastes, and I quite agreed with him. Most of them were disappointing-nothing like before the war. Now they all looked so hard and worn, and the ones that

ance had had little or no acquaintance with Americans, not even the tourist class which has always been distinguished traditionally for its ignorance, lack of taste and vulgar displayism. As far as I could make out, the better-class French people were not quite certain whether we were savage barbarians or civilized Indians. They thought tha

would not relish the thought of our daughters mingling with them as social equals. Nice French girls would not have anything to do with American soldiers: any more than nice American girls would accept Japanese soldiers without r

s, the street girls didn't have anything to do with the white soldiers. Obviously they were as deluded as our soldiers were in other places.... Indeed, that was my view of the whole works just now: everyone misunderstood everyone else, and the result was a sort of not unpleasant but not very congenial confusion.... Of course, the mademoiselle end didn't interest me, but Ben said he just found out about a place where he could get a girl for a cake of American soap. I told him he'd better swipe a carton from the canteen and start a harem. He said that when the regulars first appeared in France it was possible to ge

asn't built for that kind of stuff. My back got a kink in it and the muscles of my legs seemed to knot right up after a mile or so of walking under the strain

n the morning bef

uads Right!

ront In

-of-a-b--, he give

came out with us the first couple of mornings, but very quickly decided that this was not his kind of play. Now he didn't pay any attention to "fall in" but as soon as

ch to tell them except the events of our last four

a gushing letter from Vyvy-apparently Leon carried out my instructions and told her that he was coming

id not reach me by phone until midnight.... He has not been home since that time.... Left the hospital and went direct to Booneville. But he will not stay here long. As soon as his arm is safely m

. She also informs me that your Jay-Jay has been transferred and expects to go t

him very much before he would become suspicious. In fact I thought he suspected something already,

and said he couldn't understand that at all. 'Why didn't she let me get her a place?' he asked, but of course I told him that there was no telling what you might do. He asked about Leon and I gave hi

id not leave here until three o'clock in the afternoon. I don't know what he thinks, but he must have some ideas of his own.... I think y

ing. He is determined to act at once. I don't know what he

efend myself under the circumstances. No, sir-I didn't want to see Mr. Marfield at all, and if I did see him, I didn't know what I'd say or do. He was suspicious already. If God was really with me, he'd keep us from meeting. I didn't like his type of officer anyway-and the mor

icted area in Brest. And to add to all this my tummy was feeling not so good and my back was aching sort of ominously. If it wasn't one damned thing it was another. Armies and war certainly are For Men Only. T

ristian Science to change me into a man now: perhaps if my mother and father had used Christian Science, the change could have been made, or rather the necessity of change prevented. However, I doubt very much if those dev

good. Maybe "fightin' is a lot of fun" but I just didn'

ay-Jay to think

2

d be there, but from all I could learn Le Mans was a training area and the division might be there for a month or six weeks. The

in any time and if he should discover that my outfit was still here, I didn't see how I could avoid being found by him. Naturally I was glad we were moving out in the mornin

s" and "Madelon" were not army songs at all: they were for dress parade, he said. The real army songs were too dirty filthy rotten to sing at any sanctioned get-together. The real barrack-room ballads were fit only for barrooms and bedrooms and bathrooms-that is, if you sing in your bath.... To-day we waited patiently to see if they would sing something interesting, but the best they had to offer was "Keep the Home Fires Burning"-and Ben almost choked on his tobacco-quid when they star