The War Romance of the Salvation ArmyHill, Grace Livingston
History
The War Romance of the Salvation Army
Hill, Grace Livingston
World War, 1914-1918 -- War work -- Salvation Army
The General, greatly pleased, took the cake and sent for a knife, while
his officers stood about looking on with much interest. It appeared as
if every one were to have a taste of the cake. But when the General had
cut a generous slice, held it up, observing its cunning workmanship,
its translucent, delectable interior, he turned with a gleam in his
eye, looked about the room and said: “Gentlemen, this cake will not be
served till the evening’s mess, and I pity the gentlemen who do not eat
with the officer’s mess, but they will have to go elsewhere for their
cake.”
The Adjutant went out with his pies and doughnuts and distributed them
here and there where they would do the most good, getting on the right
side of the Top Sergeant, for he had discovered some time ago that even
with the General as an ally one must be on the right side of the “old
Sarge” if one wanted anything. While he was still talking with the
officers he was handed an order from the General that he should be
supplied with all that he needed, and when he finally came out of
Headquarters he found that seven tons of material were being loaded on
his car. After that the Salvation Army never had any trouble in getting
all the material they needed.
After the tents in Montiers were all settled and the work fully
started, the Staff-Captain and his helpers settled down to a pleasant
little schedule of sixteen hours a day work and called it ease; but
that was not to be enjoyed for long. At the end of a week the Salvation
Army Colonel swooped down upon them again with orders to erect a hut at
once as the tents were only a makeshift and winter was coming on. He
brought materials and selected a site on a desirable corner.
Now the corner was literally covered with fallen walls of a former
building and wreckage from the last year’s raid, and the patient
workers looked aghast at the task before them. But the Colonel would
listen to no arguments. “Don’t talk about difficulties,” he said,
brushing aside a plea for another lot, not quite so desirable perhaps,
but much easier to clear. “Don’t talk about difficulties; get busy and
have the job over with!”
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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