The War Romance of the Salvation Army — John Shaqi
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
“We never forced a meeting on them,” said one of the girls. “We just
let it grow. Sometimes it would begin with popular songs, but before
long the boys would ask for hymns, the old favorites, first one, then
another, always remembering to call for ‘Tell Mother I’ll Be There.’”
Almost without exception the boys entered heartily into everything that
went on in the organization. The songs were perhaps at first only a
reminder of home, but soon they came to have a personal significance to
many. The Salvation Army did not hare movies and theatrical singers as
did the other organizations, but they did not seem to need them. The
men liked the Gospel meetings and came to them better than to anything
else. Often they would come to the hut and start the singing
themselves, which would presently grow into a meeting of evident
intention. The Staff-Captain did not long have opportunity to enjoy the
new hut which he had labored so hard to finish at Montiers, for soon
orders arrived for him to move on to Houdelainecourt to help put up the
hut there, and leave Montiers in charge of a Salvation Army Major. The
Salvation Army was with the Eighteenth Infantry at Houdelainecourt.
It was an old tent that sheltered the canteen, and it had the
reputation of having gone up and down five times. When first they put
it up it blew down. It was located where two roads met and the winds
swept down in every direction. Then they put it up and took it down to
camouflage it. They got it up again and had to take it down to
camouflage it some more. The regular division helped with this, and it
was some camouflage when it was done, for the boys had put their
initials all over it, and then, had painted Christmas trees everywhere,
and on the trees they had put the presents they knew they never would
get, and so in all the richness of its record of homesickness the old
tent went up again. They kept warm here by means of a candle under an
upturned tin pail. The tent blew down again in a big storm soon after
that and had to be put up once more, and then there came a big rain and
flooded everything in the neighborhood. It blew down and drowned out
the Y.M.C.A. and everything else, and only the old tent stood for
awhile. But at last the storm was too much for it, too, and it
succumbed again.
After that the Salvation Army put up a hut for their work. A number of
soldiers assisted. They put up a stove, brought their piano and
phonograph, and made the place look cheerful. Then they got the
regimental band and had an opening, the first big thing that was
recognized by the military authorities. The Salvation Army
Staff-Captain in charge of that zone took a long board and set candles
on it and put it above the platform like a big chandelier. The Brigade
Commander was there, and a Captain came to represent the Colonel. A
chaplain spoke. The lassies who took part in the entertainment were the
first girls the soldiers had seen for many months.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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