FRB - The Pop Valve, Journal publié par les soldats américains installés à Vauzelles, près de Nevers (Nièvre), item 20

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Page 2. THE POP-VALVE May 17, 1919.

THE POP-VALVE

Published by and for

The 19TH GRAND DIVISION TRANSPORTATION CORPS

AMERICAN EXPEDITIONARY FORCES

Camp Stephenson - Nevers (Nièvre), France.

Major C.E. Lester, Engrs., U.S.A.

Commanding the Grand Division.

Managing Editor...........Mr. Engr. John J. Rule, Hqrs.

Art Editor..................Pvt 1/cl. Mark J. Mercier "116".

Business Mgr. & Treas..........Sgt. J.S. Winfrey, "119"

Shop Manager...............Mr. Engr. Otto Hehn, Hqrs.

COMPANY REPRESENTATIVES

Headquarters Det..................Sgt. Larry Gill.

Band No.5. A.S.C.....................Mr. Engr. Thos. McFarlane.

Medical Det..............................Sergt. N.A. Feidler.

Company 109...........................Pvt. 1/cl. Claine Stephens.

Company 110...........................Corp. Leon H.A. Weaver.

Company 116...........................Sgt. J.A. Keshlear.

Company 117...........................Sgt. F.H Squire.

Company 118...........................Corp. D.C. Sperry.

Company 119...........................Pvt. 1/cl. R.B. Loomis.

Company 120...........................Pvt. 1/cl. J. McC. Frazier.

Company 121...........................Pvt. W.H. Morrow.

P.W.E. Co. 240..........................Corp. Ben Cherenson.

1st. M.T.Co................................Corp. Harvey Munsy.

2nd. M.T.Co..............................Pvt. Wilfred Langlois.

SATURDAY MAY 17, 1919.

Weekly Circulation..................3000 Copies.

THE POP-VALVE'S LAST "POP"

Among a number of other things that were

all upset by the Commanding Officer,s "Good

News" on Tuesday evening were the plans of

the POP-VALVE'S Staff.

Practically all the dope for the fourth number

was ready to take to the printers when the

grand and glorious information about our early

departure for the home bivvy was released, and

a large portion of it had to be "scrapped". The

Staff had figured on getting out at least two

more regular numbers before the Farewell

Edition, the plans for which were in the

making. But the "toot suite" order necessitated

a "hurry-up" job on this, the final number of

our little paper, it's last "Pop"!

And here it is -- quite different from what

we had planned, but the best we could do

under the conditions. The several varieties of

pleasing news that the heretofore unlucky 13th

brought forth has left us too happy to be

disappointed.

The POP-VALVE has had a very brief but

quite exciting career. The first three numbers

hit the camp at a time when the "Argent" was

at a very low tide and the financial worries and

difficulties were mostly numerous! But payday

dawned at last, and the francs began rolling in

sufficient numbers to pay off all the bills and

provide a neat little sinking fund for the planned

farewell number.

The paper was one of the many parts of the

Commanding Officer's plan to keep the fellows

in a good humor while we were waiting for the

signal to pack up. It was just getting rightly

started when the signal came and while it has

had but little effect on the morale of the camp,

it has at least given us a fairly good souvenir

of our stay in France, a souvenir that we will

probably appreciate a great deal more when

we take it out of the old trunk, a few years

from now, faded and discolored with age, but

still a reminder of days that were never filled

with complete happiness, but still not lacking

in pleasant moments that will be hard to equal

even in the comforts and pleasures of home life.

What little success the paper has had is due to

the generous support of the men of Camp

Stephenson and to the unselfish efforts of a

number of good friends. To mention all these

friends would take more space than we can

spare; it is possible to mention only a few of

them, the friends who did the most for us.

As has been previously explained, the paper

grew out of the Headquarters ISSUE, a mime

ographed paper gotten out by the Headquarters

Detachement. Captain George F. Huff, Jr.,

Adjutant of the Camp and C. O. of the Hqrs.

Det. is the "father" of both papers. It was his

belief that the humor of his command was

worth recording and he started the ISSUE, giving

every assistance in his power to the men he

put in charge. The Issue was getting along

nicely when the C. O. of the camp saw the need

of a camp paper, Captain Huff then became the

business adviser and Chief Encourager of the

new paper. Each week he has been the first to

tell us a lot of nice things which were always

"stretched" but none the less pleasing, and

he's the very best customer the paper has.

Considering that he is a very busy man, his

kindness to the Pop Valve is deserving of more

thanks than we can express.

Captain Lester N. Selig, Executive Officer of

the Camp created a place for himself on the

un-official Staff of the paper which, in a lodge

ritual would probably carry the title of Grand

Executioner of Worries, and he has been on

the job consistently. The Captain is a real "go-

getter" and puts "pep" and "zip" into every-

thing he touches, and he was just starting a

series of "injections" on the Pop Valve when

the "fini" order came. In many, many ways

the Captain has been the paper's "friend in

need" and his first act was to instruct us to

forget the financial end of the game and

concentrate on the paper. His second act was

to instruct us to keep his name out of the

paper, and not to "waste" any more space on

him! The many other acts are "inside stuff"

which we want to carry home as a secret and

as a real pleasant memory of the Captain.

Finally, the paper owes a large debt of grat-

itude to the Commanding Officer of Camp

Stephenson, who at the very beginning gave

us to understand that we were to run an enlist-

ed men's paper and that he expected to be

treated just like any other member of the

family. Any items that he got hold of, he sent

to the paper with instructions to "scrap" them

if for any reason they did'nt suit us.

Major Lester has held an unenviable posit-

ion as Commander of the Camp. Higher

authorities demanded certain results from the

shops, and the men of the camp felt that they

were being held here unjustly. Instead of

taking the customary military step and "quee-

ing" down the feelings of the men with iron

heel methods, the Major set to work on a

psychological campaign to make them as cont-

ented as possible and our beautiful camp is

just one of the many big features of the succ-

essful compaign. He has probaly told us more

about our chances of going home than any

other C. O. in the A. E. F. and been as frank

with us as his position would permit. Some

day we will appreciate this more than we can

under the existing military conditions. One of

his last acts was to make the Pop Valve an

unofficial channel for any complaints the men

night have. It was "beating around the bush"

but a grand chance for the men to air their pet

grievances without having to appear in the

matter at all.

We hope this "little mess of flowers" will be

taken in the spirit intended by the recipients

and by those who have'nt anything better to do

than to read this, the "So Long Gang" of the

paper's Staff.

MAJOR QUIGLEY LEAVES THE DIVISION

Every man in Camp Stephenson, from the

Commanding officer down to the last Buck to

enter the ranks, experienced a feeling of distinct

personal loss when Major Walter K. Quigley,

formerly Commanding Officer of the 49th

Engineers, later Chief Inspector of French Shop

Detachments and, up until his departure, Execut-

ive Officer of the Camp, left last Sunday morn-

ing for St Pierre de Corps, to take over his new

assigment as Commanding Officer of Camp de

Grasse, a Railway Engineer Camp, just across

from Tours.

Upon returning from a recent leave, during

which he visited Paris, Brussels, Chalons,

Verdun, and other points of interest in the

Advance Section, the Major was called to the

office of the General Manager and given this

new assigment, the equivalent to and his many

friends hope, the forerunner of promotion in

rank,

The men of the "Old 49th" were hardest hit

by the change. Major Quigley brought them

to France, after five eventful months in the

States, equipped for and fully expecting service

in the Advance Section. The C.O. was the most

dissapointed man in the outfit when it was

learned that the unit was slated for the S.O.S.,

but he hid his feelings and set a splendid

example to his men. He almost lost his outfit

once when it was split up into detachments and

scattered thru the south-western cities of

France, but Fate relented and a joyful reunion

was held at Camp Stephenson, early in the

present year.

The "survivors" of the old 49th Regiment

gathered in the YMCA Auditorium on Sunday

morning to say good by to the Major. Quite a

few "ringers" were in the crowd, but no one

questioned them - everyone understood. The

Major made a brief speech in which he discussed

the history, ideals and achievements of the old

outfit, and charged the members of it to act

the same while he was gone as they had when

he was with them. He gave them his home

address and invited them to call on him when

near or to write to him if he could ever be of

any assistance to any one of them. After

wishing them a pleasant voyage home, a

successful, happy future, and suggesting that

some sort of an organization of "old forty-

niners" be formed, the Major "ducked" while

the applause lasted several minutes. He later

confessed that he could'nt bear to stop and

shake hands with the boys, much as he would

have liked to, and his "ducking" saved more

than himself from - a tense moment.

The members of the old 49th will forget many

incidents of their army careers, but it is certain

that they will never forget the good looking,

big hearted Irishman who befriended them in

numerous ways, from getting them out of

trouble to lending them money between pays.

His whole code was the square deal, and in

losing him, the Camp loses a friend who will

hardly ever be fully replaced.

A LETTER WE APPRECIATE

Just when the Staff was "up to it's neck"

getting out the farewell number, this

mighty encouraging letter was

delivered at the printers:

HEADQUARTERS

19th Grand Division

Transportation Corps May 15, 1919.

American

Expeditionary Forces

To The Editor and Staff of "The Pop Valve":

My dear Editor:

For the closing issue of "The Pop Valve" I

desire at this time to express the keen grati-

fication and intense satisfaction that I have

received from the various issues of your

paper.

You have helped to build up the morale

of the troops and to provide them with a form

of enjoyment at a time when such action

was absolutely necessary. In addition to

this you have given the men of this camp

a new medium through which just and

dignified complaints and suggestions on

points which may have escaped the notice

of the different officers, may be brought to

my notice to the end that these questions

have been satisfactorily adjusted. I regret

indeed that so promising a paper must be

closed up in the height of its career and

wish to express to you and to every member

of the Staff my personal sincere appreciation

of your efforts, and in doing so, I merely

express the sentiment of every officer and

every man in this camp.

That your efforts have met with marked

success is obvious and I trust that this same

success may attend your efforts and the

efforts of your associates for all time in

the future.

Sincerely yours,

(C. E. Lester)

Major, Engineers, U.S.A.

fic Commanding.

A GOLD-BAR DREAM

I dreamed that Gabriel's trump had blown

And I stood at the Heavenly gate,

Where an angel bell-hop asked my name,

Place of birth and the date.

St. Peter came out in a minute or so,

And he looked me up and down

Then -- "What is your name again young man,

And the name of your native town?"

I told him that and a whole lot more --

I told him a thousand things,

While Peter listened without a word

And the bell-hop preened his wings.

"You have sinned, no doubt" said Peter to me,

And I answered him that I had.

That my sins were many I couldn't deny

And my heart was heavy and sad.

"Oh, what did you do in the great world war?

You were there? I answered "Yes.

I was a second lieutenant then,

And I fought in the S.O.S.,"

St. Peter wiped the tears from his eyes,

"You're a martyr my son," quoth he,

"A second loot leads a hell of a life --

I know it from A to Z,"

"You've taken orders from morn till night

In the heat of the summer sun --

Under the winter winds of France

You've worked till your work was done.

Then when for pleasure you felt the need

And went to douhboy show

There were nothing but jokes on second loots

That were chestnuts ages ago.'

St. Peter threw open the gates of gold

And led me straight inside --

He issued me halo, harp and gown,

And wings three meters wide.

"I'll introduce you to Caesar now,',

He said, as he tidied the shelves,

"To Washington, Bonaparte, Grant and Lee --

They've been Second Lieuts. themselves."

W.F.T.