Show I TOP D Do DI By Jm melI o Arth Arthe Guy GUllY Empey ey S So o e o Machine Gunner Serving in France Copyright 1117 hi Arthur On OUT Guy EZa Em 57 l EMPEY WRITES AND STAGES A PLAY BEHIND THE LINES WITH GREAT SUCCESS t Synopsis Synopsis Fired Fired by the sinking of the Lusitania with the loss of American lives Arthur Guy Empey an American living In Jersey City goes to England and enlists as a private In the British army anny After a 11 short experience as a recruiting officer In London he Is sent to training trainIng training train- train Ing quarters In France where he first hears the sound of big guns and makes the acquaintance of cooties After a brief period of training Empey's company Is sent Rent Into the line front trenches where he takes his first turn on the fire step while the bullets whiz overhead Empey learns as comrade falls that death lurks always alays In the trenches Chaplain distinguishes himself by rescuing wounded men under h hot t fire With pick and shovel Empey has experience as a trench digger In No Mans Man's Land After exciting experiences on listening post detail and observation post duty Empey Is picked for patrol duty In No NoMan's NoMans NoMans NoMan's NoMans NoMan's Mans Man's Land and has narrow V escape from death CHAPTER XVI co Continued II 14 14 While they are talking an old Jew named Ikey key comes along and Abe engages him for cashier After Atter engaging Ikey key they meet an old Southern negro called Sambo and upon the suggestion of Ikey he Is engaged engaged en eIl as ms porter Then the three of them arm In arm leave to take possession possession possession pos pos- session of this wonderful fu palace which Abe has just paid for Curtain Cur Cur- tain In the second act the curtain rises on the Interior of the Diamond Palace saloon and th the audience gets Its first shock The saloon looks like a pigpen pigpen pig pig- pen two tramps lying drunk on the floor and the bartender In a dirty shirt with his sleeves rolled up asleep with his head bead on the bar Enter Abe Sambo and Trey key and the fun commences One of the characters In the second act was named Broadway Kate and I had an awful job to break in one of the Tommies to act and talk like a woman Another character was Alkali Ike ke an Arizona cowboy who just before the close of the play comes into the saloon and wrecks it with his revolver We had eleven three three-h three hour ur rehearsals before I thought it advisable to present present pre pre- sent the sketch to the public The h whole brigade was crazy to witness the first performance This performance was scheduled for Fr Friday day night and everyone was full of anticipation anticipation antici antici- pation when bang I orders came through that the brigade would move at two that afternoon Cursing and blinding was the order of things upon the receipt of this order but we moved That night we reached the little village village vil vil- lage of S S- S Sand and again went into rest best billets We were to be there two weeks Our c company immediately got busy and scoured the village for a suitable place in which to present our production Then we received another shock A rival company was already established established established in the village They called themselves The Bow Bells and put on a sketch entitled entitle Blighty What Hopes They were the divisional divisional divi divi- atonal concert party We hoped they all aU would be soon in 10 Blighty to give us a chance This company charged an admission of a franc per head and that night our company went en masse to see their performance It really was good I had a 11 sinking sensation when I thought of running my sketch in opposition opposition opposition op op- op- op position to it In one of their scenes they had a soubrette called Flossie The soldier that took this part was clever and made madea la a a fine-appearing fine and chic girl We immediately fell feU In love with her until two days after while we were on a a march we passed Flossie with her sleeves rolled up and the sweat pouring from her face unloading shells from a motor lorry As our section passed her I yelled out Hello Flossie Blighty What Blighty-What What Hopes Her reply made our love die out Instantly Ah go to ton h 11 11 This brought quite a laugh from the marching column directed at me and I Instantly made up my ray mind that our sketch should Immediately run In opposition opposition op op- op- op position to Blighty What Blighty What Hopes When we returned to our billet from the march Curley Wallace my the theatrical th the theatrical partner came running over to tome tome tome me and said he had lad found a swanky place In which to produce our show Af After er taking off my equipment and followed by the rest of the section I went over to the building he had picked out It was a monstrous barn with a platform at t one end which would make an ideal stage The section got right righton on the Job and before night had that place rigged out In pie apple-pie order The next day was Sunday and after church parade we put all our our time on ona ona ona a dress rehearsal and it went fine I made four or five large signs announcing announcing an an- that our company company would open up up that evening at the King George the Fifth theater on the corner corner of Ammo street and Sandbag terrace General admission was one one half half franc First ten rows in orchestra orchestra one franc and boxes two francs By this time our printed programs h had id returned from London and I further announced that on the night of the first performance a program would be given free of charge to men holding tickets costing a franc or over We had an orchestra of seven men and seven different instruments This orchestra was excellent while they w were ere re not playing The performance was scheduled to start at 6 p. p m. m At there was a mob In front of our one entrance and it looked like a n abig abig big night We had two boxes each accommodating accommodating accommodating ac ac- ac- ac four people and these we immediately sold out Then a a brilliant Idea came to key Ikey no not use the rafters rafters' overhead call them boxes and charge two vO francs for fora a If seat on them 7 The only difficulty was how were the men to reach these boxes but to Ikey this was a mere de de- detail tail He got long ropes and nd tied one end around each rafter and then tied a lot lotof lotof lotof of knots In the ropes These ropes would take the place of stairways We figured out that the rafters would seat about forty men and sold that number of tickets accordingly I. I When the for the boxes boxe got a glimpse of the rafters and were informed that they had to use use the rope stairway there was vas a howl of Indignation indignation tion but we had their money and told I them that if they did not like it they could write to the management later and their money would be refunded but under these conditions they would not be allowed to witness the performance perform perform- ance that night After a little grousing they accepted the situation with the promise that If the show was rotten they certainly would let us know about It dur during ng the performance ance Everything went lovely and it was a howling howling- success until Alkali Ike appeared appeared appeared ap ap- ap- ap on the scene with his revolver r loaded with blank cartridges Behind the bar on a shelf was a long line of bottles Alkali Ike was supposed to start on the left of this line and break six sir of the bottles by firing at them with his revolver Behind these bottles a apiece apiece apiece piece of painted canvas was supposed to represent the back of the bar at each shot from Alkalis Alkali's pistol a man man behind the scenes would hit one of the p n I tr r Vf dC l C Preparing the Chow Ir I r v ff A bottles with his tool handle and smash it to give the Impression impression impression im Im- im- im that Alkali was a good shot Alkali Ike started in and aimed at atthe atthe atthe the right of the line Une of bottles instead of the left and the poor boob behind the scenes started breaking the bottles bottleson on the left and then the turned loose but outside of this little fiasco the performance was a huge success suc sue success cess ess and we decided to run it for fors for a week New ew troops were constantly coming through and for six performances we had had the S R. R 0 O. sign suspended out out- side CHAPTER On His Own Of course Tommy cannot always be producing plays under fire but while In rest yest billets he has numerous numero s other ways of amusing himself He is a great gambler but never plays for large stakes Generally in each company company company com com- pany you will find a regul regular r Canfield This man banks nearly all the games of of chance audits an undisputed author author- authority authorIty authority ity on the rules of gambling Whenever Whenever When When- Whenever ever there Is an argument among the Tommies abo about t some uncertain point as to whether Houghton Is entitled to Watkins Watkins' sixpence the matter Is taken to the recognized authority and his decision decision decision de de- is final The two most popular games are Crown and Anchor and House The paraphernalia used in Crown and Anchor consists of a piece of canvas canvas can can- vas two feet by three feet This is divided into six equal squires squares In these squares are painted a club diamond heart spade crown and an anchor one device to a square There are three dice used each dice marked the same as the canvas The banker sets up his gambling outfit in the corner ofa ot of ota a billet and starts bally h ballyhooing until a crowd of Tommies gathers around then the game starts The Tom Tommies ies place bets on the squares the crown or anchor being played the most The banker then rolls his three dice and collects or pays out as the case may be If It you play the crown and one shows up on the thedice thedice thedice dice you get even money if two show up you receive two to one and If three three to one If It the crown does not appear appear appear ap ap- ap- ap pear and you have bet on It yoa you lose and so on The percentage for the banker is large if every square Is played but If It the crowd crowdis is partial to say two squares he has to trust to luck The banker generally wins The game of House is very popular also It takes two men to run It This game consists of numerous squares of cardboard containing three rows of numbers five numbers to a row The Tha numbers run from one to ninety Each card has a different combination The French estaminets In the villages villages villages vil vil- lages are open from eleven In the morning mornIng morning morn morn- ing until one cne in the afternoon in accordance accordance accordance ac ac- ac- ac with army orders After dinner the Tommies congregate congregate congregate congre congre- gate at these places to drink French beer at a penny a glass and play playHouse playHouse playHouse I House As soon as the estaminet is is' sufficiently sufficiently sufficiently crowded the proprietors of the H House use game get busy and as they term It form a school This consists of going around and selling cards at ata ata ata a franc each If It they have ten in the school the backers of the game deduct deduct deduct de de- duct two francs for their trouble and the winner gets eight francs Then the game starts Each buyer places his card before him on the table table table ta ta- ta- ta ble first breaking up matches into fifteen fifteen fifteen teen pieces One of the backers of of the game has hasa a small cloth bag in which are ninety cardboard squares each with a n number num ber printed thereon from one to nine nine- ninety ty He raps on the table and cries out Eyes down my lucky lads All noise ceases and every one is at at- The croupier places his hand in the bag and draws forth a numbered square and immediately calls caUs out the number The man who owns the card card with that particular number on It if covers the square with a match The Theon Theone Theone on one who covers th the fifteen numbers on his card first shouts House The Theother Theother Theother other backer immediately com comes s over overto overto overto to him and verifies the card by falling out the numbers thereon to the man with the bag As each number Is called he picks it out of the ones picked from the bag and says Right If It the count is right he shouts House correct pay the lucky gentleman and sell seU him a card for the next school The lucky Mucky gentleman generally buys one unless he has a n miser r trace in his his' veins Then another collection Is made a school formed and they carry carryon on with the game The caller out caller out has bas many nicknames for the numbers such as Kellys Eye for one Legs El Eleven ven for eleven click for sixty-six sixty or Top Topo o of the house meaning ninety Empey tells In the next Installment Installment Install Install- ment how the war Is crumbling the British wall of caste which once was Insurmountable TO BE CONTINUED I I f f |