Travel Orders Press On The Note Book of a War Relief Worker Classic Reprint

Excerpt from Travel Orders; Press On: The Note Book of a War Relief Worker

Surely in this age none but the brave dare to ask and search for poetry. The Sunday before Christmas, 1918, a brave entertainer made this statement to a war worker: The boys are begging for poetry. I have looked everywhere in Paris and can find nothing suitable. I dread returning to Coblenz with out more poetry. Can you help me find some?

In France, the makers of doughnuts made doughnuts and the makers of poetry made poetry. In each case, the doughnut and poemwere respected because they fed the boys. Aside from this, they had no honor. Thus one war worker became a maker of rhymes simply because the boys were demanding rhythm. The doughboy exemplified in his experience the words of Rupert Brooke who is quoted by his friend and biographer, Mr. Marsh, as saying: There are only three things in the world, one is to read poetry, another is to write poetry, and the best of all is to live poetry. In France, the American Expeditionary Forces and the war workers lived every phase of poetry and thus it was that the doughnut maker lived or made batches of doughnuts by day while the war worker lived or made batches of poetry by night. Everywhere in France and with the Army of Occupation, this work was done for one purpose - to make the way easier for the manly boys who were brave enough to fight, and ask for poetry, those same boys who, after the Armistice, waited, watched and prayed for Travel Orders, which would enable them to return to civil life and Press On toward the home of perpetual peace.

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