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| | PVT. ABDON J. CAYER
Serial No. 2,983,092
30 Farnham St., South Lawrence, Mass.
Inducted June 25, 1918, at Custer.
At Camp Mills, before going to entrain, he attracted the attention of Lieut. Gildart, who made him his orderly, and he acted in that capacity to other officers.
He had the advantage of speaking French, and one day stepped out of ranks to say goodbye to some French friends, who treated him to beverages in which water is not the highest percentage. The Captain, whose orderly he was, wanted him for something, and finding him missing, sent a detail to look for him. Pretty soon Cayer arrived, a little the worse for wear, and reported to the Captain, who asked him: “Where have you been?” Cayer answered, “The Private has been on a detail,” meanwhile making a brave effort to salute.
“What detail ?” asked the Captain.
“A—a Co—cognac detail, sir.’’
At the front he was made a permanent K. P. under Sergt. Belbeck, and when there was nothing to eat he tried to make us believe that we were more than comfortable. It was hard to be solemn when he was about.
At Pont-a-Mousson he was detailed, under Color Sergts. John O. Main and Fred E. Ramsay, to repair the shell torn roads with a number of other men from other Batteries. The Color Sergt. called him “Mike” and put him in charge of the other path menders.
For some minor offense the Captain ordered that he wear a full pack all day. In his resourceful way of getting out of grief, he put a stovepipe in his pack to make it appear bulky and, of course, got away with it.
He was the champion wood—chopper and was very strong. His nature was such that anyone would like him, officers as well as men. His amusing traits will always he recalled by all in the Battery.
REMEMBER THIS?
When the Battery went out into the country on its first hike. How each man had to carry his own rations, even to firewood. Rations consisted of one slice of beef, one of bacon and two of bread, one potato, one spoonful of coffee, a little package of sugar, one of salt and pepper. Water was carried in the canteen. On our return we had to clean our mess kits with sand-water or anything we could get hold of, a difficult job to make satisfactory results, especially for the inspection which followed.
AND THIS?
The wooden guns we used instead of real one in learning to change posts.
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