Celebrating History: Draftees off to camp

By Emily Mayer

The Havre Plaindealer’s July 13, 1918 edition carried the news that Hill County was to send 149 men who signed up for the draft to training camp to prepare for The Great War. Havre was making plans to give the boys a big send off. The following article ran on the front page.

HONOR DEPARTING DRAFT CONTINGENT

Plan Demonstration on Evening of the 22nd

Plans are being perfected for a great demonstration in honor of the next draft contingent from Hill county which will leave here on the 23rd. This quota will consist of 149 men and the plans contemplate a demonstration which is expected to draw out the entire population of the city and many from outside. Many of the details are yet to be decided but some things have already been arranged.

The event will be staged the evening before and of course there will be a parade. The parade will start at 7:15 and will be led by Uncle Sam and Miss Columbia. The Spanish War Veterans will follow and then the band leading the new members of the national army. The Red Cross, the various labor organizations, fraternal orders and others are expected to take part.

At the corner of Third Avenue and Second street the men will halt to hear a few short farewell patriotic addressed by some of the prominent citizens of Havre. Arrangements are expected to be made for a special movie film to be taken of the parade. The men will leave sometime the next day for Fort Dodge, Iowa.

Speaking of that “movie film,” the Plaindealer also published this article:

TAKE FILM PICTURES OF HAVRE TOMORROW

Tomorrow afternoon the Glacier National park touring party with a special movie operator, is scheduled to arrive in this city at three o’clock to take the pictures which will appear in the great film of the north west which is being prepared on a trip from Duluth to the park. The party is expected to stay here over night and leave the next forenoon on its journey west. It was not known yesterday just how many cars are in the party as no report had been received from them for several days. Announcement was not made yesterday as to what had been decided upon to have filmed as best representative of Havre’s possibilities, but it was indicated that all arrangements had been completed to insure the success of the undertaking.

The Plaindealer also carried a lengthy article that another set of new draftees were being classified by the local draft board, thus putting on notice more men to be sent off to war “over there” at some time in the future.

As far as the home front was concerned, the Plaindealer ran an article explaining the rules for sugar, which included businesses that used sugar for their operations could not buy sugar unless they had a certificate from the Montana Food Administration; household allowance was 3 pounds per month but they were requested to use only 2 pounds if they could; sales could not exceed 5 pounds for city dwellers or 10 pounds for country folks, and if you lived within 5 miles of the town you were considered city people; an extra allowance was allowed for canning purposes, but only if you got a certificate for canning from — you guessed it — the Montana Food Administration; people living especially remote could get a special permit from the county administrator, who was E. C. Carruth in Hill County; and ranches, institutions, or “other outfits” that regularly fed 25 or more people fell under public eating houses and had to follow those rules.

The Hill County Price Examining Committee met and set the rates for various food stuffs, proclaiming, “The following prices have been examined carefully and the prices are considered fair, for both the consumer and far to the retailer, as of this date, July 10, 1918:

Corn flour, white, in 10 pound bags, 90 cents; corn flour, yellow, in 10 pound bags, 85 cents; corn meal, white, in 10 pound bags, 85 cents; corn meal, yellow, in 10 pound bags, 85 cents; rolled oats in 9 pound bags 85 cents; rice flour (none in the city): blue rose, per pound, 17 ½ cents and Fancy Head, per pound, 17 ½ cents.

The Plaindealer also ran three recipes from the Home Economics Division of the Federal Food Administration in Montana for barley bread; rice, corn and barley bread; and rice, barley and corn muffins.

There were a few gatherings in Havre reported in the Society column. Here are two of them.

Xavier Club Holds Picnic.

The Xavier club of the Catholic church held a very pleasant and enjoyable picnic last Sunday afternoon at Dillon’s bottom on Beaver creek. About 60 members and friends of the club participated. The day was spent in games and music, both instrumental and vocal was enjoyed, altogether they affair was one of the most enjoyable of its kind held this season.

Helen Ritt Honor Guest.

On Wednesday Mrs. A. L. Ritt was hostess at a picnic which was held at Fort Assinniboine in honor of Miss Helen Ritt who is a guest in Havre. Fourteen people were present. The trip was made by auto, the party returning to the city at 10 in the evening.