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                                       8.

and also, I believe, of the Boxer affair. He must have been 45 or so. He was a strongly built man of middle height, beginning to develop a paunch.

     He was a type new to my experience. He took the attitude that the professional soldier was a much abused peron, neglected by his country in peace times but called to its rescue in war. It was the feeling expressed by Kipling in "Tommy Atkins". We West Pointers are as a rule more reticent about expressing the feeling, but I think they all share it. Nicklin had no such inhibitions.

    Coming from the somewhat sanctimonious atmosphere in which a small town high school teacher necessarily lived, I found it refreshing to hear Nicklin denounce as meddling fools all those who tried to enforce sexual continence on the entire army. My subsequent observations in France convinced me that he was right, and that the French and British took a much more sensible and realistic view of those matters than did the Americans.

     Nicklin had a fluent tongue, which he used mainly for invective. When any unlucky individual made a mistake in the execution of a command, or showed clumsiness in a drill, it would erupt. Examples; One day a rather fat young lawyer, named Ault, became confused in doing squads right about, or some such maneuver, and started marching off above. He had taken only three or four steps when he realized his error and rushed back into his place in the line. In the meantime, however, Nicklin shouted to the platoon commander;
     "Mr. Horn, where is that god damned baby elephant going? Get some hay and toll