much fervor
as an ardent proselyte of Mohammed utters praises to his Maker from the
housetop at sunrise.

But even this pastime was too tame for the restless nature which
constantly pined for the more exciting fun of America. So the chicken
stock suddenly declined in value, and that of the swine took a
corresponding rise, when there was talk of organizing a football
association. This plan, however, lost its popularity after several
practices on the "Gridiron"--the climate of Luzon had its drawbacks when
it came to punting the pigskin. The requirements for a good football
game are a temperature of 6 degrees below zero, and a field covered with
a four-inch layer of snow and a corresponding thickness of soft mud
underneath. As the Philippines are sadly deficient in the first two
articles, it was decided to drop "Rugby" in favor of baseball.

Throughout the Eighth Army Corps this proposition was received with
great warmth. Every organization had its team. Some influential men of
Manila offered inducements to the winning nine; the American Commercial
Company agreed to present a silver cup to the team which could score the
most points. Arrangements were made for matches, and rival teams soon
met on the diamond at the Lunetta. Utah was not to be outdone even in
baseball; any man who had ever played ball or looked at a diamond was
invited to join the team, and after this liberal request, it took no
great time for the battalion to put a pretty good organization into the
field. Soon the husky farmers from Utah were pitted against the powerful
"pumpkin rollers" from Nebraska, and the sturdy Pennsylvanians fought
for honors with the Wyoming cowboys.

Those were pleasant hours when the sons of America met under the tropic
sky on a foreign soil and exchanged friendly greeting in their national
game. Not a follower of the "Stars and Stripes" was there but felt
happier and prouder after such a day. Home seemed nearer by half than it
ever had before. And the natives, too, came in for a share of the
rejoicing; they liked to see the "Grande Americano" perform his antics
with the ball; they, too, gathered in knots and talked and gesticulated
and laughed and cheered. The irrepressible small boy was everywhere
present, with his sarsaparilla, his peanuts and his slabs of cocoanut
candy. There were those who made his trade profitable and those who
preferred something of a more fiery nature. That also could be obtained
for the asking.

So