Origin of the Word 'Infantry'

Does anyone know where this word originated?

On a television program I was watching they suggested that Infantry derives from ancient Greek; the strategists placed the youngest soldiers on the front line, because the were essentially expendable, hence Infant-ry. Sounds awful to me. Shocking, really. My google search found that explanation, but other explanations were also provided.

Thoughts? I am curious because, like so many others, Herb was attached to a French Infantry Battalion.

Just struck me. I guess I am also thinking about all the child soldiers in the world today - with ISIS, Boka Haram and other such atrocious world events.

OohRah

And now we need to figure out who Mr. Rankin is.....

It seems that Jane Parker is living with her mother.... That might give me a clue as to who she is, as I am doubting my assumption that she is Russell's sister.

I am going to assume that Karolyn is graduating from college, not high school given how much traveling and running around she is doing; seems too much for a highschooler.

I asked the folks at Syracuse University what these Corpse and Coffin things were; I got an answer, but I can't claim that I understood it:

These organization were different class societies. The Corpse & Coffin was a Junior Society founded at Syracuse University in 1889. The Skull & Serpent was a Sophomore Society founded in 1902.

What is a class society?

I went to New York City on Friday to get some marriage, birth and death certificates from the NYC Municipal Archives. I was successful and will eventually share, but I had an opportunity to walk to 60 Wall Street to see where Herb worked. As we can assume, it looks nothing like it did in 1917, though the address still exists. Now it is the Deutsche Bank building. I chatted up the guard at the entrance and he indicated that the current enormous tower was built in the 1960s by, he believed, Banker's Trust. According to Deutsche Bank's web site, they acquired Banker's Trust in 1999 making Deutsche Bank a real mover and shaker in the US. So, our connection remains with the address 60 Wall Street.

Huntington is a town on the northern side of Long Island about an hour from Penn Station. Clearly by the Federal Census record I have noted, there are large estates there - and people who work on those estates....

Investigating further we learn from their web site:

History: The Town is located at the western end of Suffolk County adjacent to the Nassau-Suffolk County boundary. It is approximately 40 miles from Manhattan and 40 miles from Riverhead, the Suffolk County seat. The History of Huntington is closely associated with the early development of the American colonies. The community was originally settled in 1653, well within the lifetime of the earliest New England colonist. In the beginning, water-borne transportation gave life to the community. The natural harbors offered ready access to the farmlands of the Long Island interior. The harbor was the setting for the early Huntington community which became the focal point for the movement of agricultural products into the commerce of the colonies. Although agriculture was its mainstay and water-borne transportation its lifeline for two centuries, in later years the whaling industry and expanded manufacturing activity broadened the local economy and gave impetus to the expansion of the harbor communities of Cold Spring Harbor, Huntington, and Northport.

By the early twentieth century thousands of acres of productive farmland were laying fallow because the land had been appropriated for large estates. Marshall Field, Robert DeForest, Otto Kahn, Charles Gould, August Heckscher, George McKesson Brown, Walter Jennings, Roland Conklin and many others extended Long Island’s Gold Coast into Huntington. The middle class was also attracted to Huntington. Summer bungalow communities developed along the shores of Centerport Harbor, Huntington Bay and Huntington Harbor during the 1920s.

From 1920 to 1930, Huntington’s population increased 84% from 13,893 to 25,582. Huntington village began to take shape with one large building project after another along New York Avenue: The Palace Theatre in 1917, the Huntington Theatre and Huntington Office Building in 1927, The Huntington Mortgage Building in 1928 and the Hotel Huntington in 1929.

I can imagine that Herb, Charlie and Grace stopped to watch the construction of the Palace Theater when they went to visit Aunt/Mom Ida.

Thursday – date unknown, May 1917
Dear Family,

I’m glad you’ve told me just how you feel about the question of my enlisting. I’ve thought it over very carefully and I won’t enlist for a month or two yet.

And now I’ll try to answer all your questions about the different branches of the service.

I think the marines – from what I’ve seen of them – are a mighty fine bunch of men. I’ve talked with several Marine Corps recruiting sergeants and they certainly are men to be admired – husky brown and yet very well bred + courteous and seemingly pretty well educated. If I do decide that I really should enlist I want to be with some men who have seen service and have been under fire. Most of the marines have. And the marine officers are all well-seasoned men who will know how to look after the men under them. That’s my objection to the National Guard and the Mosquito fleet. They’re too blamed amateurish – and it will go awfully hard with amateurs if there’s any fighting.

I’ve quite given up all hope of Plattsburgh. I think I was turned down on account of my youth – Fike says most of the men up there are twenty-eight or over. I’m confident that Mr. Rankin would intercede for me if he could but it’s a strictly military matter and he would have no influence.

I was up to see Jane last night. She says she enjoys working. She doesn’t have to work but there isn’t enough work around a small apartment to keep her and her mother both busy.

This place Charlie has in mind is in Hasbrouk Heights, New Jersey. They still expect to go down to Huntingdon for a while I think but they want to get a house if they can and have it all ready when they want to come back. Someone has an option on the place to buy it until June 15th but the owner told them he didn’t think the party would take it.

I was thinking of coming home in a couple of weeks but Karolyn wants me to come up June 12th because she graduates then.

Love to all,
Herbert

The Marines

In his disappointment of not being accepted to the Reserve Corps, it seems Herb got over the aversion to the four year term with the Marines, but he is still a little hesitant. I suspect that is not a unique feeling.

I discovered a little more about Fred Judson: in researching Herb's income from the Case, Pomeroy & Co. I saw that Fred's name is also on the top of the letterhead with that of Case and Pomeroy. A young partner, it would seem.

Makes me wonder when Fred decided to join the Mosquito fleet and what he worked out with the firm.

Looks as though the $30/month that Herb mentions is pretty good. I mean, his salary with Case Pomery doesn't seem to be much different. This letter is from July, so much later than the letter home.

Wednesday – date unknown, perhaps May 1917
Dear Mother,

I applied this morning for the Marine Corps and was turned down on account of my front teeth. I then tried the army and passed the examination but wasn’t sworn in because I wouldn’t agree to go to-morrow. So I am free for the time being but they have my name and the description of my physical condition so they’ll probably send for me anyway. I was in to see Charley. He congratulated me and said he was proud of me. So did Friedman. To-morrow I’m going to Mineola to see if I can get in the Signal Corps as a regular private - $30 a month You see I’m free now to enlist where I want to but I’ll have to enlist or they will make it uncomfortable for me, having gone so far. At any rate I’m sure I’m right.

I think the Signal Corps is a good place. They aren’t under fire much, only by accident, but they do a lot of real work. I’ll write again to-morrow night + let you know all about it. I’ll be home Saturday or Sunday as I’m straightening out my affairs in the office.

Love,
Herbert

Disappointment

I suppose my readers already suspected Herb did not make it in to the Reserve Corps, given we originally found him in the Ambulance Corps. I am glad 'horribly disappointed' was not suicidal as for this other broker, Walter Scheftel. What was this guy thinking in late May 1917?

I wrote Syracuse University and look what they kindly provided:

This is Harold Kimber, from East Syracuse, NY. He was a very active guy, being associated with several Greek organizations, the Assistant Manager of Track, Chemical Club, Manager of Freshman Baseball, Manager of Varsity Track, Member of the Athletic Governing Board, Treasurer Class, Executive Committee, President Senior Council, and Senior Ball Committee.

And here we find Oliver Wolcott Morris:

Ole Phike was also associated with several Greek organizations, Senior Dinner Club, Corpse and Coffin, Baseball Squad, and the Athletic Dinner Committee. He hails from Long Beach, NJ.

What is Corpse and Coffin, I wonder. It's not Yale, so not the Skull and Crossbones.... Hmmm.

Paul Tracy Crosby, from Seneca Falls, NY, is associated with the Skull and Serpent.... as well as Baseball and Class Team.

The kind folks at Syracuse tell me Steve Lee is Stephen M. Lee, but they could find no photos of him, (Herb was also very camera shy.... maybe because of those front teeth!)


Wednesday evening – date unknown, May 1917

Dear Mother,

Well I wasn’t elected. I feel horribly disappointed. I did so want to get out and do something worthwhile. There doesn’t seem much else left to do. The term of enlistment in the navy + marines is four years – that’s too long. The National Guard – well I don’t like to guard bridges. So I guess I’ll have to sit tight for a couple of weeks.

Phike Morris + Steve Lee were lucky. They leave for Plattsburgh this week. And by a rather remarkable chance both are listed for the same company. They both felt bad because I wasn’t going along – almost as bad as I felt myself. So all there are left of the Phi Delts are Doc Crosby who will be a regular navy doctor in a couple of weeks and Kimber, who seems to be the conscientious objector. I think rather that he is yellow.

I have three nice new front teeth now. They look better than the others but I have not quite become accustomed to them yet. Guess what the bill was. Two dollars. I accused the dentist of cooking up a deal on me with Fred Judson but he stood pat. I don’t know whether to accuse Fred of it or not. It was a very generous offer, made freely, and perhaps I should not say anything.

Charley, Grace, Jane and I were to the movies last night. The wedding is more or less in the air, awaiting developments.

Love to all,
Herbert