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Fort Riley soldiers soon learn that it does no good to whistle at Junk Town girls—they can't be had. Monson and his friends have noticed the return of the old civilian belief that soldiers are bums who haven't got the brains to be anything else. No one seems to remember that they were drafted. Nice girls, who once thought it smart and patriotic to be seen with soldiers (preferably an officer), now just say: "On your way, dogface."
That night, as most nights, Monson and his buddies went back to the post feeling rather beaten, wondering as usual why they had ever gone to town. The old sack in the squad room felt good. They went to sleep, concentrating hard on their thoughts of little towns like Holmen, Wis.
On March 4, Corporal Monson will be out of the Army. Did he think the 18 months he had put in were wasted time? "Well, I guess it is," he said, "when you consider that I could be a junior in college today if I hadn't had to come into the Army. But I won't say that I haven't learned anything. I've learned to get along away from home. And I've learned to live with other guys. I guess I'll do better in school when I get back. They say the veterans do better than the nonveterans. That's something."
Would he consider staying in the Army (at a time when the Army needs him badly)? That one was easy: "Not on your tintype, Mac."