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| | PVT. JOHN BERTOTTI
Serial No. 2,983,503
916 Medbury Ave., Detroit, Mich.
Inducted June 25, 1918. He 4 was one of the children of ‘‘The Melting Pot” rallied into tile military family of Uncle Sam. Previous to going into service he worked at the Packard Motor Car Company. He was always courteous and even-mannered, conformed to military rules and performed the duties of a private with credit to himself.
The Battery will remember one amusing incident in connection with Bertotti. Lieut. Hays took the recruits for a hike one day and when he got down into a wooded section gave the formation “Battery Front,” and lined up his men. He wanted to know who had a voice of command and who had not. Different ones were given the various commands and when it came Bertotti’s turn he was told what command he should give. It was ‘‘Parade, Rest,” which means that the weight of the body is shifted to one foot and the hands folded easily in front of the soldier. Bertotti gave the command in a little, thin, piping voice, ‘‘Parade, Rest,” then followed it with “March.” This provoked a ripple of laughter which we all learned was coming to us some time or other. Officers and men made amusing mistakes.
During our engagement at Tauteourt he acted in the dangerous capacity of runner. |