Drill Sgt. Meadows was celebrating his years and years of successful 
leadership.. His training and respect of his recruits had long been the talk 
of the town. No recruit ever talked back to him, no one ever talked about 
him. All his recruits did as he said the first time.  He never had to ask 
them twice.  His barracks was always the cleanest, the best, and  his 
platoon was always the top in everything they did. In 10 years of his 
career no other platoon had ever toped his.  A local newspaper reporter was 
inquiring as to the secret of his long and successful leadership.  

  Well, it starts in the first week of Basic Training, explained Pvt. Tant. 
"Our Drill Sgt. always takes his new recruits to the beach before we start 
our grueling weeks of basic training, for one last day of relaxation. 
He took our platoon and we visited the beach (his private beach) and took a 
trip up and down the beach looking for shells, by pack mules.
 
We hadn't gone too far when Drill Sgt. Meadows mule stumbled. The Drill Sgt. 
quietly said, 'That's once.'  We proceeded a little further and then mule 
stumbled again. Once more the Drill Sgt. quietly said, 'That's twice.'
 
We hadn't gone a half-mile when the mule stumbled the third time.
Sgt. Meadows quietly aimed his army rifle at the mule and shot the
mule dead.
 
I thought that was terrible and started to protest over his treatment of the 
mule when the Drill Sgt. looked at me and quietly said "That's once."