His gloves are moistened to prevent his losing his grip on the rifle.
4. Does he carry his rifle on the same shoulder all the time and if not, why not?
He carries the rifle on the shoulder away from the tomb. After his march across the path, he executes an about face and moves the rifle to the outside shoulder.
5. How often are the guards changed?
Guards are changed every thirty minutes, twenty-four hours a day, 365 days a year.
6. What are the physical traits of the guard limited to?
For a person to apply for guard duty at the tomb, he must be
between 5' 10' and 6' 2' tall
and his waist size cannot exceed 30.' Other requirements of the Guard: They must
commit 2 years of life to guard the tomb, live in a barracks under the tomb, and
cannot drink any alcohol on or off duty for the rest of their lives. They cannot
swear in public for the rest of their lives and cannot di sgrace the uniform
{fighting} or the tomb in any way. After two years, the guard is given a wreath
pin that is worn on
their lapel signifying they served as guard of the tomb. There are only 400
presently worn. The guard must obey these rules for the rest of their
lives or give up the wreath
pin.
The shoes are specially made with very thick
soles to keep the heat and cold from their feet. There are metal heel plates
that extend to the top of the shoe in order to make the loud click as
they come to a halt. There are no wrinkles, folds
or lint on the uniform. Guards dress for duty in front of a full-length mirror.
The first six months of duty a guard cannot talk
to anyone, nor watch TV. All off duty time is spent studying the 175 notable
people laid to rest in
E. Lewis {the boxer} and Medal of Honor winner
Audie Murphy, {the most decorated soldier of WWII} of
Every guard spends five hours a day getting his
uniforms ready for guard duty.
ETERNAL REST GRANT THEM O LORD, AND LET PERPETUAL LIGHT SHINE UPON THEM.
In 2003 as Hurricane Isabelle was
approaching
God Bless and keep them.
