Waters became obsessed with it.

During this time, I was anxiously watching reports in the newspapers of the progress of bonus legislation.

And I noticed that the highly organized lobbies in Washington were producing results,

regardless of the justice or injustice of the demand.

At a meeting of jobless veterans, waters stood up and urged them to march on Washington.

And when that happened, it kind of clicked for these guys.

Eventually, there were about 300 of them, and they go down to the railroad yard,

to hop freight, and they go all the way across the country to Washington.

Once I built a railroad, I made it run.

They called themselves the bonus expeditionary force, or BEF, a play on the American expeditionary force.

The collective name for the troops sent to France.

But soon, they were simply known as the bonus army.

They carried napsacks, or duffle bags, or bed rolls, with tin cups dangling.

They had $30 among them.

Meanwhile, word of the BEF was spreading.

Even as waters and his men were heading towards the capital,

25 vets from Tennessee were circling the White House in a truck bearing the sign,

we want our bonus.

And they start from everywhere.

They start from Los Angeles.

They start from Las Vegas.

They start from Mississippi and Texas.

...