The Washington herald., 1915-09-03
SHALL WOMEN SHOOT,

Since Mrs. Mary Logan Tucker
came out with the suggestion day
or so ago that ! military camp be
established for women similar, to
that recently held for. men at Pitts
burgh there has been much comment.
Some of the commenters seemed
shocked and disturbed Mrs. Tucker,
you recall. suggested that beside
training in first aid and nursing there
should be instruction in "the use of
small arms"
That is where the shock came in!
"The idea of American women
fighting is repellent," says one editor
in commenting on the proposition.
LET them do the nursing and make
the bandages and do other things, but
when it comes to meeting the enemy
in the field, let the men do it"
And another commenter remarks
that the profession of women Should
not be that of slayers." Well, just in
passing, mems profession shouldn't
either-if the sixth commandment
still has weight. theoretically at least
the soldier is not slayer" but a
defender of his rights, his home and
his family. And it has been woman's
point all along that when soldiers
have to do more than this, when they
have to be deliberate slayers, then
war is hideous and uHholy, and ought
to be stopped.
;, But just to get at Mrs. fuckers
real idea in. the matter of teaching
women how to use small arms, we
asked her point blank: -
DO you really think that women
ought to get out and fight in time of
war;"
"Of course not" she said. But
sometimes woman has to defend
herself. My idea is to give women
training in rife practice, and signal
ing as we'll as in nursing. PERHAPS
women oughtn't TO have to do these
things But sometimes they have to.
In England, you know. they are
doing coast guard service making OBJ
servations. By giving women this
work there are moro men to be push
cd 10 the front. And if women are
going to do coast guard work they
ought to understand the use OF small
arms"
Then Mrs. Tucker went on to ex-
plain. why, when | lived out West
women were proud OF their ability to
handle a rife And some of us were
as good shots as the men. There is
nothing prcposterous about the idea
of having a woman trained to the
use OF small arms, is there? Even in
the East there are many women who
enjoy this sport and there are gun
clubs for women as we'll as for men.
But of course" continued Mrs.
Tucker, 'thc chief object of these
training camps for busy women
would be to give them course in
first aid. 1t would not be so much |
to fit them for hospital or ambulance !
service in time of war but to be able |
to nurse at home. In the Civil war a
very large number of soldiers were
taken to their homes after they had
been wounded and no woman then
regretted her knowledge of nursing,
even though she never saw the inside
of military hospital.
"My idea would be TO establish this
sort of training in the girls camps
and high schools, too. Instead of
and other such sports the
girls might be given courses in sig
mailing, in first aid, and in target prac-
tice. But the whole plan rs part of
the work of the Navy League" said
Mrs. Tucker. Perhaps in the spring
such training camp for women may
be actually put into operation"
The day before yesterday the sea-
son of the oyster opened.
The R found its way into the
month and the luscious bivalve into
the market. AS a matter of fact of
course oysters have been available all
along, but most of us are prejudiced
against them till the days grow
cooler. /
Speaking of oysters, chef in one
of the large hotels remarked that
oysters were not so popular as they
might be in the high-priced places for
the simple. reason that they were SO
cheap. "If we charged Is cents" said
he, instead of IS cents for portion
of oysters on the half shell people
would begin to appreciate them"
( And then these very same people
who turn up their noses at oysters
because they are so inexpensive, COM
plain most loudly over the high cost
OF living +
Nelson's last words In the cockpit of
the Victory were Thank God, / have
6one my duty
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