Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1916-03-02
By ELLEN ADAIR
Written Specially for nynS,sa LEDc

today is a vastly different place from th
England OF only few months ago. Th
war. with all its dangers seems ininitel
nearer and all over the country the havo
Of the zeppelins has rodoubled anxiety
while tho heavy taxation Of private In
comes has impoverished ALL Consequent
soaring of food prices does not mend mat
ters. nor do the long lists of killed ant
wounded with which the papers are daily
filled, Not n single home In England to.
day but has in some way been badly hit
The darkness of the land at nightfall is
perfectly appalling. And the poverty. too
Arrival In Liverpool is a revelation. No
town in the whole of the British Isles
owns such poor as Liverpool. outside
the Customs, In the railway station, stood
group of unkempt women, hatless and
coatless. wrapped in big shawls, and
shivering with cold The hair of one
lung Imply down her back. her skirts
were tattered and torn, and her feet stuck
boldly through the remnants of what had
once been boots Deplorabe poverty
Yet there they were in the icy station
(English stations. like English hotels.
! boast of no proper heating), apparently
quite contented with their fate
They were awaiting a troop train which
presently glided in. the windows crammed
with khaki-clad figures. Such hilarity
from the Tommies Such singing of the
new wartime dlttiesl "Tipperary" is
quite dead now and buried in oblivion,
but others have arisen to take it's place.
From several carriages rose a plalntive
song, sung I'm a soft minor key:
We're little children mild and meek;
We only get six bob n week:
The more we work. the more VIC may
IL makes no difference to our pay!
~ A.sw., N,... f..
voices. the effect of this was peculiar
Along the railway line in the training
camps the raw recruits were singing the
same thing-very fast or very slowly, ac-
cording to the nature of their work:
wash we in the water that you washed the
And shall be whittier than the whitewssh on
In travelling by train the regulations
for drawing every blind down and shut
ting out every possible chink of light
from the sight of hostile aircraft" are
ten times as stringent as before The
glass Of the doorways is dyed a deep and
melancholy blue-black and, taken in con-
9hhctkon with the semidarlSness OF the
local stations, 1t is a hard matter to dis
cover when one has reached ones destina.
tion.
FLEEING FROM zEPPELINs.
En- route from Liverpool to London, the
train jerlSed to n sudden standstlll. and
excited murmuring arose among the pas.
sengers. "Zeppelins?" Yes of course And
safer that the train should stand perfectly
STILL we were told. But the driver changed
his mind. With another stupendous Jerk.
the train set off at highest speed for the
nearest tunnel, seven miles ahead Such
magnificent race for shelter and safety
and such swaying and humping and gen.
erai thrtlls Life i'm wa time certainly has
Its exhilarations.
When at last London was reached the
Dlg terminus was crammed with every
Kind of uniform. officers of the Royal Fly.
ing Corps and of the Royal Naval Air
Service mingled with Gordon Highland
ers' dragons, cavalrymen. lancers. Off
GERS or the famous ''Die Hards" and Inis-
killings, while recruiting pipers who had
lured the very scum of the city int othe
ranks were making harsh music that re-
sounded above the noise of the incoming
trains. knowing full well that If they
stopped the inspiring strains the new re-
cruits would show strong tendencies to
sneak on the way they came!
crowd was awaiting the arrival of
a Red Cross train filled with wounded
In the front portion of it were parlor
cars where the semiconvalescent sat, chat.
ting and playing cards. arms and heads |
and legs carefully bandaged crutches |
still able to enjoy life. The serious cases |
occupied the greater part of the train and |
lay IN hanmocks suspended from the roof |
PATHos, TEARS, SMILES.
4 pretty girl disentangled herself from |
the crowd on the platform and rushed /
forward TO meet a tall young man who |
was being helped out of the Red Cross |
train. Halfway toward him. she paused |
aghast airing as If she had seen an |
ipparif Then | noticed that one of /
lir was gone Throwing her arms |
the young man. the girl cried |
n - her heart would break The man
le was very young and very cookbook
ng--tried TO comfort her, but his face |
iept twitehing all the time. and not a
insle word could he say.
Then lie led her to a little bench, the
drl still clinging TO him. and the last
saw of them they were sitting hand
d hands. tears running down both their
aces. yet sufficiently recovered TO smile
through their tears. These are
yerJday scenes IN London railway sta
ons and so commonplace that no one
YER remarks them
At night q great darkness falls over
Ie city Shops close early. and lights
e extinguished Traffic, however, con-
He streets Is extraordinarily dangerous.
vehicles only show the dImmest of |
III lights and frequently none at all.
4 At Pieaadilly Circus seething roar of
Fafiic rises out of the darkness! At that
ne point. eight different thoroughfares
leei, and hundreds of motorbuses, taxis,
-ivate cars, vans, motOrtrucks. etc, rush
IN = never-ceasing stream, till long
sr midnight IL is so dark that as one
lands on the edge of the pavement. pray
Is for courage 10 plunge into the Stygian
1rtex. one cannot distinguish bystanderE
yard away! The only landmark Is a faint
reen glimmer. half shaded with black
hich Indicates the entrance 10 the Criter-
"a restaurant
a single dancing freiiy OF light may
arald the approach OF notorious or a
rscIe Acre likely Il beralds the ap-
|oacb q = hundred motorbuses, like |
|eat Jussernauts IN crossing the wide
Ieus. uHs eannpt be guided 5y sight. but
srolt by die shouts and impreeations OF
= drivers the hOoting Of horns and the
reet1 of whistles II Is a roaring Inferno
blacknezs ana danger, from Z a night
tard
Mast stringent rules have come into /
80 nitA regard q Intoxicating drinks
= 'aa treating Dfi debars Hanest john !
asHae frlsnd fp share N tha 2
afaI go There ao s4ea shine u 8