Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1916-10-28
Says Stamina Is Underrated.


in personal adornment. the American
public has moderated the stamina of
the French woman. Supposedly timid.
this war has proved her to be the very
opposite. For example. the twenty
year-old daughter Of a noblewoman. In
whose chateau spent several days. has
been nursing the wounded for two
years. When the war began and the
train1oads of mutilated soldiers began
to pass through the station near the
chateau. this young girl. then only
eighteen. who had never had a sight Of
human blood, arose each morning at
$3.50. met the trains, and went through
the cars caring for the wounds Of those
who had been placed hurriedly on board
to be taken to the base hospitals in the
rear. This girl Iabored. and is still
1aborfnE, from ten to fourteen hours g
day. ameliorating the suner1ngs OF
beloved France. And SO are hundreds,
thousands Of other noble young women
serving the republic.
Some Of the American war CORE
spondents who have been permitted to
VISIT the munitions plants where thou
sands upon thousands of girls and women
are laboring to keep the French artillery
supplied with high-explosive shells and
shrapnel have deplored the fact that the
nation is allowing the potential mothers
OF the FUTURE to sacrifice their strength
and health in such tasks. confess that
I cannot share this regret To me 1t
seems eminentfy fair and appropriate that
these daughters Of France who Of neces-
sity are prohibited from giving their lives
to the cause on the battlefield itself
should enjoy the privilege Of offering
themselves wholly and without reserve
to their sacred cause. In whatsoever ca
pacity their bodies and their brains are
most effective for that far-orf, divine
event-the restoration of France and the
fruits Of a peace that shall last for all
time.
Now Known as Cheerful Paris"
''one Of the most amazing things
about Paris today is that 1t is a city of
smiles It Is no longer gay Paris but
cheerful Paris A student Of psychol-
ogy. however. who looks deep into the
smiling eyes Of the women realizes in
stinctively that one of the obligations
which each feels and fulfills Is to make
as happy as possible the six-day fur
Tough the men from the trenches are
granted from time to time.
The Opera Comfque and the Grand
Opera House are crowded each night,
but that regulation which once. re-
quired all persons occupying the
famous tiers of loges and the parquet
chairs to be in evening dress no longer
blue uniforms and the simple gowns
Of dark material, most often black, are
to be seen on every side. And one of
the appealing customs OF the hour is
that every woman as she sits in the
theater holds the hand of her escort
son. husband, brother or sweetheart
while from the eyes Of the fancee no
less than from those of the silver
haired mother there shines the light
of maternal love. = love which would
protect and comfort, not one which de-
mands or allures.
ut should be mentioned that the Sis
tors of Mercy have returned to France,
bringing with them gentleness, an
unselfish devotion. a tenderness and
any other group Of nurses in the
world. Their heroic service upon the
battlefields Of the Franco-Prussian
war are brightly. written upon the
pages Of French history.
Countless New Occupations.
"one Of the interesting by-products
Of this war has been the creation of
countless new occupations for woman
workers and for disabled soldiers. In
many lines of endnavor novices have
developed remarkable initiative and in
some instances astonishing inventive
faculty. with artificial hands. manned
men are being taught many gainful
pursuits, while women nurtured in lux
ury have turned their Impractical
hands to typewriting. the making Of
munitions. operating street cars and
SUBWAY trains, taxicabs and facres,
managing shops and serving as wait
resses. In the professions the French
woman has made astonishing strides,
not altogether since the outbreak of
the war, but in the last quarter Of a
century. For instance, the young dem
ttste who had taken charge Of the
American dentists office where called
could not have provided me with such
a Completely satisfactory gold crown
had her knowledge been acquired SOLE
Nv since August, 1914.
zone of the most interesting and m
pealing practices Of the war is the adop-
tion Of groups of peasant soldiers Nv
The well-to-do women Of Paris. One ac.
ouatntance of mine. owning a large es-
tate on the outskirts of the capital. In
oofSmother to $50 soldiers. whose home
before the war was in district now
occupied by the enemy. These soldiers
make this estate their home whenever
thew are on a six-day furlough. She
cares for them exactly as If they were
her overgrown children not only watch-
full Of their material comfort. but solicit
tous about their entertainment as we'll
Whan thesa hoHtah aoldaALe InfNEp f.