New Britain herald., 1916-01-03
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HISTORY OF BRITISH
 EFFORT IN WAR
Work Of Soldiers Refreshment Buffet in Victoria Station, London

1 Correspondence of The Associated Press) ] London, Dec. 2S-The history o1 the soldiers refreshment buffet in Victoria Station, London. is in a small way the history of British ef- fort in the war. The buffet began in a loose and unorganized fashion more or less helpless from lack of precedent, and gradually developed until it now represents high efficiency l backed by a steady determination to 1 see the thing out to the end.
 All the early organizations have concentrated their efforts in a single ! management which dispenses $75O worth of tea, coffee, cocoa, sand 1 wiches, bread and butter and cake weekly, all supplied by private dona- tions. Branch buffets are main- tained at the stations of less mih- tary importance, at an additional ex- pense, and the whole machinery runs like clockwork. It is the same sort l of transformation that has gone on in every department of the British government, from the raising of re- cTuits to the making of munitions. Barnlike Railway Terminal.
 Victoria station is a great barnlike
 
 metropolitan area. It's lines feed many important southern and southeastern ports such as Portsm outh, Southamp- ton Brighton, Folkstone and Dover. There the troop trains arrive at night with their loads of men on furloug1 from the trenches, and there the re- turning trains leave every morning to carry back those whose week of home and liberty has expired. Between times, there is a constant stream of soldiers arriving from or returning to the great training camps at AL dershot and other points.
 An average of about 4,o00 soldiers daily are fed at Victoria station. Eighty women volunteer workers un- der the direction of Mrs. Kenward Matthews stand six-hour shifts day and night. for it is in the early morn ing period that hot refreshments are most needed and most appreciated by the soldiers.
 Most Exciting Time.
 The most exciting time of the day at Victoria is the hour of the troop trains. Their arrival is proceeded by a number of te1egrams. The first message approximates the time of ar- rival on news of the sailing of the jcharnel boat. This is corrected when the boat arrives in the English port, again when the train starts on it's journey and finally when on the last lap to London on a clear track. Off, ten there are hours of difference be- tween the first and last telegrams, and a train due to arrive at 5 D. m. will pull in nearer 10 o'clock.
 One of the first signs of the comin g of 1,o a hS home guards A detail of sixty of these men, most of them quite old and all ineligib1e for the army, gather at the station at in the afternoon. The guards are distinguished from the soldiers hv green uniforms and red armlets They make themselves use- full by answering questions, putin 2 the soldiers on the right buses and in protecting them from outsiders who invest the platform. Official r~0onev changers who give the men the benefit of the best rate of ex- changes, open up their booths. Friends. relatives and idlers also be- gin to collect outside the gates to watch the troops pass by.
 Tables on Platform.
 When the rtinae for the arrival of the fret section is accurately known, Mrs Matthews, or her quartermaster, Miss Perry, have tables set up on l the platform. There are three of these long tables, each covered with | strip Of oilcloth. Dish pans filled with sandwiches and cake are placed on the tables and great urns full of | tea vases of flowers also grace the 1 tables. It is curious what a home | touch few flowers give. They show | furthermore, that there is a real welcome in the pans and urns.
 One who thinks of the British l Tommy as he was before the war l niN'lt easily take the present type o1 l campaigner for Serbian or some other kind of picturesque fighting I-r3an. Offhand, he looks rather like l Robinson Crusoe Life in the trenches and successive coats of trench cla> | give his clothes a new individuality The smartness of the tailor is lost
 Tho soft caD with it's ear-tabs anf
 neck protector or wilted Scotc1 | bonnet, the overcoat, plastered witt r'"d and standing out over a sheep
 skin jacket as if the wearer was
 swathed in pads, the mudcoveret | boots and puttees and the assort
 ment of packs. bags and other para
 nherna1ia of the same color on hi'
 hack have nothing in common witt | the parade ground. Often the tartar
 rattern of a kilt shows itself under
 the bottom of an overcoat.
 Como Back Men.
 A quiet lot of men they are, al
 together different from the singing
 whistling troops that march off SC
 gaily for the front. They are cam | paigners, now. They went away boys lots of them. and come back men.
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