Evening journal., 1916-10-20
WILMINGTON women
BACK FROM WAR ZONE
Served Four Months With
Dental Ambulance Near
Verdun
DR.. SPEAKMAN STILL
ON DUTY THERE


After four months of service in the
war zone in France with the Whining
ton ambulance in charge of DR.. VIII
liam c. Speakman, the dentist. Of No.
1901 Delaware avenue, Mrs. Speakman
and Mrs. Harriet V. Warren have re-
turned to this city. Because of the
great amount of work still to do
among the French soldiers and the
lack of skilled men to do it, DR.. Speak
man will remain with the ambulance
until some one is found to take his
place, which will probably be a month
hence.
Both Mrs. Speakman and Mrs. War
rem are glad to be back in Whining
tho after their weeks and months of
trying work just back of the French
lines at Verdun, but they will never
cease to remember the scenes and in
cidents of their service nor will they
ever have anything save words of the
highest praise for the French people
and the brave attitude they are pre-
senting in this hour of greatest trial
for France. The gratitude and appre-
citation of the French people for what
the Americans are doing for them
made a marked impression on both
the Wilmington women, and this is
the one bright memory of their period
of service behind the French
trenches. They are a band of he
roes commanded by heroes" said
Mrs. Speakman referring to the
French soldiers today. "All France is
going about its business of defeating
the Germans with a quiet confidence
that the Allies will ultimately win"
Mrs. Speakman and Mrs. Warren
arrived in New York Monday on board
the French liner Lafayette. which
sailed from Bordeaux, October z.
Though they had been in danger of
injury or death almost constantly for
four months, it remained for the last
few hours of their absence from
American shores to bring to them
their greatest fright All of last
Sunday night they considered them
selves in immediate danger Of death
by a German submarine, and the
night was the longest and the most
trying they had experienced since
their departure for the French lines
last May.
The Lafayette. being a French YES
sci, would have been considered legi-
innate prey for the German sub
marine commander, and the pas
sengers knew this. Even the promin-
ence Of the passengers on board
Enrico Caruso, the tenor; Frank A.
Munsey and S. S. Mcclure. publish
ers; Mr.. and Mrs William K. Van
derbilt. Miss Anne Morgan. John Bar
rett, of the Pan-American Union. and
Cattle asazza-did not serve to allay
the fears of the Americans. and when
the captain of the Lafayette informed
crew and passengers that no lights
would be allowed on board that last
night at sea and that the passengers
would have to remain below, disaster
and death seemed to hover all about
them.
It was surmised that the captain
was making a detour out OF the
beaten ocean path usually followed
by transatlantic steamers and this
did not serve to allay the fears any.
Mrs. Speakman said that the state
Of feeling on the part of the passen-
gers can well be imagined when they
abandoned plans for the big concert
which was to have been given the
CarusO was to have sung.
There had been some talk of the
vessel making for Boston instead of
New York, but the passengers were
not taken into the captains conf
dence. They we're glad of this when
they had landed safely in New York
Monday morning. for then it leaked
out that the captain had sighted a
submarine, presumably the German
U-53, the preceding Saturday. which
accounted for the extraordinary pre-
cautions ordered during Sunday
night. Only the captain, his officers
and few French people on board
knew of this fact, but It accounted
for the solicitous care with which
every precaution for the safety Of
passengers and crew was taken. No
one slept that night, said Mrs.
Speakman, and some of the passen~
gers waited in momentary expec-
fancy of being sent to the bottom
every minute. The stewards and
stewardesses were on duty in the
corridors; life belts we're distributed
and life boats were in readiness for
instant use. II was with immeasure-
able relief that Mrs. Speakman and
Mrs. Warren witnessed the coming
OF the dawn of Monday morning. In
addition to the submarine scare.
the vessel had stormy passage.
The dental car to which DR.. and
Mrs. Speakman and Mrs. Warren were
attached was bought and equipped by
DR.. Speakman and other Wilmington
people and was sent to France last
May to become a part of the American
Ambulance there. The work OF DR..
Speakman and his assistants was to
treat the facial wounds and dental
troubles Of soldiers fighting for
France. The car was the means of
relieving a vast amount of suffering
among the French soldiers and for
years to come there will be French
men who will have DR.. Speakman and
the French sympathizers of Whining
ton to thank for sound teeth and free
dom from pain.
The car was partly equipped for its
work in this city, but the final touches
were placed upon it in Paris. Through
the generosity of certain dental manu-
facturers. who contributed one
chair, another a compressed air tank.
another an engine. the car surpassed
every other ambulance car in the ser
vice in the way of modern equipment.
comfort and convenience. II is also
much lighter than the English and
French cars in use for the same pur-
pose, and as a result of its presence
there several similar ears for amin