The Daily Missoulian. [volume] (Missoula, Mont.) 1904-1961, 1917-11-10
Y. N. C. a.
What 1t Will Do With $685.
100000 Asked For.
ev JAMES Il. COLLINS.

week, comes the T.. NJ. =. A. NsN"s
for $4,000 600 Which seems to show
that in war times there is something
going on all the while.
Just II few months ago the \. NJ. {.
A. asked for s5,0O0,000 and got II. so
this new campa.sn raises two ques-
tions which the average citizen may
reasonably ask. before writing out the
check for his contribution. +
First-Why $3s,000,000? And second
What did they do with that $4,000
oe0?
Let us sec il we can answer that
last question first---pcrhaps the answer
to one will he the answer to the other.
An excited salesman, tearing up
street the other day IN New York. ran
into a friend.
F II have jus, landed 4 big order" he
said "Solu $4,000 worth Of letter.
heads 10 the Y. NJ. c. A."
He is connected with big litho-
graphic concern. Both of them thought
that Il pretty big order, for It will
keep the presses busy for weeks. But
il is only part OF the total lettcrhead
order Of the y. NJ. G. A., for in the
camps today something like one mill
lion sheets OF letter paper are used by
the soldiers and sailors every day.
ono thing is fundamental about the
soldier everywhere. He likes to re-
ceivc letters. and he wants TO write
home. Hc has mighty few facilities
for writing, because he cannot carry
paper and envelopes with him. and
postage stamps would be spoiled in
his pockets in a day, and there is no
place around an army cantonment for
him TO write. even il he had station
cry. except the y. NJ. G. X. tent or
building. Soldiers have written lot
ters on the backs Of labels soaked from
beef cans, and OH the margins Of news
papers, or any other old scrap Of paper
that they could lay their hands Oh. So
one of the best examples of how the
Y. NJ. c. 4. spends money is found in
this letter writing service FOR the sol
der, which is only one of its many
activities.
\ million sheets Of paper daily calls
for half Il million envelopes and d mil
lion postage stamps. Suppose YOU got
rs close price as Il quarter of Il cent
per sheet of letter paper and per en-
vclope. That would amount to between
$4,000 and $1,000 Il day, or sl,500.0o0 Il
year, not counting Sundays. II takes
time to print all this stationery, ship
it to the different camps. Considerable
supplies have to DC carried ahead,
Probably there is 100000 tied up in
stationery all the time. Then there
are the postage stamps. From 5000 I"
$3.50 worth of postage stamps are sold
Il. 11 IN onh n 4 hiiildinr "a
Il big cantonment. and as some Of these
environments have from six to ten sep
aratc buildings, the daily sales run
from $1,000 to $4,000. At the very
reasonable estimate of 5000 wort hof
stamps sold daily n five hundred Y.
NJ. c. a. buildings, there is 100000
involved. Which is money tied ap
permanently, for Uncle Sam gives no
credit on postage stamps. and several
days supplies must be carried ahead.
Supplies?
The y. NJ. c. a. has Il whoi. d.si-
sion devoted TO the purchase and dis
trihution Of supplies and equipment TO
lis five hundred buildings in this conn.,
try. and an immense floor space in
Madison Square Garden. New York,
has been used for storing and serving
out the stuff. Each building or .ent
must have M outfit consisting q; near
~ one hundred separate items. such
as its stock Of paper, stamps, pencils,
pens, postcards, pocket Testamcnts and
other things sold or given to the sol
diers. and also a piano a moving pic
turc machine, monographs. and other
fixtures. This division has given a
.t1
sheets of letter paper. 1t bought four
hundred moving picture outfits IT IA
cost OF about $3.50 each, hundreds OF
electric light outfits for use with
stcrcopticons, and hundreds Of stoves
10 heat its buildings. and bales of blan-
kcts to keep the y. NJ. {. a. workers
warm. 1t spent $4,000 for assembly
tents. 10 by so feet. one hundred and
fifty OF them, purchased in all parts
Of the country. 1t provides field gray
khaki summer uniforms for fifteen
hundred, of its workers, and forest
green uniforms and oyercoats. The
Istorehouse In Madison Square Garden
has been only ono place of that kind
there are others in Boston. Atlanta
Chicago, San Antonio. and San Fran
cisco.
Then there are buildings-;n item
calling for huge initial Investment
Fully s2.b00.000 have been spent for
buildings and tents by the assoca ion
at army environments the past summer,
and upon their equipment. The assoc
citation Ii working at two hundred and
thiriy-four different places where SOL
diers and sailors are camped. in the
six great departments scattered over
the country. 1t has five hundred and
seventy eight separate units in these
places, Il unit being either "A building
or Il tent: 100 buildings have been
opened, lis more are under Construc-
ton, and lis have been authorized on
top of that, with ll6 tents open, II
more authorized, and 81 buildings
operated in combination with the gov
cr,ment. In the big southeastern de-
partmcnt of the army, 100 buildings
have been erected since May !. III IS
different camps, and 500 secretaries are
now serving 100000 soldiers. sailors
land marines. On the Texas border,
| in the southern department.. ~ build
| inss and five tents serve $4,000 SOL
dicrs along 100 miles of border which
are covered by four hundred sccrc-
tArics at the main buildings of maxi
inS trips to outposts iii automobiles,
ikeepins the troops supplied with sta
| tlDnery, books. mat.aZineS nhopn.