The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1917-11-06
THE GIRL AND THE
SOLDIER BOY
CONTINUED from page FOUR

sary to being chambermaid for the
horses and mules. They drilled, duf
trenches, hauled garbage and ma.
nure, had to be clean and have theil
shoes polished for inspection, and II
they had an invitation out to dine
with friend down in the city OF
If dance was given in their honor
the grease of the camp, the dust
of the roads and the stink of the
stables all had to be borne with OF
they had to go to some cleaning and
pressing parlor and wait for Their
turn and then sit behind a screen
while their clothes were being
cleaned and pressed, for they had
only one suit in several months
Cleaning and pressing that old shah.
by khaki suit cost the price of more
than days work for a private, and
back in camp it would get dirty
again before he could turn around.
OF course. that is no fault of
yours, daughter, but don't see you
wearing any old clothes or denying
yourself anything so you can do
something for the soldiers. You cast
aside the old shoes and pay $11 for
new ones, not because you need new
ones but because they are wearing
a different cut Just now, with black
at the base and white for the up
0ers. or something of that kind. |
was looking in your bodoir to try
to count the old hats that you cast
aside when you bought this new one
for $ll and you say it Is cheap and
doesn't look like anything. None
OF the old ones look scuffed or worn
or especially faded.
Then there is your last years coat
and there are last years dresses;
of course, it is true that everybody
has seen you wearing them before,
and it is probably disgrace to wear
clothes that people have seen you
wearing before. but how much bet
ter are you than the young men who
got on the train at the depot that
day when we all turned out and
stood around with swimmy eyes see
ing them off!
overhead you telling the other
girls that you thought we ought to
back up the boys in the army with
Liberty bonds, and show them that
we are behind them in this war, but
| noticed also, that the application
you filled out for a Liberty bond,
and which was listed in the local
papers as having been bought by
yourself, well-you came to me for
the money for the first payment on
it, and J had already been assessed
all hal and all that ! hope to make
to buy other Liberty bonds. Yours
only added to the burden | have to
carry, and before / can make the
money to pay the second installment
you will have seen a set of furs and
some dozens of things that would
be fine for Christmas for somebody
who already has too much, and you
will have them sent up to the house
and the bills sent to me- Of course,
daughter, know you see the point,
but you will see so many other
things between now and the time
snow flies, that you will forget about
the boys in the tents and the
trenches, and the women and child
rem starving in Europe.
Daughter, this is time for plain
words and brass tacks, excuse the
slang, but if we are to win this war
and protect you and forty million
other women from violence, we must
all get down to our full fighting
weight. At this moment the enemy
have been capturing 10000 Italians
a day for nine days, besides a hum
dred cannon day. Those cannons
will be turned against us, and the |
prisoners will be beaten and abused
and put to work digging trenches
munitions to seal your
fate and mine after the manner of
the Belgians.
Daughter, the young fellows who
used to spend half their salaries on
you girls. entertaining you and feed
ing you with candies, have enlisted |
and lost their salaries and would
be glad if they could even get sugar
for their coffee. When you buy
puffs and sachet powders and choco-
lates to compromise your COM
plexion, don't do it. Buy loaf sugar
to send to the fellows shivering at
the front. They need it to keep
up animal heat. You have a mania
for doing things for yourself. Let
that mania run into doing for
others, and see that those others are
our fighting men and those that back
up the fighting men. You may not
believe it daughter, but most of the
presents you have been giving other
people have been given for the pur-
pose \pf pleasing yourself Part of
hem you gave because you thought
hat person might out-do you in the
giving. That roasting pan you gave
away recently was not given for the
1elp it would be to that poor family,
but so you could get finer one in
which to roast our own Thanksgiv-
ing turkey. That isn't generosity;
hat is selfishness pure and simple.
You have given away lot of things
IN Mat same spirit and pursuaded
yourSelf that you were doing some
hing commendable. But it wasn't;
every act like that builds up a
1arder case about you because of the
spirit that prompts it. A spirit of
Daughter, you will
nave an awful job breaking thru the
crust you have built up about your
self, and there are many like you in
rec America. If this war emanci-
1ates you from the bondage you
rave placed about yourself, it will
have done you some good, saying
nothing of keeping you protected
L 81 |