The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1917-08-30
WOMEN IN ARMY
WORK IN FRANCE
LIKE THEIR JOBS
Letters Home Indicate They
Find Duties and Pleas
ures Enjoyable.


HEADQUARTERS OF WOMENS
AUXILIARY CORPS, BEHIND THE
BRITISH LINES IN FRANCE, Aug.
30 Correspondence OF The Associat-
ed Press )--Women's labor as a part
of the British army in France has now
passed through its trial stage and won
the approval Of the army authorities
In response to a question, How do
the young women themselves like &C
tive service?" the censors at>Women S
Headquarters have permitted The AS
sociated Press correspondence to take
extracts from number of homeward
bound letters written by women now
serving in France
One girl writes to her brother: we
are billeted in empty villages and
everything is done for our comfort.
Army blankets and no sheets seemed
little peculiar at first, but all idea
of sheets has now vanished from our
minds and we are developing an af
lection for these warm army blankets
as covering.
Allowed More Liberty.
THE restrictions are not at all for
midable; in fact, we are allowed more
liberty than l personally expected,
which is saying great deal. Army
rations may be little rougher than
the food we have been used to, but
the quality and quantity is good, and
hunger is the best OF sauces. The
work is interesting"
Here is a girls account of her daily
routine: 1--WE have breakfast at 7:3o
and parade at SIS. We march down
to the offices and commence work at
8. We leave again at LAS and finish
at for the day. We are the nearest,
camp to the line, and the work at this
base is therefore very important. We
are free to go out from until o'clock
roll-call. That gives US a delightfully."-
long evening"
one girl writes: I'VE went out on
to our great surprise was understood
studying hard at it. and are also get
ting up shorthand speed class. The
army is developing us already"
Beautiful Scenery"
A girl working in a coast village
"IlISS. we dI Z III Tie IUluSl Ol D6du-
tiful scenery and the most glorious
stretch of sea. With such advantages
we feel we are absolutely in clover.
because we had expected a lot of hard
ships, and instad we have only in
convenience. Our life in billets, being
army, is of course very crude and we
have dispensed with such luxuries as
tableclcths, but we have delicious
white bread and white sugar. We get
lot Of bully beef, and I haven't yet
risked by teeth on the army biscuits.
I'VE are telegraph operators on
night duty. We have bathing pa
rade at $50 every morning. It sounds
like summer holiday but it is not all
pleasure, and my advice to girls who
think OF coming over here is Don't
come out expecting a picnic, because
you won't get it Whenever we feel
inclined to grumble at certain things
we think of the men in the trenches.
and we feel that our grievances sink
into insignificance by the side of the
sacrifices they are making"
Had to Scour Hotel.
A girl recently arrived writes:
"Our draft through some mistake had
rather sorry time on arrival, nothing
having been prepared for us. We had
to put UP at hotel that had not been
opened for four years and the first day
was spent securing the place from top
to bottom. To hear the girls talk, one
would think it was huge joke, and
the way in which they made the best
Of the situation was splendid"
A woman sent to bases camp
where complete staff of men work
ers was displaced writes: I'VE we're
afraid we would be unpopular with the
men on account of turning them out Of
their jobs, but nothing of the kind.
They are very glad to see US and gave
ue cheerful welcome
They had indeed provided every
luxury you can conceive. They had
put flowers In our mess and recreation
rooms and everything was spotlessly
clean. We feel almost swindled. mas
much as we were definitely promised
hardships but SO far have been able |
TO discover none"