Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1917-07-03
IF STARVED ENGLAND
COULD Still SHOOT
Explosives Factory Is Nine
Miles Long and Three
Miles In Width
By Lowell Mellett,


Omitted Press Staff Correspondent
Somewhere in the North Of England,
May 25.-(By Mail)-''Even if Eng
land could be starved, she could still
keep on shooting" This statement,
made by Sir Edward Pearson, is sup
ported by evidence seen in the course
of trip from one end to the other of
the largest explosive factory in the
world. IFigh-powered automobiles were
necessary to make thk trip possible in
so short time, for the plant stretches
out nine miles in length and from two
to three miles in width. Sir Edward IS
connection with it has been in, the con
structiou work, which is practically
completed. A year and half ago
nothing but flat farms were to be seen,
with occasional villages and streams of
rich historical interest. Now it is a
thing of brick and stone, timber and
steel and strange chemical smells, all
devoted 70 one end--eordite.
X, Twenty five thousand men, boys, wo-
men and girls keep it hnmming and of
these the preponderating number arc
girls. When the last crew of construc-
tion men has been withdrawn, seven
ty.five per cent of the employees will
be girls.
The trip through the plant was chap
eroned by several department. heads.
For mile or so scientific engineer
from South Africa shot chemical form
ulae and the like at us. Then young
man from Australia took up the job.
Succeeding him was one from British
Columbia. Finally a regular home
grown Englishman got my ear. 1t
seemed he was even more bent than
the others on thrilling me with the
chemistry of the enterprise-all obliv-
ious of the fact that the censor
wouldn't permit publication of the
greater part of his information, even
if l had understood well enough to
write.
Suddenly we found ourselves alone
in an immense chemical room. | put
nv hands and cried, Kameradl"
told him several million of our readers
would find his chemistry too deep for
them and asked him to tell me some
thing about the girls-that everybody
knew all about girls.
We had been passing through shop
after shop filled with them; girls in
khaki jumpers and trousers and girls
in khaki Mother Hubbards and nobody
had explained their part in this chem
ical world =.
'That's your American humor, !"
humor,'' said my guide, doubtfully.
"Nobodv knows all about girls; they re
not an exact science"
"They re a different sort Of ex'
plosive, he added, with his very fair
English humor, as the sound of girls
singing came from somewhere below,
accompanied by giggles and sound
of "sh-shh. I"
But A. told about them. He said
they were wonderful workers. For
the most they were more traeable and
easily managed moreso than the men
workers. They offered few Difficult
ties. but these usually were of total
ly unexpected sort. That's where they
from cordite. One can tell
what cordite is going to do and get
ont Of the way.
Their work is not heavy, except in
some INetaucEhs HutAC II NeAh " '@SA'%
pared with the heavy work in a steam
laundry. Although 1T is altogether
lacking the joy of con
struction and seeing the product grow
As is in the ease with aeroplane or tank
building. for example, the girls seemed
cheerful and eontented-
Their wages run from 25 TO 30 shill.
ings. Divide this by four and you will
get 1ittls more than the amount they
make in dollars. Ont of this they pay
10 shillings for their lodging and
meals, both provided by the plant.
We were taken through one Of the
hotels, each accommodating from thir-
ty to fifty girls, built in village-like
groups. The one inspected bore the
name Edith Cavell y A motherly
looking woman was in charge. The in
trusion extended to the point Of peek
ing into the little single rooms in the
which permit the girls to
live somewhat to themselves and tack
up picture postcards of their soldier
boy friends to their hearts content.