Mexico weekly ledger., 1917-10-11

turn me out in the road like a luna
tic"
Yet the expression of quiet content
on most of the faces of the men so
dressed-who are all about the
streets, sitting in the parks, or
wheeling less fortunate comrades
about in chairs - makes me feel that
they find nothing offensive in the cos
tune. 1t was chosen because it is
warm and durable and a be made
and kept in order by any woman who
can sew a seam or wash. The Tom
mics particularly like the bright red
ties and show the greatest concern
over their choice and material.
Our soldiers are crowding into the
new American Y. M. C. A. hut here,
and if you want to do something which
will earn you an immediate halo, Sis,
just send over to the Eagle Hut, Aid
wych, London, W. c., a big package
of good old American tobacco, the kind
you roll for yourself. Farmer lads
cont want any tailor-made smokes.
Our boys can't bear European tobac-
co in any form and when George Bye
gave a big artilleryman a Camel Gig
arctic and pullel out an American
match to light it with, the artillery
nan nearly wept.
It's little things like that that count
over here. Warm socks and sweat
ers and mufflers are all necessaries
and are taken by fighting men as
matters of course, like the hard
drilling and the discipline, but when
it comes to extras you can't think how
they long for their own, for the things
they know and understand. One man
at the Hut who was sitting at the
end of a bench all alone and looking
most melancholy, confessed to me
that what had peeved him was the
way the calendars are got up. The
days are vertically in a row instead
of being across the top of the calen-
dar as we have them. 'It balled me
all up and l only found out after I
had mailed a letter home that I'd put
the wrong dates on everything; our
wedding anniversary, our boys first
birthday, and all that was right up in
the air, and l don't know what my
wife will think of me-"
American women are managing the
%canteen and they look awfully attrac-
tive in their blue striped dresses and
white aprons and caps. l think II
must be a joy to the men to have
their food served by such charming
|, mattresses. It's particularly nice
, food, too, the very best to be had and
plenty of it, and they have got hold of
( as many American things as they can
| But it's not easy to import anything
{ but necessaries from anywhere and
, when you do run across them they
are usually about three years old.
It's no joke doing canteen work.
The women pay all their own ex-
Lenses and work for eight, nine or ten
hours a day. The weak sisters get
weeded out very soon and the brunt
=. falls upon the steady ones who are
t most worn to the bone. AS l was
E leaving the Hut one of them came up
$ to me and said, "When are you going
A to work? We are a little short OF
= hands this afternoon. I'll lend you q
uniform if yours isn't ready"
. mumbled something and she looked
, sharply at me. "You didn't come to
work? OH" l got away somehow
v but l can see that / shall be handing
e round plum tarts and cups of coffee
d to our soldiers before l write to YOU
again. Lots of English women WORK
all day in offices and serve in can
e teens from eight to twelve every
d night. So why should I be exempt?
Your loving .... NAN.