davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The sun., 1917-09-30

and drop dead from the exertion OF
moving forward, always forward.
The rapid advances OF the English
artillery would be impossible without
their aid, for nothing can move guns
so rapidly. The more artillery is used
In the battles In which the massing of
guns has gone beyond anything i'm
agined by soldiers before the war the
more the horses are needed, and when
the American forces get into action
with the great parks Of artillery which
they viii! need the demand for horses
will be greater than 1t ever was before.
1t is no wonder that they are con-
tinually breaking down under the
strain, end when a horse fails It Is
necessary 10 fill the gap Immediately.
The sick horses are turned over to the
Army Veterinary Corps to be nursed
back into effective fighting animals
So effective has been the work of these
units that the losses amount to only
13 per cent. of the total animal
strength at the present time. The
mules are much harder, their rugged
constitutions enabling them to stand
trials that would kill horse.
When horse or mule becomes i'll
or is wounded no one at the front can
be spared to attend to him, but word
IL sent to the nearest veterinary sta
ton and a man is detailed to get him
ana to take down fresh horse to
nj the gap. These transfers are made
at night
When the horse reaches tho hospita
his injuries arc diagnosed and treat.
The sun., 1917-09-30
MISS HELEN A DAVIS
FIELD SECRETARY or the NV. CA &.

social problems so unexpected as to
hat'lc the military experts.
Every one is. familiar with tie tre-
mcndous work done Ivy the Young
Mems Christian Association since the
outbreak of the war. No one who
has brother. husband OF friend scrv-
ing with the colors can quite forget
tho inscription their letters bear,
printed under TIE flag on the en-
velope flap, ~. NJ. e. \. Reading
Rooms" That there should be equal
need for women's organizations ap-
parently did not occur to the authors
ties at first, for war is 80 obviously a
mans affair.
Then. as the country from end to
end was called upon to meet ahnor-
NAL conditions, community problems
opened up which no one had foreseen.
The authorities saw that there were
real and vital dangers threat ening the
small towns where soldiers were quar-
tered and whore camps were estab-
lished
The population went mad on the
subject of uniforms The bugle calls,
The sun., 1917-09-30

mans estate, he insisted on active
sports peculiarly suited to his own sex.
Men felt Inundated sometimes to be
beaten over the ping pong table by
women. But women were reluctant
10 take part with men in any activity
on terms of q mere equality; they
burned for competitions in which they
should uniformly excel, ana mother
hood and needlcwork' were the only
ones open to them at the time. Thus
ping pong had tendency to fall be-
tween two stools.
AT the height Of the craze there ap-
peared q book on the game by the
English champion. illustrated with
photographs which revealed him as a
young gentleman with wistful,
poetic countcnauce, curls. and double
breasted velvet waistcoat This was
the good night: ping pong was given
It's death blow. Any competitive sport
the championship Of which could be
won in such waistcoat was deemed
unworthy of serious expert interest.
For brief time the popular dining
table dalliancc with the implements
persisted. chiefly among persons of the
puppy love age who found it con-
venient device for being in one an
others company without embarrass-
The sun., 1917-09-30

few weeks the call for horses and
yet more horses becomes more under
standable, They are trained as care
fully as the men. and good team
of artillery horses in action is a de-
light to the eye.
They have arrested the attention OF
the war artists, and the English maga-
zines sometimes have several pages
devoted to pictures of eager eyed. low
running animals tearing down roads
with spots facetiously termed Suicide
Corner" "Shrapnel Alley" or some
other name which denotes the sudden
death which turks there for anything
which may attempt to pass. Great
shells that rip roads out Of semblance
to what they were intended to be and
gas shells which spread subtle death
over the land, do not stop them. for the
explosives merely make them gallop
faster, and they wear masks like the
men to protect them from the gas.
Indeed, a team of wildly galloping
horses. animals and lashing drivers
wearing tie grotesque masks, look like
n team out of he'll itself.
The men who work with them and
are dependent upon them for their am
munition and food speak of the horses
with undisguised admiration The
horses seem to catch the desperate
energy Of the men and strain at their
harness when dragging the guns
through the mud in way that would
be heartbreaking II it were not so nec-
essary. 1t IL very common for horse
literally to break his heart at his work
The sun., 1917-09-30

They can go through streams that
would block any machine man has de-
vised can struggle through the Chok-
Ing muck that would stall the best
tractor ever built, and can tear through
storms OF shell fire which daze the i'm
aSnation.
On them in great part depends the
continuous supply OF ammunition and
food 10 the front line trenches. Auto
mobiles are often impossible to use in
the torn up condition Of the battlefield,
and whore trains and motors are help
less without tracks and fair roads the
horse will struggle on.
So valuable are they that special
Units have heen formed in France and
Italy for the rescue and care of
wounded and sick hOrses, and hospitals
have been built where they are treated
operated on and brought back to
health with all the consideration the
nations give to their wounded men,
Thousands Of horses, broken down un-
der the terrific strain or wounded in
battle, are constantly reclaimed in this
way. \ visit, to a horse hospital is one
Of the interesting sights in France.
Many of the horses and mules have
come from the United States. which
fas been the horse market Of the world
FOR. the last three years So serious
indeed has been the drain upon the
American horse that a bill was intro
duced In Congress to provide 5000, 900
for the breeding of army horses, and
campaign has been started by Reg
inald c. Vanderbilt president Of the
The sun., 1917-09-30

Association OF American Horse Shows.
To stimulate breeding throughout the
country. The var had hardly started
before England and France sent
agents here in swarms to buy all the
horses they could get, and 1t was
estimated recently that 100000 horses
and 100000 mules had been bought
here and skipped abroad since August,
1914
The United States has still about
1000, 900 horses, little more than
one-fifth of all the horses in the world,
but many of them are unfit for army
use, being either too wild or not up
to the weight and teight requirements
for the rough army work, The good
army horse is q valuable animal, the
average price for one last year being
s2l4. The valuation of the horses
shipped abroad during the three years
just passed was sl94 OOO, 900. and of
the mules s66.000,O00.
France apparently bought the best
Of the lot, for she paid an average of
S237 for her horses, Great Britain
paid s2lS and Canada s14S The av-
erage valuation of horses jumped
highest during the first year Of the
war, when the extraordinary demand
raised the price to 1921 a tead.
1t makes II somewhat easier to
realize the part horses are playing in
this war when one learns that the
British army needs from 100000 to
1000, 900 horses constantly, and when
one recalls that the time horse lasts
under modern battle conditions Is only
The sun., 1917-09-30

AID always. a menacing evil was the
problem Of the unknown women who
follow the armies and whose pres
ence alone was a danger to the cities
rear the encampments.
What was TO be done? This prob
lem. remember arose simultaneously
in all parts of the country. at some
places more acutely than others: but
wherever there were camps or bar
racks it had to be met. And it was
a new. one TO the authorities. Prob
lems Of sanitation. accommodations,
ali manner of military matters they
had settled adequately; but purely So
cial questions were beyond their scope.
Rumors from other warning coun-
tries. awakened too late to the dam
gers OF the situation, brought home
the immediate need Of some form OF
amusement, relaxation and supervision
both for the camps and the communi-
ties surrounding them. 1t wasn't ex-
actly Red Cross work. IL certainly was
not Federal work; 1t might have been
termed municipal but since 1t was
a national question and not local one
II could hardly be left to the city au-
thorities. II was up to the Young
Women's Christian Association to take
up the problem and do for the young
The sun., 1917-09-30
FLOWERS OF NO MANS LAND

THAT mans love Of the beautiful
is not killed by carnage has
been shown many times on the
western front, but perhaps nowhere
more strongly than in the case OF
Lance Corporal Vernon Rawcliffe of
Accrington. England, who made a
garden last summer OF the motor
lorry on which he carries munitions
up to the firing line.
Rawcliffe built narrow boxes about
The sides and back of the truck and
in them planted a variety Of flowers.
succession Of pansies, forget-me-
nots. primroses. daffodils and tulips
blOomed, and geraniums and bits OF
ivy fourished there. Tht soldier
made a rite OF his flower tending
working after hours when he was
half dead with fatigue, and his lorry
brought more than shells to the jaded
men in the trenches.
1t brought fragrance and color and
beautiful small buds that do not grow
out In No Mans Land. Blossoms
were sometimes plucked by Rawcliffs
and given 10 wounded men, and he ha.
been known to leave nosegay OF
two behind to decorate dusouk
The sun., 1917-09-30

tho color and glamour of army life
Invested these little towns with dreams
and ambitions formerly unheard of.
There was no provision made for the
soldiers to ninglc socially with the
townspeoplc. no way for them to
meet the Young women OF the town on
simple ard friecdly grounds.
Military regulations were strict, but
not strict enough TO prevent clardcs-
tine meetings, nor strict enough tn
keep little girls with short skirts and
their hair down their backs from
spending as many spare hours as they
could In the vicinity of the camps.
Much of it was entirely innocent
pleasure. but mothers and city au-
thorities saw that it would not long
remain innocent IL some legitimate
meeting place was not provided, if
some effort was not made to satisfy
the natural craving of tire young peo-
pie for amusement and social inter-
course.
All this was told by Miss Helen A.
Davis. field secretary OF the Y. W. G.
A.. In her talks before association
members at the National Training
School at Lexington avenue and Fifty
second street last week.
The sun., 1917-09-30

ment Is prescribed. Operations oN'"
of a delicate nature, are mau''
wounded are treated as caretuil' as 'p'
wounds of a man. hoofs are i,Nod ny
and when the period of couvaltst'A''
is over the horse is as useflI as owe.
The effect Of battle upon the h''''
is as interesting as upon man. ''r 'hT
savagery OF warfare seems 20 III ne
animal with all the viciousne's OF '"'
wild ancestors. TIE mules are part"
ularly fractions patients, hut 'h'"
trouble making ability lies in ''hsU
tutional aversion to doing Waa' 'h''
are told. not in viciousness.
Army men believe that wnHn w.
war is over veterinary science w"
have greatly increased its store VI
knowledge. for in the big horse noS'
pitfalls where animals are treated tnE d.
sorts Of obscure diseases which ha''
never been studied before the doe'o.,
are getting experience that th"' """"
not have taken the time and troio.e \"
acquire before in tine davs wien u ""'
not necessary to conserve tic 'FS,
Careful records are being kept ny az
these studies, and many impur'" d'S
coveries have been made,
AS for the cavalry, that Nfanrh a..
the service is more or less Of a ny
terry. That there Ia great reserve ~ ~
British cavalry behind the "n''
France every ono believes, n'n a".
horses waiting for the great day VIZ,
they can sweep through a hole "
on svv,v linAa and turn what rDiSNl -
an ordinary retreat into rout
The sun., 1917-09-30
Field Work of the Young Womens Christian Assocato
Not Only Benefits Soldiers and Their Kin
but Communities Well

house. which is what the ho.,,..
houses really are.
The Y. w. G. a. does not 20 IN -.
asked. In fact IL never goes in nr
less requested by the comnandc, wa,
some one In authority. But It's sr,
cess has been almost instan,arsnr
and daily into the national h, ,dor.
ters come calls from camps and ,onn,
in all parts Of the Union. asI,ng -,
workers to help meet the new slim,
tion.
SO far hostess houses have been .,
tablished at Plattsburp. Y 8,
Youngstown, o., and at Allrntoyp a
In process of construction are =,
at Junction City. Kan; AVER. M...
San Diego. Linda Vista. Preside a.
American Lake. Wash: Dcmins 4
NJ; Lawton, Okla: Fort Worth To,
and Yaphank. For the navy uni(o-,,
workers in Charleston, s. G.. ard IN.
munition workers in Brdgcport n.
well as for harvest workers in ,no
Middle West the association has san,
trained and efficient young women n
organize and establish centres n,
amusement and refreshment.
Nor Is the work limited 70 Americ.
For girls who crave European eyper,.
ence there is plenty of Opportunity
The sun., 1917-09-30

1T Is not only in camps that some
form Of social regulation is desirable" J."
said Miss Davis. but in munition
works. harvest fields. barracks every
place where war has turned the nor
NAL conditions to abnormal"
The. need first arose when the trou-
ble broke ont in Mexico The Govern
ment had made every possible provi-
sion for the comfort and we'll being
of the soldier, but for his wife. sister
or friend who came out TO camp to see
him there was not the smallest COM
fort or conver iencc. There was no
place for them to meet or talk or dine.
In many of the. camps there was not
even n women's dressing room. though
daily hundreds of women came 10 see
their soldiers.
Small towns waking up overnight
to find themselves surrounded by
camps, Were in quandary how to
meet the situation. There were not
enough hotels and lodging houses to
accommodate the visitors; there was
literally no place for them to stay.
Although the soldiers came and went
and poured in and out Of the towns
there was no way for them to meet
the young people already living there.
The sun., 1917-09-30

ment. Presently. however. the auto
ride replaced this lansuishing survival
in the youthful social scheme.
It IL worth while to consider briefly
some theories Of the symbolism Of
ping pong. Analysis OF the neo-
Freudian and Jungian schools have
interpreted the game as a symbol Of
popular unrest under the restraints OF
monogamy and conventional domes-
ticity.
The ball. they contend, symboi.zed
the affections. shuttled back and forth
al will among various opponents The
word "love," which occurs constantly
In old accounts Of matches and scores
they point out as a direct substantial
ton; and they affirm that as soon
as the United States reached a point
where divorce was easily obtained II.
certain sections Of the country ping
pong disappeared, the desire for matri-
monial freedom having found an out
let.
A moro tenable hypothesis which
the author has already put forward
elsewhere ". Jones: "Ping pong.
Why and What: In proceedings Of
the International Society of Science
for November 24l3) Is based upon a
consideration OF the other indoor
pastimes Of the original ping pong era
Poker, above referred to. was very
expensive. The disks used were
bought at prices which suggest that
the white ones were cut from dia-
mond, the red from ruby. the blue from
sapphire at least. Auction. which
seems to have been a game played
with cards for stake of human
slaves. required long training and u
special sort of mind, ard was particu-
larry likely to make the players quar-
rel. so that often they rose from the
table unwilling to speak to one an
/ other.
Similar objections obtained with re-
spect TO all kindred pastinm -. with the
one exc PIT on Of chess. war game
invented by German military tacticians
which became chronic during play,
, like the deadlock during tho great
| war: until human life was heightened
to term of 200 years no game of
ch. ss ever was finished.
| May we not then, simply infer that
,, until the operation Of the agencies
Which relt gated ping pong to the junk
pile it was popular simply because ii
was interesting. sociablc. accessibl,
and active enough to afford some de-
gree of physical eXer, Use?
At all events. in the present lime,
with fads, caste and hypochondrasis is
unknown, We play ping pong In mosl-
Grafton when We want to and enjoy
it very much. no player thus far hav-
ing lost the esteem of his fellow men
or experienced evil effects.
The sun., 1917-09-30
\ NJ. doesn't hear much of the
forse in war now. The bril-
liantly swoopi,ig airplanc. the

NJ. t'tsh llSiT Inutu O1 tHt
l torse in war now. The bril-
iian,ly swoopiug airplane. the
rushes Of infantry and the roaring OF
giant guns have made the thrilla,g
hell for leather" cavalry dashes OF
former wars which artists delighted to
laint merely a memory.
But occasionally in a meagre report
or a letter fr0m some one at the front
enc finds a passins reference to roads
chOked with dead horses and an allu-
sion to a brief cavalry action which is
buried in the greater hattie. And
dimly one wonders what part the horse
is playing IN this struggle Of the ma
tions. ~
That this four footed servant of man
is playing his part. in the fight. a part
important beyond the conception of
any one but trained soldier, is evil
dent II one takes the pains to inquire
about the humble beast who does his
work and gets killed without the
chance of honor or a war cross On
a food supply sometimes too scanty to
keep him In condition the horse incon-
spicuOusly breaks his heart in the mud
Of Flanders toiling at the heavy guns
which make the victories OF the British
and French possible.
For despite the overwhelming i'm
preston that this war is one Of me-
chanics and machines. no way to dis
pense with the services Of the horse
and the army mule has been found.
The sun., 1917-09-30

tho sacred rites Of Baseball, the Alta
boy.
The strength Of T-R was such that
he could WELD with comfort no SPORT
Ing implement smaller than a battle
axe. During the Great War he sew
eral times performed the feat Of des-
troying the Devil Fish. a particularly
vicious form OF deep seagoing Ger
man submarine. with a harpoon; he
swan after them and towed his prizes
home over his shoulder from the re-
motest tropical seas.
1t was his habit to demolish a
/ human enemy with his teeth, chewing
him to bits. From this togetheS with
his dental conformation as represented
in old portraits and sculptures, his
torians at one time erroneously
| ascribed to. him carnivorous and even
cannibalistic tendencies. He did not
eat those whom he hated: he merely
worried them until they themselves
on some occasions ate their own utter
ances.
Altogether we may place entire Gre
dence in the story that during his
Presidency Of the United States vis-
itor to the White House who had in
cautiously proposed to take him on at
ping pong was never seen again.
Naturally under such an influence
the pastime Of ping pong had no
look in whatsoever. 1t was significant,
we believe. that the disappearance Of
the game in the beginning OF the
twentieth century dated with his acI
cession to the Presidency Of the United
States.
Disappears nee Of the Game.
| A contributing minor factor was the
competition OF women players.
Ping Pong, as we now know. was
susceptible Of almost any degree Of
development OF skill. Properly played
ON a special table of the right dimcn :
| sions i. required the quickest of eyes
the sharpcst OF reflex muscular sc-
tion. great niccty ~ touch and cons'd-
cradle skull practice or cerebration
Any kind of stuff known to any ball
gumc could he but on the ping ponr
bail. !; rould even he ja2zed, an art
winch the more esoteric twirlers oi
bischail,' discovered in their rites fully
sixteen years after ring pong cor the
time> had ceased to Ire. In the hands
! of our modern masters the lightninE
quckness Of the play compares with
that Of expert fencing.
But none OF this required much
physical strength. and so II was found
that women played almost ON even
terms with men.
Students of the present authors
History OF POST -Medirval teminism'
! will remember that both the men and
! women of that time long had a deeI
crouch on recreations involving this
/ equality. Playing with girls was the
/ oostned.Ryal boys conception OF the
/ degradation of lizzihoy hood Grown to
The sun., 1917-09-30

, opening every day across the ~
Russia has already seven workers and
asks for more. There the problem Is
largely an Industrial one and con.
stantly changing to keep pace with tho
mercurial Russian Government
The working woman in Russia has
hard time 10 mako a living with the
prevailing cost and scarcity Of food
Wages are SO high that many Of the
factories have closed rather than pay
them, and It is in helping these SRI,
and securing work for tho women oI,
OF employment that tho association has
its greatest work.
In France the work dovetails w.a
that OF the Red Cross. For the doctors
and nurses. racked and nerve WORT
under the strain. tho association has
established rest houses and clubs be
hind tho lines. where they may reai
write letters and visit. For those bar,
from the front on few weeks lesY'
Of absence they have more substant,s
houses. The Red Cross. even II 1t hai
the time to provide such accommoda'
tions. realizes that a change Of on.
vironment and association is good for
Its workers.
So, for women who are really pstr-
otic there Is more than enough TO do
The Y. w. c. A. Is asking for more
and moro workers. Some of the worN
is free, but most Of II is paid. Tho
pay Is not high. 1t Is true, hut enous
to live on. These past tuo wees'
women have been hockirg from all
over the country for the War Coun'H
at the National Training School AID
now that it Is over they will 20 Oh,
into the camps and munition factories
and harvest fields TO do their BIZ as
truly as the nurses on the battle heIl'
or the workers in the factories,
II Is all war work, not so picturesque
perhaps As working under fire or tax
, ing soldiers places in the professions
but il Is work the nation needs ana
when the need Is recognized there Is 10
doubt that the response will h" very
great. It has its uncertainties, too
New England girls may he called upon
to work in the cotton fields and South
ern girls may take their places IN
Massachusetts, mills among the factory
hands. California girls may orEsnl1e
New York camps and many who have
never been west of Buffalo viii ne
called upon for service near N" Golden
! Gate.