Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1917-07-20
WOMEN AND THE WARN. SOCiet
By Frederic J. HaSkin

bers is an old colored woman who reports every
day with supply of clean linen rags which she
diligently collects her contribution to the
Aside from the Red Cross, there are numerous
other women's societies and committees doing
work. The woman's committee of the Council OF
National Defense has a department here under
which many philanthropic activities united
The cabinet ladies have organized their own spe-
cial relief committees among the of
their husbands departments Mrs. McAdoo is the
head of committee of women from the treasury
department who are sewing and knitting for
American soldiers, and Mrs. Lane, the wife Of the
secretary of the interior has a similar committee
The interior department is unique among branches
of the government in that it has large club, for
its employees, housed in a historic old residence
Lafayette square. 1t is now proposed to use the
third floor for war work.
For long time the women of the navy, the
army and the marine corps had separate commit
tees but finding that the work was overlapping in
many places they have combined and formed the
United Womens Service league under the super
vision of Mrs. Daniels and Mrs. Baker. Inasmuch
the feeling between the army and the navy has
always been the tense, emotional plane, evil
denced at the annual football games this combina-
ton committee is of the strongest testimonials
to the uniting power of war.
The women's leagues are legion in Washington.
Some society women already deeply i'm
mersed in the duties of special philanthropes that
they have been unable to contribute anything for
soldiers. There are the diet kitchens, for example,
which attempting to look after the citys babies
and teach prospective mothers the hygiene and
of the child. In time of war there is all the
demand for diet kitchens, many of which will
add day nurseries where mothers. who go to work,
may leave their babies.
Many of the society women who remain
ing in Washington this summer are not doing so
wholly account of the missions. They are
staying to look after their work. OF course,
there are many butterflies mostly in the
younger set-who cannot crowd any war activities
into the already crowded round of social gayeties
and QlG vr1yhn nYl into
with the work of the more sertous-mtnded II they
tried to help. There is usually willing
and enthusiastic creature than the war volunteer
at the beginning. 1t is so interesting and dis
tinctive to khaki and all the various new
patriotic costumes planned for the war worker
There is hardly society woman here who has nos
had her picture taken in one Of them.
But the actual hard work connected with war
activities is rarely so popular. In England, when
the first broke out, the frivolous society
woman became a real problem. She had amount
ed to actual scandal in the Boer war when the
generals formed a combination and literally
dered her out of the army headquarters. In 1914,
it looked if the plague of women" had again
returned. First, they all wanted to be nurses in
the military hospitals, and many succeeded in
getting there, where they interfered with the hos
pital discipline and the work being performed by
the real medical women. They came and went as
they wanted to, and their idea of nursing to
smoke cigarettes with the wounded soldiers and
firt with the more attractive cases.
In England, however, THIS frivolous element
only phase which soon passed. The women
who had welcomed the form of sem
sation, rather than a serious undertaking, were
soon sobered by their own losses The ''V. A. D..
in Great Britain today is valued worker.
So II something of the sort develops in
own country, need not be discouraged. 1t will
pass War work, in spite of its glorious parapher-
MALTA of khaki, service aprons, jeweled flags and
medals is not exciting as 1t looks. 1t requires
quick brain, actual SKILL indefatigable energy and
a strong perform efficiently
really bit of heroic service combined with a
great deal of drudgery.