The Republican journal., 1917-10-25
For the Boys at Camp Devens.
By John F. Mahony, Publicity Department
of the War-Camp Community Fund.

Dy Jonn +. Nanony, Publicity Department
of the War-Camp Community Fund
CAMP DEvENS, AVER, MASS, Oct
%. Depreciating the lack of recreation
upon large scale in the communities
that surround the camp, Colonel A. S
Conklin of the 3O3d Field Artillery regi-
ment, which includes Names quota OF
the National Army, declares that unless
1t is Immediately remedied "the men
would drift to Lowell or some other near
by towns where vice and liquor will at
tract them"
/ cat the present time the men of my
regiment as well as all the other soldiers
here have too few places that offer whole
some amusement when they are on their
hours of liberty in Aver and other COM
munities," said the Colonel at the re-
cent ceremony attending the breaking of
ground for the $500 club house on the
shore of Robbins Pond ''This is the
/ best movement that could possibly be
started, was the comment of the COM
mander of the Maine regiment.
There is practically no place where
our boys can congregate and meet their
friends when they leave the camp" said
Colonel Conklin. In the camp we have
the Y. M. c. A. and X. of c., but SOL
dlers don't want to stay inside the camp
all of the time When they go out now
there is nothing alluring or good to draw
them, except the few clubs that have
been established by the various fraternal
orders, and these, of necessity, are limit
ed In their scope and do not provide the
general club house and gathering place
needed
Colonel Conkln continued: "If the
boys had a series of great club houses in
Aver, such as | understand there are go
ing to be, they wouldn't get off and into
trouble. In the bowling alleys, in the
pool rooms, in the swimming pools and
lecture halls and reading rooms and in all
the other things that these club houses
are gong to provide, they will find the
wholesome and congenial recreation that
ought to be theirs outside the camp in
their off-hours. Soldiers aren't bad men;
they're Just lonesome and a lonesome
man will roam where he finds diversion )"
And then, in these club houses the men
will feel that this is my club and nat
urally 1t will be the place to meet his
mother and members of his family when
they come here to visit. That's lust the
thing we need in this community and the
sooner the War-camp community work
ers get these clubs completed the sooner
the New England soldier boy will stop
wandering into trouble
The club houses that are being built in
Aver have been underwritten by menfof
wealth who will be reimbursed by the
War Camp Community Fund which will
begin its national drive during the week
OF November 5th to 10th. 1t only re-
qulres $3 Tor every man in the service
to surround him with wholesome recrea-
ton IN the eighty or more camps in this
country according to the war department
experts. New England has been asked
to furnish 500, 600 of the So, $50, 600 that
is needed
From Secretary of War Baker down to
the new "rooky' army officer, communi-
ity service around the war camps is re-
garded as matter of military necessity
IN order to minimize disease resulting
from moral deterioration. Club houses
are only small part of the scope of
action of the experts who will throw
network of protection around the com
munities that these boys must 90 into
when on liberty
By mobilizing all the forces for good in
these communities these trained workers
will bring about the personal contact that
the soldier left behind him at home The
church, fraternal organizations the wom-
en- of the communities who are of the
kind that the soldier knew at home, and
every other force, that will increase his
fighting spirit and keep his mind and
body clean, will be placed in his way.
The immediate need of funds for this
work is apparent by the situation in
Lowell which has become SO grave that
its chief executive has asked Major Gen
eral Hodges, Commander of this great
army division, to provide provost guard
to regulate the ''bootleggers'' and women
of loose morals that flocked to that city
from every big town in New England.
Lowell is the nearest big town to the
camp and the soldier boys disguised with
the dullness of Aver have flocked to
Lowell every chance they get.