Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1917-09-07
CAN WOMEN FIGHT2

WASHINGTON, September 5.-The
RUSSIAN legion OF death is not an iso-
lated phenomenon. All over tho world
women are catching the nghting spirit,
!he English women have had home
oefense league for some time. Ger
man women have been found among
tho dead on tho European fronts. And
now American women In tho West are
organizing q battalion to go to France.
Ihe female volunteers who are tho
wives OF soldiers. urge that IL they
cannot fight in tho trenches they can
nevertheless do signal corps work,
guard and patrol duty, 80 releasins
more men for the actual fighting. II.
as we are told. ten recruits are needed
Tor every ono that Is in the trenches,
there seems to be no reason why some
OF these should not be women
This lighting spirit among women 10
symptomatic OF the tremendous change
that has como over tho sex in tho last
halt century. Tho traditional part OF
woman In war Is to walt and weep.
In this war sho has done almost every
thing else, from blowing to running a
bank. And now she Is taking up arms.
1t Is fine proof OF how tradition has
shackied her. Imagine the frail ana
fninting creature of Victorian fiction
going to war. But writer's have been
discovering tho primitive lighting spir-
IL In woman for some time past. and
50 MAKING noT CIGAR 10 QcTEeH. was
Ripling's Tho Female OF tho Species
is More Deadly Than the, Male"
piece OF cheap cynicism. as some sem
timentalist averrcd. or was It a proph-
ecy? Perhaps the legion OF death
will demonstrate.
1t has been suggested that bioloe-
ical urge Is sending tho women OF
the world into arms: for this war Is
destroying their husbands and poten.
tial husbands at 4 fearful rate. Mil
lions OF women will have to choose
between polyEamous status and
celibacy. There will not be nearly
enough men to go around. Women will
tremendously outnumber men OF all
sorts. and those physically TT and f.
nancially able to support families are
always too few.
Growing Denire to Fight.
Women will have to work and make
their own lvings. but they don't mini
that. IT is Il right which they have
been demanding for years. and exer-
cisinE more and more ever since tho
war began. But may not the fac that
their mates are meeting death by the
million be the fundamental though
perhaps largely unconscious cause OF
tho growing restless desire OF women
TO have a part in the fight? II the war
goes on another ten years. as those
in high places both here and In Eng
land say It must. tbs .alance of tho
sexes will be upset for many genera
tions, unless the women can share the
loss OF life.
The great difficulty about recruiting
women would DO to nnd enough who
arc physically ut. Among the peasant
women Of Russia. who work In the
fields beside tho men. there Is doubt
less a large percentage who are mt
and able TO play a soldiers part. But
imagine a recruiting campaign among
typical American women. few girls
in the West. who have learned to ride
and bear arms. few college girl
athletes. and few professional atb-
letes and rough and-tumblc movie ac-
tresscs would mako up our feminine
army. DR.. Hrdlicka. OF the Smithsonian
Institution. who examined large num-
her Of typical American women. found
them woefully lacking In strength and
physical development. Two French
physicians who examined n large num-
Der summed up their conclusion by
stating that the American woman
says" She has degenerated physic-
ally for the same reason that the Pom
eranian dog and the Angora cat have
ACKNOWLEDGMENT. that she has been
house-bred creature for too many gen
erations.
So whether or not American women
can go to the present war. there is a
great good to be accomplished by teach
ing women to bear arms 1t will give
them n new and much-nceded ideal of
physical fitness. II they are 10 hayo