The Daily Missoulian. [volume] (Missoula, Mont.) 1904-1961, 1917-05-19
VISITOR TELLS Of WAR
EXPERIENCE IN AFRICA
Mrs. Audrey Quinn Flavell in
Cape Town When
War Started.
WOMEN AIDED MUCH
National Council Equipped
Soldiers for Action
Against Germans.

The war brought busy days to the
women of cape Town and the Union
of South Africa. according to Mrs.
Audrey Quinn Flavell who visited X
d. Jenkins, an instructor in the State
University. yesterday. Mrs FlaNell
was in Cape Town when the war broke
out and during the campaigns against
Germany's African colonies She was
secretary Of the National Council of
Women, the organization which sup
piled the fighting men of British Africa
with their necessary kits.
War found the African union un-
prepared" said Mrs, Flavell. "All the
men Immediately joined the colors. but
there were no uniforms with which to
equip them. England needed all that
she could produce at home. The Ma
tional Council of Women, the only or
ganizaton of women in southern Af-
RIGA, undertook the job and carried ii
through
Sixty-four thousand kits were made
np by the women for the soldiers. The
kit consisted of head dress for pro-
lection against the insects, sun helmet.
shirt, pa jamas Balaklava cap and Gig
arettes.
Iona Marches Worst.
The worst feature of the African
campaigns, Mrs. F'lavell says, were the
long marches over the barren plains
under the hot sun and through the
swarms of insects. A sixth of the
men who set out from Cape Town
died disease taking many Of them.
t,I. -h1 pf
when the last German colony had sur
rendered We're then sent to the
trenches in France Women have ia
ken mems places throughout South
Africa and everyone is doing some
thing for the empire.
Americans Were Scorned.
4 am glad to be back in America.
where ! don't have to defend my
countrymen for not having entered the
war long ago. The British in South
Africa, before the United States de-
clared war on Germany, considered
Americans slacllcrs. Many of the
Beers however, are still bitter toward
Great Britain and a number of them
have emsrated to California and have
established a colony there
Most of the automobiles privately
owned in Cape Town were comman-
deered when the war began. Mrs.
Flavell was one of the few fortunate
. ones whose ear was not used by the
government. Hers was a Jeffrey, a
make with which the Boer officers
were unacquainted. They left it with
her as a cheap American car" be-
meath their notice, but took all the
Fords and Hupmohilcs. the only Amer
lean cars prevalent in South Africa.
Since then. however they have had to
import number of Jeffrey trucks to
keep up lines of communication.
Suspected as Spies.
Mrs. Flavell returned to the United
states with her husband by way of
Hong Kong. They were unable to get
passports when they left America and
the British officer at Hong Kong re
fused to let them land and ordered
their immediate return. The city had
been endangered recently by the ac-
tivities of German spies. only when
Mr.. flavell produced his honorable
discharge from the British army which
fought in the Boer war We're they al
lowed to continue to San Francisco.
South Africa is much behind the
United States in conVenienceS of civil
lied life. according to Mrs. FIavell.
One need only go a few miles from
cape Town to find OK carts as the
chiet means of transportation. All the
country is now under martial law.
Mrs, FlaVeIls mother. Mrs. Eliza
beth QUINN accompanied her.