Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1918-12-20
U. S. Women Worked
Days and Danced at
Night for Soldiers
LAST-NiINCTE TELEGRAPH

NEW YORK, Dec. 19.-How Amer
lean women in France helped TO
tighten the cares Of American SOL
diers, feeding them with sweets,
cooking for them, dancing with
them, meanwhile washing dishes and
scrubbing floors, was told today BY
Mrs. Vincent Astor. After eighteen
months service in canteen and wei
tare work while her husband was
serving with the overseas naval
Aurces. Mrs. ASLor has just returned
LON orBdeauX, where she was III
'onarge of q division of Y. NJ. &. a.
women. one of her fellow workers
was Mrs. Henry Russell, formerly
E,nel borden Hartman, VINO was
married IN france.
American women have filled sucl
an enormous place in the war ttieS
Lnat it would DE dltncult to imagine
inow what would have been uohe
without their help" she salu. 'Tne
thousands of women VINO got to the
o,ner side gave themselves up com
pletely TO working tor the soldiers,
GULh the SICK and the well, and thCS
never spared themselves i'll any waS.
9hey worked all the DAY auu OLtc.I
danced long hours in the eVenlns,
OSlllSllultS with d huAA0A CT Pea NAiSA
In the cantonment at Bordeaux,
where / was stationed, there we've
eight American women and we never
asked the French maids to do any
ming that we wouldn't do ourselves
ana not only did we do all this mall
ual work at first, but later, when /,
Was necessary, We would take hanu
at n broom or at trying eggs o.
washing dishes. One time Mas. Rus
sell ana l unloaded and stored trucA
load of sugar into the basement.
The soldiers over there showed
the most complete gratitude ana
courtesy to every American woman
that it made it intensely pleasant to
be doing things for them. Every
few nights we gave q dance. we
would send out q call for American
women and all those who volunteer
ed were brought in by army ma
chimes. There were usually about
twenty and they would have to di-
vide their time between several hun
bred men. Once we had eight Wom-
Cn and 1000 sailors.
ITO even things up 7 borrowed q
'bosun's' whistle and gave signal
every two minutes to change part.
ners. The result was that every
couple would have possibly twenty
men following after them waiting
Tor the next dance. No distinction
was made between officers and men
at such dances, but at the ones given
at the camps part of the evening was
devoted to the officers and part to
the men.
"In the cafeteria we began by serv-
ing about fifty men q day and soon
ii was thousands. They all wanted
eggs and doughnuts and ice cream.
We had one person frying eggs all
the time and one making ice cream.
I'VE had q canteen. which means
strictly a tobacco and candy store;
where the men bought at cost; ana
three nights a week we gave pic.
lures and entertainments. There
would often be as many as 5000 or
5000 men trying to get into the en-
tertainment hall.
when the conveys or wounded
first commenced arriving at Bordeaux
the stretchers bearing the wounded
men would be put out on the station
platform and we would go among
them distributing coffee and cigar
ettes Later this work was taken
over by the Red Cross.
"Mrs. Henry Russell and 1 were
near St Mihiel when the Americans
made their drive last September ana
we appealed so hard that they sent
us up to- the front for emergency
work. We went past the captured
German lines up to within two miles
OF the actual fighting and helped dis
tribute CANDY and cigarettes to the
Fifth and Sixth armies when they
were relieved. Thew came out or the
battle laughing and happy and with
no more looks of wear and tear than
if they had been in a football game.