The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1918-08-30
TOPEKA STATE JOURNAL
INFOR M ALTON
Blu RE AU
FREDERIC J. HASKIN, Director.
Washington. D. C
WOMEN CHAUFFEURs NEEDED.

needed by the American Red Cross
| for duty in France. The recruiting
of feminine chauffeurs has already
begun in New York, where, it is
hoped, the first unit of fifty women
| may be modified and sent across by
| the first of October. Meantime, other
cities are preparing to supply their
quotas.
This call is issued by the director
| of motor service at national head
quarters of the American Red Cross
| in answer to a cabled request from
| the Paris office, which states that
| there is great need for women mes
sengers. ambulance and cannon driv-
| ers behind the Hnes-a need that will
| be only temporarily met by these first
| 800 drivers. Already more than 5000
England and French women are re-
| ported to be engaged in this work,
| but many more are needed. This is
| only the first call.
Women who can afford to donate
| their services are asked to do so. The
| American Red Cross will pay their
travelling expenses. and if necessary
an allowance of $50 francs $3.50 a
month outside of Paris and of 500
| francs $4,000 a month when in Paris
| will be paid to expert drivers who
are dependent upon their own re-
sources.
To be eligible for this work a
woman must have passed her twenty
| and possess an imPeccabie patriotic
record. AS far as possible, candidates
| for this service will be selected from
| the local divisions of the American
Red Cross motor corps already in ex-
| istence, for the women of the Red
Cross motor corps are thoroly trained
and experienced in the duties of war
messengers and ambulapce chauf-
| feurs.
| Early last year the American Red
Cross, realizing the need for women
| drivers both at home and abroad, Gre
ated separate bureau. known as the
| bureau of motor service, with offices
at the national headquarters. for the
| purpose of organizing chapter motor
| corps turnout the country. 1t now
| has 140 such organizations to its cred
| 1t, with membership of over 5000
| women.
The size of a local motor corps de-
Ponds entirely upon the requirements
| of the local Red Cross chapter. 1t
| ranges all the way from six to sixty
drivers. Red Cross motor drivers are
classified in two divisions, the first
division including ambulance and
truck drivers, and the second division
| including the drivers of passenger cars
| Tor messenger work. Drivers in the
| first division are chosen for their
ability to drive trucks and ambu-
lances owned by the local chapters
They must be graduates of a mechan-
| ical course specified by the Red Cross,
and posses a first-aid certificate. In
most cases candidate for the ambu-
lance division is sent to hospital for
| twelve days experience in its emer-
| gency room, or on one of its ambu-
| lances, but this is not insisted upon.
| The Red Cross Motor corps conducts
sanitary and stretcher drills which are
sufficient to teach the members how
| to lift and care for wounded soldiers.
The second division of the chapter
moter corps. on the other hand is re-
cruited entirely among women who
| can afford to donate not only their
services but thier cars. No woman is
accepted, however, who cannot pass
an examination demonstrating her
| ability to drive, as well as a knowl-
| edge of simple mechanics and traffic
rules. A motor corps messenger
makes all other volunteers fade into
| insignificance. She even buys her
own gasoline. oil and tires, and If she
| is fined for exceeding the speed limit
while hurrying some Red Cross mes
| sage to its destination, she pays the
| fine. :
| Each Red Cross motor corps has a
captain, who assem- les her forces
trains them and assigns them to va
rious duties. There are lieutenants,
too, but these are ranks of distinction
rather than of utility. When you are
| messenger in a Red Cross motor corps
your car is pledged for a certain num-
| Der of hours each week, and three fail
ures to appear at these hours, unless
detained by illness, is considered suf-
| ffcfents cause for dfshonorabIe dis
charge. When your hour of duty APP
proaches you report at the motor
corps headquarters and are detailed
| by the officer in charge for certain
service. Sometimes you are turned
over to the home service section and
spend the morning driving Red Cross
social workers from point to point.
Canteen workers are transported to
and from railroad stations; chapter
supplies delivered and called for. Oc-
| to drive an American or foreign Of
ficer in a respondent uniform about
the city, greatly to the envy of admir-
ing friends.
| These, briefly, are some of the du-
ties of the Red Cross motor corps as
described by one of them. In addition.
they are often called upon to help out
the canteen committee of their chap
ter. by carrying supplies and passen-
gers. The other day, for instance,
troop train arrived in certain eastern
city where it stopped for only forty
minutes. The commander of the train
was asked by a member of the local
Red Cross canteen committee If he
needed anything, and he replied that
the trains supply of potatoes was ex-
flauSIeO. 1neTo were TWO dlSO
he said, who were inneed of assistance.
One of them wanted to get medical
supplies and the other to visit local
military post. The member Of the
lcanteen committee simply passed these
orders on to a motor corps messenger
sitting a few feet away at the wheel
of a sarge touring car. That young
lady proceeded to drive the two Of
ficers where they wanted to go. then
to a wholesale grocery. where they
bought a large supply of potatoes,
and back to the train--all in the space
of forty minutes.
Usually the work of hauling sup
plies for the canteen committee is done
by the truck drivers of the motor
corps, however. Each local chapter
owns its own truck-sometimes sew
eral of then-and these are used to