Evening capital and Maryland gazette. (Annapolis, Md.) 1910-1922, 1918-04-17
COL. LANDERS EXTOLS
VALOR OF FRANCE.
Audience OF Five Hundred Stir
red By Telling Speech At
City High School.
GIRLS LEAGUE.
Holds Big Patriotic Rally. Miss
Day Emphasizes Pledge And
It's Meaning. p rivate
Holland Sings.

Holland Sings.
With a theatre attraction. a Liberty
Loan Bond meeting at the State
House and few other entertain
ments on the side, it scarcely seems
possible that an audience of over five
hundred people assembled in the
High School Assembly Hall last
night for the rally of the Girls Pa
triotic League of Annapolis.
Yet it is not only possible, but true,
and this audience included all sizes
and ages, from the small child to the
white haired man and woman. 1t was
a democratic audience, too, and the
| spirit of Democracy for which Amer
lea and the Allies are lighting was
] there and all showed that they are
true patriots.
The meeting was presided over by
Mrs. Thomas l.. Catch, in the absence
of the chairman, who is out of the
city Music was furnished by an or
chestra of the Naval Academy band,
and delightful music it was, too, as
! only this band knows how to play
Major William p. Upshur, U. S. Nj.
c. introduced the speaker of the even
ing Col. ]. II. Landers, a Marylander,
native of good old Fredericktown, of
Barbara Fritchie fame, who has just
returned from "Over There" Col.
Landers went across with the first
expeditionary forces, and his story
was told in a most entertaining man
ner, in true conversational style, that
added to its interest. His pleasing
tone, personality and magnetism were
factors i'm the address that enhanced
its interest and held his large audi
ence spellbound. throughout its tell
ing. Col. Landers told of the health
of the men in France, and their eff
cheney. He said everybody in France
is working toward the furtherance of
the war and its conditions. The girls
and women are standing behind them.
He told of the spiritual side of the
conflict "Over There" The Col. said
he lived in a chateau. He came daily
in touch will all classes of people and
learned much of the peasant of
France He saw them tilling the soil
cleaning the streets and women doing
the work that men gone to war once
did. He told of an old woman he had
watched with a big horse, wagon and
shovel cleaning the streets, and how
efficiently she worked, how systemat-
! ically He said her work was an in
spiration to him. She was soldier
and made not a single false move. The
French till the soil with might and
main, not scientifically, but to get out
of it the greatest amount of produce
the greatest result. The men now
Col Landers said, do not need sweat
ers as much as pajamas. He told his
wife TO stop knitting and make them,
and he founded this upon the fact that
| under his command there had been
men of all nationalities, foreign born,
who slept in their clothes, coats,
shoes everything. He ordered them
to get two pairs of pajamas, but this
was hard for them for after sending
home their allotment, buying Liberty
bonds, they had only two or three dol
lars left? However, they were re-
quired to buy pajamas, and to sleep
in them, with their windows open.
Since the order the health of the men
mas been much improved.
Col Landers said where our boys
are in France is the most beautiful
and historic, as beautiful even as his
own beautiful Hills of Maryland" in
the Blue Ridge Mountains of Freder-
ick
He said our boys are being educat-
ed, broadened. and our girls must
''whoop it up" to make themselves
| suitable wives for the men who return
from France after the war is over, in
order to be proper help meets. He
urged the women to write cheerful
letters TO their boys VS. must feel,
he said there is something higher and
bigger than our men. A soldier does
not suffer in battle. He fears on suf-
fering. While waiting he may have
tremor, up and down his spine, but
after that he fears nothing. We all
should feel that our hold upon our
men Is minor to their duty to their
country. Our men are there to fight
and if needs be to die. After seeing
the wonderful example of France, our
men are willing to die for France
alone.not considering their own coun-
try, so great, so marvellous has been
the sacrifice made by France, and her
valor and heroism today in the war
is an inspiration, Col Landers said.
The Colonel was given an ovation
at the close Of his speech.
Miss Marjorie Day gave an inter-
esting talk and expatiated upon the
pledge the Girls Patriotic League
takes, which is:
pledge to express my patriotism.
"First-By doing better than ever
before, whatever work l am doing.