New-York tribune., 1918-10-07
"No Liberty "
By Sarah Addington

@AMBRIDGE, Mass, Sept. eff you've
Y travelled thousand miles to see your
husband and you allowed to sec
nm Tor one minute, two PAGES apart, and
later for one-half hour in the Office of the
commander of the station, you know there's
a war on. Influenza in the First Naval Dis
trct drove that knowledge home for the
scores of visiting wives and mothers who
came up here to the naval aviation ground
school yesterday.
1t was all so sudden. The sky was blue.
the band was playing and everything was
grand during inspection, when like thun
derclap came the announcement read in the
best military tone: "No liberty over the
week end" The women waiting with bag
ard baggage gasped and looked at one an
other. The men in line moved nary q
muscle-but they broke the record for
strong language later. Then ranks broke.
and while sentry stood guard, man and
wife, mother and son, were allowed one
minute of choice conversation. two paces
apart, if you please, while the influenza
The first thirty seconds were taken IN
by variations of such male standbys as
damn" and devil" which broke up the
formality that would otherwise have stood
pat in the presence Of the sentry. The
next thirty were spent in frantic sugges-
tions about trains and coming again and
those woollen socks in the handbag and the
tailor's bill and gargling and other such
family matters, discussed freely and openly
on the drill field for the sentry and the
world to hear. Then the women all scut-
tied away, to come back in the afternoon
for one half hour in the commanders Office.
The commanders office is charming
place and all that, but it is hardly the place
for family reunions. But there we sat,
every two of US, the girl who had come
from Kentucky and the mother who had
travelled from Chicago end the dozens from
New York each with her particular escort
in brass buttons and forest green. while
the escort Jumped up whenever an officer
appeared and sat down whenever he d1sap-
peared. The officers were very considerate
and only came in the room a dozen or two
times, and they always said Garry on"
right away; at least, almost always. But
it's hard to carry on" q conversation thus.
with the gentleman bobbing up nervouslv
and the clock ticking, oh, much faster than
usual, and sentries marching ominously by
and the influenza germ lying in wait
But we all got through it somehow. ,rhe
mother from Illinois heard all about the
horrors of avigation-the boy had made
his airplane fly backward in an examination
that morning, which was rather awkward
even if ingenious. The girl from Kentucky
collected round dozen (Southern girls cer
tainly do have the technique), and made
the rest of us feel poor with onlv one hus
band or one brother to regale with our at
tempts at humor. pale little woman from
South Boston, with three pale little babies.
had a half hour of family life there with a
huge young Irishman, who used to be the
head Of the house, even if he was now onlv
a COB in the navy.
And then the half hour ended. with
everything left unsaid and undone, and the
women went to their hotels and trains and
the longed for week end was over. And we
rise to inquire whether war is not uncom.
Portable enough without influenza hornine
IN to make perfect job of it. The answer
is yes.