New Britain herald., 1918-08-08
HOME SERVICE WORK
 UNITES ALL RACES
Branch of Red Cross Active in
 Healing Wounds Of War

How the American Red Cross through it's home service work is helping in the great task of binding the different races of America into one unified nation is described in 8 statsfn sat issued by the home service section of the local chapter of the Red Cross based upon reports re- ceived from all over the United States.
 "The Mexicans that constitute a great problem for the home service workers in the southwest, the Indians of several western divisions" the statement reads, the foreign popula- tions Of the Atlantic seaboard cities, tIqs negroes of the South and even in one remote part of Minnesota, a group of Icelandic people--they are all coming under the attention of Rome service because they are send ing sons and fathers away to war.
 Any family that has a soldier or q sailor at tho front or in training has 8 claim upon the government through the home service sections of the Red Cross. Such families have q right to claim share in the neigh borlinesS and sympathy and kindly aid which the home service sections we're organized to give.
 The ItaJfans Who Kissed the Flag.
 Home service workers" the state H1erft continues, have found that most Of these various races are whole heartcdfy ir1 the war for the Allied cause not because they are from countries fighting Germany on the continental battlefeIds but because they believe it is Americas war and ( that they are Americans. Some of them begin to fight almost as soon as they are entitled to citizenship. They feel it keenly if they are not accepted as real Am merican soldiers.
 Tn the assembly hall of one of our mobilization camps, according to story told by one home service work CT two hundred Italians were taking the final oath that made them mem bers of the commonw ealth. They spoke English with difficulty as they had been in this country only a short time but they were already in khaki and they were going almost directly from that room overseas to fight. There was no doubt in their minds that they were Americans through Snd through. On the other side of the room stood a group of native born soldiers who looked with rather amused indifference at these new men.
 An American flag hung over the desk before the Italians. One of them stood staring at the flag with tears in his black eyes. When the cath was given he stepped forward quickly pressed a corner of the flag to his lips with a vivid gesture and said som nething in Italian, something which the native born soldiers could not understand but conveying unmis- takAbly his strong emotion. The amused indifference of these soldiers vanished They broke into applause and cheers from then on these 1tal- ians were their brother Americans.
 The Case of Maria.
 Another worker told 8 story which showed how the great war in sepa- rating men from their families has led their families to make themselves more thoroughly a part of the Amer ican community in which they had been living. Maria c was young Italian woman who had been married only few months when her Tony was called to service. She lived in 3 little mining town.
 "She could talk only a little Eng Hsh and she could not read nor write even in her native Italian. She had ro kin in the country and few friends in town. For a few weeks she was 3 miserable lonely, passior- a--.-----------@-------------