The Big Sandy news. [volume] (Louisa, Ky.) 1885-1929, 1918-10-25
THE BLUE TRIANGLE
ON BABEL'S TOWER

blue hgure suddenly bent down owe
her. Excitedly she shook her head Il
answer to the question that she cOul,
not understand She searched through
her red plaid waist for the paper tina
Tony had folded into a little sQuar
and given to her. The writing on il
ia the English that Tony knew and Sh'
did not, told the house where she lived
Tony had explained II all to her tina
morning. He had told II to her agar
at the station. Then, waving his hat
he had disappeared into the train wiz
the rest Of the men, and Lucia hHf
been left standing oueside the gate
There were crowds of women pushing
all about her. They were weeping
SO Lucia wept, too.
Lucia had been betrothed to Tony
IN the old country. Five years before
With long ticket for New York
9inned into his inside pocket, her lover
had left her He wrote in every let
ter that he had made her home in
the new country. Her dowry money
had finally provided her own transppr-
tatIon, and for two months Tony and
she had been married. Then he had
drawn a ticket with number on it,
and this morning he had gone off to
war.
To the policeman Lucia told all these
things in rapid Italian. But the po-
liceman only talked back to her as
rapidly in language that was not
Italian. She followed him dumbly to
headquarters. An hour later woni-
an wearing American clothes gently
began talking to her In beautiful Ital.
ian.
italian Lucia was only one Of thou
sands of foreign-b0rn women, Syrians,
Italians, Arlnenlans, Russians, Lithu-
anians, Polish, who, when the draft
called their men folk to the Americas
colors, asked in helpless confusion
what II was all about. When would
their men be back? What did people
mean when they told them they would
receive money through the mail?
Where could they find work that they
knew how TO do? Was there no one
who could explain it all TO them in
their own language?
The y " C. A. was ready to offer
assistance, hut 1t would be of no value
TO offer it in English. Consequently
It had to supply corps III women who
could talk to the foreign-horn woman
at her own door in he Language that
she was used to hearing in the home
land To teach her English was ms
essential factor In her Americaniza-
ton as to find her job. Therefore
the war council of the Y. w. @. A. set
out to find her English.
A year before the war began in Eu-
rope. the leaders OF the Young Wom-
ans Christian association foresaw just
such a situation. and made ready to
meet 1t. They studied the needs OF
the immigrant. They trained skil&!l
American social workers to become IN
miliar with the home habits and 10
speak the language Of the Lett and the
Hungarian and the Greek and the 9th
er foreign mothers who brought ba-
bies and bundles over from Ellis island
to Battery park.
The organization into which this ex-
pertinent has developed was named
by the Y. w. G. A. national board, 1.-THE
International Institute for Young
Women" In terms which these wom
On can understand, It is teaching the
foreign-born how to sew and cook and
care for the baby
: To girls like Italian Lucia, who con.
fusedly fingered on the station plat
forms when the draft trains pulled out,
The W. Y. G. A. is giving direct as
sistance. Educated European women,
appointed to the regular staff of work
ers at the camp Y. w. @. A. Hostess
Houses are able to talk to the drafted
men in their own language, assist them
In writing letters home, and in ar
ranging furloughs and little visits to
the camp.
~The Home Information Service for
Foreign Families of Enlisted Men" is
doing practical relief work for the
wives and mothers. The purpose OF
the board is to help the women folk
left behind to understand where their
boys are and how they are being treat
ed; how they need home support and
cheer, how to send them comforts, and
to keep pace themselves by learning
English and other things, so that when
the boys come home they will not find
their women still very un-American
and out Of sympathy with them.
Food conservation bulletins have
been translated into 1S or 10 languages.
At the factories and munltlon plants
Interpreters are available for the nom
English speaking women by whom the
real war industries OF the country are
being largely carried on. In 25 i'm
portant cities International Institute
Bureaus are training American and
foreign women for full time social
service work with foreigners. Twenty
four trained women are employed on
the national and district field stan Of
the Y. w. G. A. On June 10 there were
105 trained women working at Ameri-
canization.
When more than $4,000 Chicago men
oiled out their blue cards for the Sep
TENDER II draft Gang Luo Wong up
peared at one precinct bringing with
him Mrs. Gang Wong and the three
Children All five wished tn register