Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1918-10-15
THE SECOND LINE
OF Defense

flaming front In Flanders 10 not ~ Tar
today a. the distance from Paris 70
Reriin. The Atlantic ocean II not ~
wide as the River Somme. The girl
Ia the munition factory In the middle
West 10 very close to her brother In
the front.line trenches. n her work
falters. II one untrue torpedo passes
the careful scrutiny Of the inspector,
the lives of American soldiers pay
the price.
It Is as necessary to keep the girl
who makes the shells physically at
and high Of courage as the man who
fires the gun.
The glory and excitement OF war
are for the man in khaki. Grinding.
monotonous labor far away from the
flying flags and martial music Is the
portion Of the girl who makes NUM-
lions.
One and a half million women and
girls have marched into the service OF
the United States government, to take
the places Of the men who have been
called to the colors. With every draft
and with the opening Of every muni-
ton environment the number Is mul.
tiplied. These girls work long hours
and the work Is hard and monotonous.
Furthermore, they work at high nerv-
Gus tension. On the skill Of their nm
gers and the accuracy Of their eyes de-
ponds the lives Of many soldiers, the
winning or losing Of many battles.
II can't sleep at night because I'm
so afraid may have passed on some
thing that was not quite true" said
one young girl not yet in her twenties.
who inspected hundreds Of torpedoes
every day.
Unless something can make this girl
forget at night, and find some rest, her
hand will lose It's cunning.
Nights and Sundays" said another.
II walk and walk, and I never 90 the
same route twice until have worn
out all the others, and yet can't for
get that perhaps some time, somehow.
during the day something may have
gone through that was not quite right"
II was Just on the edge Of going
back home" said another. II couldn't
stand II. Then the recreation leader
asked me II I played basket ball, and
I told her was too old. I'm twenty
eight. She insisted that just Try
throwing the ball. and now I'm captain
Of the basket ball team. play tennis.
and can set up and 'wig-wag,' and
they're going to make me forewoman
Of the room. That would have fright
ened me to death once. But every
thing Is different now. that we have
our War Service club"
The war department had seen the
need Of occupations for outof.work
hours II the employees were to work
at their greatest efficiency, and through
the ordnance department asked the
Young Women's Christian Associat ion
for recreation leaders. to line up the
girls and direct their free-tme pleas
ures.
The government reminded the 7. W.
G. A. that AZ an organization It always
had had an interest In the right hous-
ing Of girls. in the right feeding Of
girls. and in the right education Of
girls, and that the intelligent care Of
these girls in the munitions factories
was one OF the essentials In the win
ming Of the war. The government
could house and feed them. II could
put up recreation buildings. but when
this was done It was as helpless % the
father Of q motherless girl. The gov
eminent Is composite man. he didn't
know what a girl should do when the
six o'clock factory whistle blew. He
only knew she needed looking after
and he called to the one woman's or.
ganization that for half . century had
made a study Of the needs Of girls
Vaguely. he had an idea that she