Emmons County record. [volume] (Williamsport, D.T. [i.e. N.D.]) 1884-current, 1918-10-31
THE BLUE TRIANGLE
ON BABEL'S TOWER

Lucia pulled hen shawi farther
acr,ss her face and shrnnk Down on
the station platform bench as the solid
blue figure suddenly bent down over
her. Excitedly she shook her head in
answer to the question that she could
NOT understand. She searched through
her red plaid waist for the paper that
Tony had folded into little square
and given to her. The writing on II,
In the English that Tony knew and she
did NOT. told the house where she lived.
Tony had explained It oil to her that
mornihg. He had told It to her again
at the station. Then. waving his hat
he had disappeared into the train viii
the rest Of the men. and Lucia had
heen left standing oueside the gnte
There were crowds Of womei, pushing
aH about her. They were weeping.
So Lucia wept, too.
Lucia had been betlOthed to Tony
10 the old country. Five years before.
with long ticket for New York
pinned into his inside pocket. her lover
had left her. He wrote in every let
ter mat he had made her a home in
the new country. Her dowry money
had finally provided her own transpor-
tation, and for two months Tony and
she had been married. Then he had
drawn q ticket with q number on It.
and this morning he had gone on to
war.
To the policeman Lucia told all these
things in rnpid Italian. But the po-
liceman only talked back. to her as
rapidly In language that was not
Italian. She followed him dumbIy to
headquarters. An hour later wom-
an wearing American clothes gently
began talking to her In beautiful Ital.
ian.
Italian Lucia was only one Of thou
sands Of foreln-born women. Syrians.
Italians. Armenians. Russians, Lithu-
anians, Polish, who, when the draft
called their men folk to the American
colors. asked in helpless confusion
what It was all about. When would
their men be back2 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 dot Was there no one
who could explain It all to them In
their own language1
The 7. W. C. A. was ready 10 offer
assistance. but II would be Of no value
to offer 1t In Engllsh. Consequently
It had to supply corps Of women who
GOULD talk to the foreign-born woman
at her own door in the langunss that
she was used to hearing in the homo.
land. To teach her English was al
essential a factor In her Amesicanisa-
tlon % to and her a job. Therefore
the war council Of the 7. W. O. A. 1T
ont 10 and her English.
A year before the war began h, Eu-
rope, the leaders Of the Young Won
ans Christian association foresaw just
such q situation, and made ready to
NEST It. They studied the needs a
ne Immigrant. They trained skilled
American social workers to become H.
mi1iar with the hons habits and to
spsak the language Of the Lett and the
Hungarian and the Greek aad the 9TH
e foreign mothers who brought ba-
b8eo and bundles over from Ellis island
10 Battery park.
The organization into which this ex-
pss1nsent has developed was named
BY tie 7. ". C. A. national board. The
1ntsrnatsdhal Institute for Young
women In terms which these wom-
On can understand. 1t 10 teaching the
bpeeign-born how to sew and cook and
eRrv for the baby.
II girls nike Italian Lucia. who con.
fusedly fingered on the station plat
forms when the draft trains pulled out,
~ ". 7. G 4. - 4iving direct a..
astasce. Educated European women,
appointed to, the regular star Of work.
ers at the camp 7. ". q, A. Hostess
Houses are able to talk to the drafted
men In their own Language. assist them
In writing letters hhme. and in ar
ranging furloughs and little visits TO
the camp.
1.-THE Home Information Service for
Foreign Families Of Enlisted Men" IN
doing practical relief work for the
wives and mothers. The purpose d.
ne hoard Is to help the women folk
I left beolnd to understand where their
boys are and how they are being trent
ed; how they need home support and
cheer, how to send them comforts. and
70 keep pace themselves by learning
English and other things. 90 that when
! the boys come home they will not ind
their women STILL very un-American
and ont Of sympathy with them.
Food conservation bulletins have
been translated into 1s or 10 languages
At the factories and munition plants
interpreters are available for the non
English speaking women by whom the
real war industries Of the country nre
being largely carried on. In 25 I'M
portant cities international Institute
Bureaus are training American and
foreign women for full time socia
service work with foreigners. Twenty
four trained women are employed or
| the national and district field staff OF
the Y. w. C. A. On June Is there were
1O5 trained women working ut Ameri
canizati0n.
I. Whom n,ore thon * mn Chicn On NOR