The record., 1918-10-24
! firE BrUJE TRIANGLE
AT RUSSIA'SS FRONT

The Glue Triangle clubrooms in
Petrograd were in half shadow. a
few scattered candles flung CLEANS as
persistent and as vague as RuS>;ia'S
hope of liberty. A hundred Russian
girls and six young men were guests
of the first Young Women's Christian
association in all Russia. 1t was Il
gala afternoon tea but it was dark
because the winter days end at three
O'Clock and there is a restriction on
tue use of candles and kerosene as
we'll as of electricity.
The girls were making merry even
in the gloom of winter. the twilight
and the tragedy of war. One slender
white-faced girl with purple-Shadowed
eyes was merrier than all the rCSt.
Her wit and ringing laugh were con-
taGiOuS.
"Sonya is wonderful tonight" one
girl whispered to another as she
stirred gently into her tea the one
lump of sugar dOled out carefully for
the party. The Y. w. G. A. secre-
turtles had been saving the sugar for
months-putting aside at each meal
one of the two Jumps served with the
coffee in the restaurant, that there
might be Il bit of sweet for this first
party. There was no bread.
"SOnya is not drinking her tea
her pale little admirer went on, ''yet
she tainted this morning at the fac
tory and the forewOman said she was
hungry"
Were all hungry" was the mo-
nOtOnOuS reply. at wasn't that"
Something stopped the laughter and
talk suddenly but the hush that fell
in the dimly lit room was as joyous as
the gaiety. One of RuSsia's greatest
singers stood by the piano and lifted
up her glorious voice filed with the
tears and heartbreak that people at
peace call thrills.
They went away early when the
music was dOne--thCSe Sad-eyed, half
starved little guests of the Blue Tri-
GnGlC-fOr danger turks in the dark
of PetrOgrad streets, rObbcrieS and
murdcrs-sharp little by-prOducts of
Il nations chaos and a world at war.
SOnya fingered after the others
were gone. She was standing close
by the secretary-hOSteSS chair when
she turned from saying goodnight to
the last one of the other girls. The
laughter had died out of the girls
eyes and the gaiety from her voice.
"WiIl you give me Il note to the
factory superintendent" she asked,
telling him I'm attending classes
here ut night?" She spoke in French,
for she knew no English, and the sec
rotary, no Russian.
Eyes, if it will help YOU" The sec
rotary was glad to give her such a
note but she was curious. Tell me
why"
"If he knows the girls are going to
night classes he won't put us on the
night shift. lie will let us work days
so we can come. Yesterday I asked
for the night shift. Today 1 have
changed my mind"
The secretary wondered. Sonya
had not been in any of the classes
Had the bright little party given her
an interest in the work of the associa-
| ton? Had the fricndincss of the
| American secretaries reached herr
| Was it the music THAT had given her
| an impetus to study toward something
| beyond a factory?
"What is it that interests you?' the
secretary asked her. You are not In
any Of the classes now, are You? What
! is it you want to take up?"
''This morning | looked out the fac
tory window" and Sonya's voice re.
minded the secretary of the call of q
night bird before q storm. down il
the courtyard was crowd and three
lice-the belshcvii; police, while
stood there and watched They said
they were anarchists. One was my
| brother. Another Was my sweetheart
| l came here tonight to forget. But
cannot forget. Always l will remem
| Der. | want nothing now but to car
/ y on their work, and to do that I mus
| study and Learnt must learn English
and many other things. l want to &C
| in all the classes. If the foreman a
| the factory knows / do that. he viii
help. He will let me work days"
In the dark, the hunger, the cold
! and the terror of PctrO@rad, the Blue
Triangle is sending out its shining in
vitation to the bewildercd women ant
young girls of Russia. It is offering
Il little oasis in the midst OF thu
chaos where they may come and res
and relax, play games, listen t
music, study English, French, stenOg
raphy, bookkeeping, or music, and a
one tired girl expressed it, forget 70
the moment that they are in PetrO
grad. Most of the girls who gathe
at the sign of the Blue Triangle ar
boOkkeepers and StenOgrapherS, bu
! scattered among them are factor
girls, dOmeStics, and girls who neve
have worked.
"In PctrOgrad and elsewhere Il
Russia" says Miss ClarSSa Spence
world secretary of the Y. w. G. A
who started the work in Russia, "girI
formerly employed in government OF
fees come TO us who have Struc
against the bolShevists. They're on
Of jobs. They're hungry. One gil
told me she couldn't take gymnasium
work. 1t gave her such an appetit,
But they refuse to return to work fO
the bOlShevistS"
Miss Helen Ogden, one Of the Y. "
C. A. secretaries who was forced (
leave PetrOgrad on account Of the Gci
man advance, writes home that: "Tt'
like living an thp screen uc a lnrI1
drama to be in Russia. Bullets an