New Britain herald., 1918-08-27
Troops OmnivcrOus Readers.

Troops OmniycrOIS Readers.
 The American soldier and sailor in France is an omniverOus reader. As a "Y" secretary put it. If our ciViliza- ton may be judged by the numbers of books and magazines and other litera- ture read by our boys in the rather primitive camp life in France, there is nothing to fear from the Army or Navy in the way of national intellec- tual atrOphy."
 Tn three months recently 386.0OO pieces of reading matter and sheet music were shipped from the Paris Y. M. C. A. warehouse to the field. Of this material, almost 31 1000 pieces were books of 8 general nature. A reserve of about 10000 volumes of general reading matter is maintained at Paris and is shipped to the field as eXpeditiously as transportation facill~ ties will permit.
 And those faVorite magazines of yours that you put a one-cent stamp on and drop. unaddressed, in the mail box. Tn those same recent three months 12S,O00 of them went into Y. M c. A. huts i'll France to help the boys pass their leisure time.
 The list of prominent folk who have
 
 speak or recite to the men in the huts reads like an American Who's Who. Stage celebrities and favorite authors have stopped at no hardshipS or pri- vations to carry a bit of cheer to the men up and down the lines in France. It has meant much to the American EXpeditionary Forces to hear and see in person E. H. Sothern, Winthrop X S George Randolph Chester, Reginald Wright Kaufman, Vance Thompson, Sir Arthur Priestly, John Craig, Hugues Le RouX and William T. Ellis.
 BascbaIls by tho Thousands.
 To help supply the sports needs of the American EXpeditionary Forces the Y. M. C. A. has placed orders for athletic goods in larger quantities than have ever before been purchased at one time Any athletes eyes will bulge at these figures of equipment for over seas use: 132,OO0 baseballs, 24,000 bats, 1,500 masks (baseball, not gas), 2, 500 catchers' mitts, 5000 fielders' mitts, 21,OO0 indoor baseballs, 5000 Rugby footballs, 5000 soccer foot balls, 1000 ping-pOng balls (dont laugh, ping-pong is quite the rage for indoor sports lover there"), and 700 sets of boxing gloves.
 Tn addition to the work of the chapIains, who make regular use of the huts for their services, the Y. M. C. A. has a broad gauge, virile re- ligiOus program of which all who choose are free to take advantage. This program is nOn-prOpagandist non -sectarian. It is under the direc- ton of such leading ministers as Dr. Robert Freeman and Wm. l.. Stidger, both of California; Dr. Harry Elmer son Fosdick, of Englewood, New Oregon; A. R. Parker. of Fall River; C. Patterson, of Berkeley, and numerous other of the, country's l clerical leaders
 The most recent-and perhaps most ! nificant-developm in the work l II France is the founding of a "Khakt 1 This is a sort of trans 1 planted public school system. which is | o reach every part of the army.
 The Khaki College will enable the l nen to take advantage of their period )f service for intellectual betterment. l Courses from the most elemental to he most advanced will be available for LII applying, each soldier according to lis qualifications and mental equip nent. While the men are being made 1 good soldiers, they will simultaneous y be given opportunity to study to ,e better, doctors. lawyers, clerks, ac- ountants, chemists and so on down he list of vacations and avOcatiOns.
 To Establish Khaki College.
 The Khaki College will be main aimed in additiOn-and eventually to replace-the present in but comprehensive. educa- ional activities. This informal edu- ation work is designed to give emer- ency training in order that defi- iencies of education detrimental to efficiency may be corrected. 'hus the illterate and the foreign orn are taught to read and write English. French for conversation and 1ilitary use is taught the enlisted 1en from the most elementary to the dvanced lessons. Classes in automo- ile repairing and the like have been established where the need was mani ested. The Khaki College will in Jude, enlarge on and coordinate all his work It's field of greatest useful ess will of course come in the de- mobilization period after the war, uring the two years that all estimates X as the minimum time for the com lete demobilization of the American | roops in France and it's return to this Ountry.
 The Red Triangle of the Y. N1 C. A. vmbolizes mans threefold nature is spirit, mind and body. The tri ngle stands on it's apex, with the top i nd horizontal side standing for the pirit, thus signifying the ascendancy this factor in man. Supporting the oirit are the two sides, mind and ody. In it's war work, the Y. M. c. A. pro- ram is fundamentally threefOld. ack of the athletics, the movies" le post exchanges, the reading and ali oin1S SarNiceS is the fun0am ental 1