The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1918-08-10
anne SWEET over
Topeka Girl in France Await
ing Her Y. w. c. A. Orders.
She Writes to Friends of Pow
erty Among French.
CONGRESSMAN CANNOT SALUTE
Americans Made Poor Showing
on BaStiIe Day.
Several NotabIes on Ship on
Which She Sailed.

Miss Anne Sweet. who has gone 20
France as a worker for the Y. w. c.
A. in its war relief department. has
written to Mrs Paul Walker. state
chairman of the Kansas campaign
committee of the Y. W. c. A. The let
ter. written on shipboard, is in part,
as follows:
81 am. hope, halfway on my jour-
ney to France. There are six Y. w.
C. A. workers in our party. Until last
night We were a. part of u convoy,
but it has set out for England. while
we expect to go to France. We have
on the boat an enlistment of Polish
men, some@United States troops,
French officers and poilu, members
OF the Jewish welfare board, Red
Cross workers, nurses, social work
ers. Y. NJ. c. 4. workers, Quaker work
ers for civilian relief, etc. Among the
six who are Y. w. c. A. workers, two
of them are experienced physical di-
rectors, a social service recreation
leader. two teachers from Wilson col
lege, and myself. The censor won't
let us write all we might otherwise
tell You, and when you write, tell me
the gossip of home folks, and not any
news that the censor won't like. My
fingers itch to get into the fall cam
paign,
Il understand that in some parts
OF the country they are putting the
red triangle on the Y. NJ. c. A. service
flags. and 1 suppose they will put the
blue triangle on the Y. W. c. A flags.
"All portfolios are closed before
dark, so it is close on the ship at
night. Two of US girls who are the
poorest sailors have been taking our
cots to the deck at night. But the
washing of the decks begins at 4:50
in the morning and cuts our slumbers
short. We have concerts. auctions,
song services and mass on the boat,and
with typewriters to practice on and at
tempts to speak French, we are kept
busy.
Celebrate Fall of Bastile.
The workers required by the asso-
citation for foreign service at this time
are the experienced ones, for the or
ganizatiOn side. and the girls are ex-
pected to know French.
We celebrated the fall of the Bas-
tile on shipboard. The guns fired a
salute to the flag; the French, Polish
and American troops were brought to
the promenade deck and reviewed by
the French and American officers and
some members of congress on board,
and some French celebrities IA
nous surgeon, a member of the house
OF deputies and the consul to Chilli.
The French did their saluting beauti-
1u.iy. hut congressman are not much
accustomed to such formalities.
we have been able to increase our
work in France partly thru the efforts
of the project of st. Etienne, who is
now one of Clemenceau's advisors.
Some of the workers can live in mod
crate comfort. but those in quarters
with the munition workers have a
pretty hard time as far as food goes"
In a letter from Miss Sweet to the
local Y w. c. A, she tells of arriv-
ing in Paris, life at the Hotel Petro-
grad, which is now a Y. w. c. A.
hostess house for Paris. She says that
she had not yet been assigned to defin-
lite duties in Y. w. c. A. work, but
that the girls, while they waited for
their orders. were helping in hospital
wards, in all sorts of relief work for
the sick, the wounded and the poor,
and had had a good deal of experience
as nurses aids. She speaks also of
the distressing poverty among many of
the French people whom they are try
ing to serve.