Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1918-11-07

aSSoclatlon Ill ar unfavorable HBht,
Notwithstanding the fact that we
added nothing for motor tr%ansporta-
ton or for overhead expenses.
Free Precedent
The fact that one or two other
organizations were by agreement,
allowed to furnish limited canteen
service at a few designated points
and that this service was usually
Tree established a precedent in the
minds of some of the soldiers which
they felt the ~ should follow at
its many hundreds of centers. While
our free distribution of supplies on
the front line in times of important
action aggregated considerably
more than the free distribution of
other organizations, the average SOL
liz was impressed by the fact that
most of the time, he paid for his
supplies at the ~ canteens, while on
such special occasions as this other
canteen service was available to him,
1t was on a free basis. 1t was I'M
fortunate that the plans provided in
Bulletin No. S3s placed the associa-
ton in the position of being prac-
tically the only American agency in
France, dealing with the soldier on a
commercial basis. Our extensive pro-
o - y 10 oSA - W AZ 80
the base ports, at the training areas,
and in the front line trenches; for
example the furnishing or reading
matter, writing materials. movies,
concerts, theatrical entertainments,
athletic supplies, and all else that
goes with a ~ hut or dugout in
France all of it were without
charge-was obscured in the minds
of many because we're also handl-
ing merchandise at what often ap-
peared to them to be eXorbitant
prices. &,
"A further occasion for misunder-
standing with some, is the fact that
business is necessarily done with
French money. In appearance the
franc looks much like u 25-cent
piece, and unconsciously one feels
that it should have the same pur-
chasing power. Its actual value how
ever is about seventeen and a half
cents. When used in one of our
canteens to purchase a standard
article which, until recently, retailed
at home for ten cents, but which now
costs probably hat much at whole
sale, and to which increased cost the
Y has added five cents for ocean
transportation, it yields the soldier
so little change, that unless he takes
all the facts into consideration, he
feels that he is being robbed.
Workers COmbed Out
I'VE must also recognize that
among the several thousand work
ers whom the ~ has SEN to France,
there are necessarily some who are
entirely unsuited to this service, and
although this kind of worker after
a fair trial is sent home, their stay
is often long enough for them great
ly to injure the association, particu-
larly when they are employed in
canteen service. l am glad, how
ever, to bear testimony to the fact
that while most of our workers in
France came to us without previous
experience in Y. NJ. C. A. service,
these lawyers, manufacturers, clergy
men, college professors and men and
women from nearly every other
walk of life in America, have in most
cases made good and have per-
formed an unselfish service for the
welfare of the soldiers. A significant
testimony to this fact, is that many
of them have been wounded or gass-
ed, and hat several, including two
women, have lost their lives under
enemy fire.
The cause, I believe, of a good
deal of recent criticism, has not been
so much the price charged, as the
fact that the 'Y' in certain instances,
was unable fully to carry out its
plan to provide free canteen sup
plies to the men as they were going
into action or coming out. The rea-
son for this was no shortage of
supplies, but the absolute inability
to secure the necessary motor trans
portation. over and over again,
the Y. NJ. c. A. worker has found 1t
impossible to get supplies to fight
ing and wounded men on the eX-
IRENE front battle line, while at the
same time, our stores in back of the
line were well stocked. Any n
familiar with the motor transport
situation in France during the past
few months, will Immediately free
the ~ of responsibility in this mat
ter. 1t is one of the inevitable re-
suits of the exceptional fighting ac-
tivity of recent weeks.
Plans Carefully Gone Over
81 am greatly pleased to learn that
der Bulletin No. 33, is now being
revised, and that the new plan con-
templates that the Army shall pur-
chase these supplies and bring them
to France, using the " and other
organizations as their agents for
selling the good to men at govern
ment prices, and providing for free
distribution by each of the organi-
cations on a uniform basis to the
men in the front line service. AS
you know, the eladers of the asso-
citation have been working for a
long time to secure this arrange
ment.
1.-The canteen business has grown
to enormous proportions, and the
Y. NJ. c. A. at no time, underesti-
mated it's importance or difficulties.
1t is not strange that in such a vast
enterprise, involving a turnover of
many millions within the year,
here and there have been incidents
affordihg the ground for just criti-
cism, but the service is being con-
stantly improved.
The present general manager,
Alexander MacFayden, previously
was general manager at n of the
largest chains of five and ten cent
stores in this country. The accounts
have been audited from the begin
ming by Price Waterhouse and Com
pany Assistant Secretary of War
Keppel announced to the Senate
committee some weeks ago that the
War Department had made a spe-
cial investigation of the whole OPP
Grafton of the canteen by the Y. M.
C. A. and had found hat prices were
based on actual cost, and that no
profit had been realized. This has
not been due to poor business man
A.