Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1916-1918, 1918-05-14
A. E. F. ADOPT
WAR ORPHANS
THE BOYS "OVER THERE" FIND
TIME AND MONEY TO PROVIDE
FOR FRENCH BABIES

Not only are the soldiers of the
American Expeditionary forces COINS
to help France by joining its brave
men in the fight against the common
enemy, but the men are planning to
adopt, temporarily, French war or
phans. The "Stars and Stripes" the
official newspaper Of the A. E. +. tells
about this work.
These are some of the regulations
concerning such adoptions. A company
detachment or group Of the A. E. F.
agrees to adopt child for year, con
tributing 500 francs for its support. The
children will be either orphans, the
children of French soldiers SO crippled
they scannot work or homeless waits
from the invaded districts. The money
will Be sent to the Stars and stripes
and will be turned over to a special
committee Of the Red Cross, which will
determine the disposal OF the child. ii
will be sent to a practical trade school
or supported in a French family
A recently received issue, not as re
cent issue, Of the STARS and Stripes
tells some interesting details OF this
fine fathering of French babies.
FIFTY ADOPTED IN 8 WEEKS
Fifty in three weeks-fifty in the
first three weeks since The Stars
and Stripes announced its plan tc
take as their wartime mascots children
Of French soldiers killed or permanent
ly disabled in battle. or homeless be
cause of the invasion Of the Germans
And more requests are coming in by
every mail.
almost every branch Of the service
is represented in this weeks contribute
ors. and every rank up to, and includ
ing, as the statisticians says, that OF
major-general.
OFFICERS JOIN IN,
Eyes, a major general commanding
an army corps found time to look UP
from his orders and his maps and con
tribute to 500 franc fund gathered by
the members Of his staff, and as a re
suit, some little French girl is going tc
have as her group Of fair god-fathers
men not only with bars on their Shout
ders, but leaves and eagles and stars
as well.
cat the Intelligence Section they had
difficulty in deciding just what sort OF
an orphan they wanted to adopt. There
seemed to be about as much division OF
opinion as there is in the German
Reichstag, There was a girl party and
a boy party and they were so even
that it took written vote to decide IN
favor Of bog. The male sex won by
one ballot.
NO FRECkLES IN FRANCE
AT last they requested boy-a red
headed, freckIed faced youngster. Al
the Red Cross, where the committee is
doing it's best to fill all specifications
sent in, they threw up their hands
They finally found that there had beer
a red headed. freckled faced boy ir
France once, but that his father had
taken him back to Ireland. So they Sc
lected blonde.
1.-The aviation service is leading the
list in the number of children adopted
Last. week the aero squadrons at one
aviation instruction center took twelve
and this week. in addition to the two
youngsters adopted individually by avi
alton lieutenants, three other squad
rons contributed for the support Of an
orphan each.
Supply Sergeant Thomas Martinez
ii of a certain school forwarded a
money order on behalf Of his company
and said: This school is only in its
infancy, but when we get going you
can depend on us to come through with
a crash
Supply Company, @. NJ. G. No. = for
warded 500 francs for boy about three
years Of age from the invaded dis
tricts.
Army field clerks adopted two chill
dren, Five Of them. assigned to the
office of the nspector-General.F France
sent in their contribution and asked for
a little girl near enough so they can
visit her once in a while The eighteen
field clerks Of the American Section
Supreme War Council, also took a
child !"