The daily banner. (Cambridge, Md.) 1897-2008, 1919-02-19

TESS House ny the Culleu SldleS OOIu-
missary there. That is about all we
can get. So we live on canned goods
and tea mostly. But the Americans
have enough OF this kind of food.
When We six women first arrived
in Archangel the -, authorities were
doubtful as to whether we could
stay CT not. They kept saying we
were taking the places and eating
the food of six lnen, which was true
enough. But now they have asked
ne to bring six more back with me.
The American officials, and indeed all
Of them, are helping us in every pos
sible way"
The forced departure of this
group of women from Moscow to
Petrograd and then FINALLY on Sep
tember first out of Petrograd, reads
ike dream adventure.
They got into Petrograd just after
The head Of the counter revolutionary
committee had been assasinated All
foreigners were in particular disfa
sor and danger. When they arriv-
ed in Petrograd they left the railway
rain in which they had been living
| Turing their trip from Moscow, for
tour CT the city, not knowing OF
| he assassination.
Ia their party were a number of
embassy members, American Y. w.
y. !. men and other allied officials
! About half of the party were ares
| led on the streets of Petrograd.
After a bit, all were released and
| the party proceeded up through Fin
| land to Stockholm.
1T was like coming out of dark
ness into daylight to get into stock
| HOLM" said Miss Coles. There
were goods in the store windows, ap-
parently plenty of everything to wear
and eat in the town. 1t seemed like
| fairyland to us after more than a
year in poverty stricken Russia.
ITO get into Finland we had to
walk across the Russian border. The
railroads were all torn up here and
| the border line was a mass of barb
wire and mud. We had two freight
ear loads of baggage and we had to
carry this across ourselves because,
of course, there were no porters or
trucks up here.
I'VE stayed ten days in Stockholm,
| just revealing in civilization once
more. We bought a great deal of
food there and carried most of it in
| big baskets. l tell you We were sick
of the sight of that food before we
arrived in Archangel, but we had to
eat it because it was all we had ex-
cept canned stuff.
From Stockholm we went due
north to Norway and crossed the
| fjords there in ice breakers: This
brought us back into Russia, and
1--WE proceeded to Archangel.
I'VE had to go in this out of the
way fashion because We were going
around the Bolsheviki army. 1t was
the only way we could do it and get
back into Russia.
The people in Norway tried to
/ persuade us not to cross the fjords.
They said it was a terrible trip, and
that We couldn't stand it. But they
didn't know what we had been thru,
or they never would have said that.
They told us the boats were
alive with vermin, that there was
no food or heat, and no place what
lever to sleep. All Of Which gas true,
but it took us direct to AtchangeI,
and we went.
~ "The party had to divide to cross.
The second group was brought on a
rum boat and three of our women
had to promise to take their turn at
guarding the rum cargo and they did
it, too.
After l got into Archangel, l had
to stay there until the swamps froze
over, when they lay funny, little
single track railway and you can get
to Ekonomia on the Dwina river
where steamers run occasionally to
England
This port is kept open by ice
breakers, great steel frame ships
that go ahead of the other vessels
and chop way out for them. People
coming into Russia by this port any
later than December will have to ship
on these boats. And there is abso-
lutely no provision on them for pas,
sengers. But it is the only possible
way to get into Russia just now.
These six women I am trying tc
recruit will have to go bach on these
boats.
"Our plan for work in Russia is
to fill the emergency need of ou1
Lien there. They are the loIelies'
group of people in the world an6 not
any to patient at the lot that keeps
them there. They need anything we
American women can do for them.
| Then when this work is over we
will go On with our original Russian
program which has to do entirely
with Russian %omen-an education
al, social and recreational program.
while Our women are workins
with our army there, they must
study the language. 1t is The hard
est language in the world. it see, IL
to me, to learn. No one should SC
into Russia who is not willing te
stay two years"
The other five Y. w. CA. repre-
sentatives still in Russia are Miss
Marcia Durham, of New York city,iI
charge during Miss Boies' absence
miss Clara Taylor, of Taylorville
IL 2 Il ~