The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1919-02-18

pcOpl0 UdCh uOiu0
have heard and
Victor McN9uGht read many able de-
lenses of the or
ganization, and statements of the
great amount of work done for the
soldiers. My purpose is to set down
what have heard from privates. offic-
ers and workers on this side, and
what l have actually seen, with the
intent to state the plain and exact
truth.
Why Soldiers Protest.
Why do the soldiers decry the Y.
M. C. A.? We may take the following
as the chief reasons advanced for
their discomfort:
/. The Y failed to bring comforts
into the fighting zone during the big
drives, though 1t has been very active
and efficient in rest areas.
2. Y men have had safe and easy
time Of 1t when they ought to have
been carrying rifles in the infantry.
3. There are too many excursion
lists and sightseers in the Y, who are
ready to go home as soon as they have
toured the battlefields and tasted OF
the excitements of life in Paris.
4. Too many preachers in the Y,
and too much preaching.
s. The doughboys resent the fmpli-
cation that the Y has saved" them
from various forms Of perdition. They
allow with some heat that a few
workers. needed a bit Of shepherding
that they didn't get.
6. Too many workers are condo
scending and supercilious; too many
small men with inflated opinions OF
themselves.
Z. The usual complaints about over
charging for canteen supplies, with
many protests that the Y. M. Z. A.
should give away it's wares.
The reader will please remember
that the seven counts in this indict-
ment were drawn up for me by sol
diers met in various parts of France,
and that they are set down here, not
as conclusions, but for further refer
ence and examination. Before we take
UP the case for final judgment, we
will have look about and see how
the organization is actually operted.
Y. N. C. A. at Verdun
One Sunday morning a party OF
newspaper men drove into Verdun In
military automobile, en- route from
the st. Mihiel region to the ArSonne
forest. We needed few things to
eat at midday, as we were about to
enter region swept bare OF all civil
ian life, so we drove to the Y. NJ. G. A.
headquarters. We found the In
large, bare, and partly ruined build
ing opening into desolate court
strewn with stones, bits of broken tile
and other debris The canteen occu-
pied a large room on the ground floor.
It was crowded with men and officers,
standing in line that wound back
and forth, waiting their turns at the
counter A man and a woman were
working as hard as they could. l
Judged they had been there for hours,
and that they would remain for many
hours more.
NOW, the reason why l like the
Salvation Army better than the Y. M.
C. A."-came voice at my side. l
listened. One doughboy was telling
another that "the Y acts as though 1t
is doing you-a favor. while the Saliva
ton Army folks make you feel that
you are doing them a favor in coming
to them" I did not, personally, envy
the Y workers their long, hard hours
in this muddy. desolate place, where
no one seemed inclined to give them
any thanks for their effort.
Foiling the Women.
The Y. NJ C. A. occupies large
building, convenient central location
in Bordeaux and it seems to be crowd
ed all the time. The canteen workers
get little time to reflect about the
aspersions of critics, because the crit
les keep them too busy.
The library maintained at this place
is literally patronized by the soldiers
and sailors, and the lounge is a popu-
lar room, especially in the evening.
One Sunday night RUDE Goldberg and
l dropped in to buy some soap and
other home comforts, and we found
the place crowded. A sailor was play
ing on the piano, and in a moment he
was acting as accompanist for a wom-
an violinist, who performed to the evil
dent enjoyment of the boys. Outside
the wild young women of Bordeaux
were literally combing the streets for
victims, but they were deprived of the
opportunity of parading their charms
before one large building full of Amer
leans
To end this discursive view and get
down to the charges. let us take the
testimony Of Lieut., Stephen T. Early,
Of the 317th Infantry, now associated
with the Stars and Stripes in Paris.
In civilian life, Lieutenant Early was
with the Washington staff of the As
ISOLATED Press, so we may regard him
as careful and reliable in his state
ments and conclusions.
Y in Battle Zone.
my regiment was in the Argonne
fighting" he told me. Zone day my
platoon was in the support line, just
a little back of the main engagement,
and right alongside us there was
Y man with a stock of chocolate and
cigarets, which he was giving away
free to the soldiers. To my knowledge
he worked steadily for twenty-four
hours without stop. He did all that
any body could possibly have done"
talked with fine. capable and
sensible Y. NJ C. A. secretary who
has spent eighteen months in France,
and who knows the situation thor
oughly.
at is true he told me, that some
OF the workers should never have