The Meridian times. (Meridian, Idaho) 1909-1938, 1919-05-16
PERKINS Tells OF
''YW0RK IN EUROPE:
Reasons for the Unfavorable
Criticism Are Explained.
DIFFICULT TO GET GOOD MEN
Complaints Of Prices Charged in Can
teens Generally Not Justified
immense Extent Of the organi-
xation's Numerous Activities
Abroad During War.

New York. May 7.--George w. Per.
kins Of New York, chairman Of the
finance committee of the war work
council of the u M. G. A., has lust
returned from Europe, where he spent
over four months In making a thor
ough Investigation of the work done
by the \, N. 9. A.. His report was
made public today. and in large part
is an answer to the unfayorable crftf-
cisms of the organization SO often
heard of late.
First explaining the difficulty of Sc
curing efficient workers and the care
exercised in the selection of the 11,229
persons who We're sent abroad, Mr..
Perkins says:
Much has been said about the in
efficiency of some of these workers.
and, without doubt, a number of them
We're inefficient. In any form of or
ganization in civilian life. whether it
be public schools, chain stores or cor
porations, If 80 per cent of those
originally employed make good. the
result is regarded as highly satfsfac-
tory. If 10 per cent of the IL .229
people operating in France for the
\. N. g. A. were inefficient 1t would
mean that there were 1,122 men and
women who We're more or less of a
failure. / do not believe that any
thing like this number of people were
unsuccessful; but If under the close
scrutiny which the soldiers give these
welfare workers even per cent OF
them were failures, 1t would have put
large amount of criticism in circuIa-
ton. and the work Of the 95 per cent
who were successful would be forgot
ten in the publicity given to the 5
per cent who We're unsuccessful.
''That the workers as a whole were
brave and unselfish is shown by the
fact that IA T. NJ. c. A. secretaries
We're killed and 126 others were
wounded"
Why canteen Prices Varied.
The report relates the troubles and
expenses met by the Y. NJ. G. A. after
1t undertook the management of the
army eanteens at the request of Gen
eral Pershing and the confused condi-
tons that made it impossible to arrive
at an average cost price of the goods
sold to the soldiers. 1t continues:
'eThe Y. NJ G. A. never solicited
money for the purpose of giving away
its canteen supplies. If the Y. NJ. G. A.
had given away canteen supplies in
France on the scale of its sales, 1t
would have spent in this activity alone
at least as much money as its entire
expenditures in France for all its ac-
tiyities. The constant policy of the
Y. NJ C. A. was to sell canteen sup
plies at as nearly cost as possible, and
to bend every effort. when fighting was
In progress, to furnish the men at the
front with supplies free of charge
where it was at all possible to get the
goods to them.
"Some have criticized the Y. Nj. c.
A. for not giving away more articles,
such as cigarettes, chocolate, etc. Its
policy has been not to give away gen
orally. but only in special and needy
cases. From June, 1918, to April, 1919,
the Y. NJ. c. A. handled in France
alone upward of 2,00OO00,O00 pack
ages of cigarettes, 100000 bars of
chocolate, 100000 cans of smoking
tobacco, 100000 cigars, 60,000,000
cans of jam, 29.OOo,0oo packages of
chewing gum, and 100000 packages
Of candy. These are only few of the
items handled, but the size of tltse
figures should convince anyone that 1t
would be financially impossible for the
Y. NJ. G. A. TO give its supplies away
generally. Furthermore, the army
does not favor any such policy. II
thinks that it is far better for the men
to spend their money on such articles
as these than to spend it In other
ways. For the most part the men hold |
the same view"
its Varied Activities.
In considerable detail Mr.. Perkins
relates the varied and extraordinarily |
extensive activities of the Y NJ. c. A. |
abroad. including the manufacture of |
much of its supplies, the establishment
of many hundreds of huts, with ath-