The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1919-02-19
HARRY EVANS y
TELLS OF Y.M.C.A.
Noted War Correspondent, and Y. NJ
G. A. Worker, Speaks at Presby-
terrain Church Monday.
MEETS ALL THE CRITICISMS.

SCIIdu SNuTCn MOnOay.
MEETS ALL THE CRITICISMS.
Speaker Tells Of His Work on the Ital
ian Front-Roads Clicked WIKI
Men for Sixty Days.
Several hundred people were in at
tendance at the lecture delivered b.
Harry c. Evans at the Presbyterian
church Monday evening and heard the
truth in regard to the charges which
are being made against the Y. M. G
A. and the great work they performed
"over thefe." Everyone in the audi
ence, at the close of the lecture, was
convinced that the criticism against
this great organization was unjust and
that the. Y. M. C. A. was indeed q
great factor in helping to win the great
world war. Considerable criticism had
been made through the daily press
and we are sorry to say by some OF
our local people, of the Y. M. G. A.,
and it was through the efforts of Mr..
M. ID. JONES' that Mr.. Evans was
brought to Denison to explain in de-
tail to the people of this community
the work of this organization. The
speaker was not total stranger to
the people of the community for they
had read his interesting articles which
appeared in the Review during the
past year while he was serving as a
Y. M. G. A. secretary in France and
Italy. In these articles, Mr.. Evans
told in modest way the great work
llndorfQ kar nv, tho MI fiN,,
gave us a better understanding of the
part our boys were playing in the
great struggle.
Mr.. Evans is a resident of Des
Moines and practices law in that city
At the outbreak Of the war, he offered
his services to the Y. M. c.. A., and
spent considerable time as a secretary
in camps in this country, later being
transferred to France where he served
in the same capacity for months. Just
prior to the signing of the armistice,
ne was assigned to the italian front,
and was engaged in active work there
when the big drive was made at the
Plave river. which forced the Aus
TRANS into rout and compelled them
to sue for peace.
The speaker opened his address by
stating that we are now living in the
greatest epoch the world has ever
known. while the war is not over
vet, not over to the boys who have
lost leg or arm, not over to the par
ents who have lost son, we must all
stand by until the readjustment is
made" said Mr. Evans. He stated
that in Paris today delegates to the
great peace conference are working
on plan which will eliminate future
wars, and when this is perfected, the
world will know that this war, the
greatest in all history, will not have
been fought in vain.
According to Mr.. Evans, the three
greatest criminals in history are:
Militarism, Monarchy and Alcohol
The first two have been overthrown,
by our boys on the western front and
the people here in the United States
have dealt the death blow to the lat
ter.
He paid great tribute to the Amer
lean army when he stated that it was
THE best army ever mobilized." Mr..
Evans based his opinion after having
been with the boys in camps in this
country, in various camps in France,
and with them when they fought in
France and Italy. The American ar
my, according to the speaker, was
the best behaved army ever modified,
and credit for this is partly due to the
work of the Y. M. G. A., and kindred
organizations which helped in every
way possible to keep the morale high.
In speaking of the charge against
the Y. M. C. A., Mr. Evans frankly
stated that it is true that some mis-
takes were made, but when it is con-
sidered that thousands of men were
engaged by the Y. M. C. A., to conduct
the various branches of the work, it
was possible that few of them were
not qualified and they might make
mistakes, but should the whole or
ganization be condemned for a few
mistakes made by few irresponsible
parties?
All of the complaints against the Y.
M. c. A. have grown out of the can
teen work which was thrust upon the
organization by Gen. Pershing who
did not want to tie up his man power
IN conducting it. "The Y.-M.. C. A."
said the speaker, "is not and has new
er been mercantile institution, but
under orders of General Pershing, they
took over this, work and conducted it
under the supervision of the War De-
partmert. They were ordered to buy
their supplies from the markets of the
world and sell them at cost plus the
transportation charges" Mr.. Evans
further stated that every complaint
thus far lodged against the Y. NJ. C. A.
and their handling of the canteen has
been over the cigarette.
In explaining the method of arriv-
ing at the selling price of articles
handled through the canteen, Mr.. Ev-
ans stated that goods were purchased
direct from factories at wholesale |
prices. Then the cost of transporta-
ton to the seaboard, warehouse charg-
es, cost of transportation overseas, |
plus insurance, had to be added. After |
arrival overseas, there was the cost |
of transportation from the ports to
the various canteens. No complaints |
were made of the work in this |
country, but only of their work over
seas. ~ |
Mr.. Evans stated that the Y is
charged with having sod gift cigar
tn 10 f1,s 11n !