The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1919-06-23
ARMY SOCIAL WORK
SHOULD BE CONDUCTED
UNDER ONE AGENCY
Raymond D. Fosdick Declares That in
the Future Such Work Should Be
Handled By the Govern
ment Itself.

Washington, d. c., June 23sSocial
work in the army in any future emer-
geney should be handled by the govern
ment itself through single, non secta-
rian agency, in the opinion of Raymond
d. Fosdiek, chairman of the commission
on training camp activities, expressed in
a report made public to-day by the war
department. Secretary Baker was said
to be substantially in accord" with Mr.
Fosdick's view.
Rivalries engendered by the sectarian
nature of the Young Mems Christian
association, knights of Columbus, jew
ish Welfare board or other societies shar-
ing in the United War Work campaign
fund of Sl72,000,000, Mr.. Fosdick found
to have provided "the worst possible ba-
sis for social work with the army" a
result for which he held the training
camp commission responsible for having
turned to these private agencies.
1T seems to me-" said Mr.. Fosdick
that the lesson of the war in social
work involves perhaps three points: The
elimination of sectarian auspices reduc.
tion in the number of agencies employed /;
and the transfer to the government itself
of much of the activity hitherto left to
private initiative"
Discussing the work of the six organ
izations that served abroad with the
army, the report said the Young Mems
Christian association. handling So per
cent of the war work budget and with
5000 representatives in France, was far
the largest and received good deal OF
criticism from the soldiers in France"
Some Of this criticism is merited, Mr.
Fosdck said; much of it is due, / be-
lieve, to Misunderstanding.
The bulk of the complaint arose from
Young Mems Christian association opera
tion of army canteens, which Chairman
Fosdick said was mistake although il
was undertaken as a service to the army
and released large combatant personnel
From early days the canteen had been
an army perquisite and the soldiers could
not understand why it should be handed
over to a private society which was at
the same time raising millions at home
for support" the report said, and con
tinued:
Moreover, the personnel of the Y NJ
c. A. was unframed for this kind OF
work and it soon found itself in a maze
of business and technical difficulties with
which it was unable at first to cope. In
the minds of the soldiers, it Immediately
became commercial organization and
from this stigma it has never succeeded
in freeing itself"
So far as the effect of the transfer OF
the canteens went on the army com.
mand, the report continued, ut was q
genuine relief to the general staff that
during the fighting days of the army, il
did not have TO handle the ever trouble
some canteen problem.
"The charge that the Y. NJ. c. A
made money out of the canteen is OF
course erroneous" said Mr. Fosdick
However high its prices may have beer
in individual localities, considered as d
business venture the total results show
large losses"
Another ground for criticism of the
Y NJ. c. A. which Mr.. ,Fosdick said was
somewhat justified was in the character
of its personnel. While many of it:
men were well qualified for their work
he said, many others were utterly un
adapted to this purpose and had no com
mon ground in mixing with our virile
red blooded young soldiers" He founC
also, however, the field of choice was
limited, men of proper qualifications be
ing in most cases in the army.