Catoctin clarion. [volume] (Mechanicstown, Md.) 1871-1940, 1920-06-24
AID GIRLS WHO
! FLOCK TO CITY
Travellers Society Agent Tells Of
Tremendous Wanderiust.
MANY SEEKING k..OVIE jOccSS
People Get Up and Move Whenever
the Idea Appeals to Them, Journey
as Far as Their Money Will Take
Them and Depend on Some Friendly
Circumstance to- Tide Them Over.

Ever since the war the world has
been in the grip of a tremendous wan
derluSt. People do not seem to he able
To settle down. The migration of
families from the West to the East
has increased to such proportions as
actually to frighten some western
states. Even on the eastern coast,
which is attracting so many newcnm-
ers, the population keeps shifting
about in most irresponsible and rest
less way. says Frederic j. Haskin in
the Chicago News.
Much of this travel Is without plan.
and may almost be said to he unpre-
meditated. People just get up and
move whenever the idea appeals to
them. journeying as far as their money
will take them. and then counting
upon a job or some friendly crcum-
stance to tide them over until the next
nomadic impetus SeiZes them.
AT least this is the way it looks to
the Travellers Aid society of New
York city, which has had to rush TO
the aiG of 5000 such irresponsible
Travellers during the last year. This is
about twice as many as required as
sistar'e last year.
War Started Stay-at- Homes.
81 cont know that general discon-
tent Is responsible for it," said Il Tray
elers' Aid when interviewed at the
headquarters Of the society at 461 Lex
ington avenue, New York, the other
day. tits more general loose-foot-
edneSS," she declared, puckrrng her
brow in a desperate attempt to define
the exact cause of so much unprece-
dented travel. "You see, the war up
rooted large number of people and
planted them In new environments.
Young women who had always lived
with their parents in small towns
went to distant cities to do war work.
and young men. who had never been
away from their home villages were
whisked from one point to another,
both in this country and in Europe.
They just develop the habit of NOV.
Ing every so often"
Because men are better able to take
care of themselves when suddenly
stranded in big city the work of the
Travellers Aid society is confined
largely to the rescue of ventureSOme
young women. This Is one of New
York's greatest problems-the fact
that 1t attracts thousands of young
girls who have become discontinued
in their homes and who hope to find
growing room for their cramped per-
SonalitieS I'm the city. The latest sta
tistics regarding these damsels are
worth mentioning. SiXty-eght thou
sand of them were reported to the au-
thorties as "miSsing" during the last
year, of whom 1000 completely disap
peared in New York alone.
Keep Eye on Ambitious Women.
So the Travellers Aid society is kept
busy housing those ambitious but II
responsible young women, seeing thai
they get into the proper sort of lodg
ing houses and employment bureaus.
A Travellers Aid meets every incoming
train and every incoming boat to New
York. and with an experienced eye
picks the runaways out from the
crowd. "After handling so many OF
them" one of the aids explained "you
get to know them by their expires.
sonS." Many of them arrive plenti-
fully supplied with money, which in.
c""ascs the danger they run from a.
class of persons which is said to ex-
ist entirely from the exploitation of
these ignorant young adventures. The
money. It usually turns out. represents
the family savings to which the trav
eler has literally helped herself be
fore leaving home.
1t is estimated that at least IS per
cent of the number who fall into til"
friendly hands Of the Travellers Aid
society are motivated by the desire
to 80 into the movies. In each instance
the r. A. manages to look immensely
interested and to address the young
woman thus: "All right, if you want
to go IN The movies the best thing for
you to do Is to make tour of the
movie agencies. and I'll go with you"
At the end of the second or third
day usually an exhausted and sadly
disillusioned heroine falls happily on
the neck of forgivng parent who
has suddenly arrived on the scene at
the psychological moment through the
strategic duplicity of the r. A.
"Happy findings" in Real Life.
In fact, the T. AS are as tirpless
and vigilant in creating happy endngs
as most of our American noveliStS
And, as one of them remarked the
other morning, at is great sport"
Sometimes 1t is also extremely diff
cult, as. for instance. In the really
tragic cases of young women who
come to New York lured by matrimo-
NAL hopes scattered carelessly abroad
by some obscure matrimonial agency.
The other day. for example. one of
the aids stopped pretty little blonde
girl as she walked q tritie Devil
deredly through the Pennsylvania sta
tion here. Pointing to the society's
badge on the lapel of her coat, she
asked II she could be of any assist.
anca.
''If ven would be so kind as to help
me And this address," said. the girl.