The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1920-03-26
WORK OF NATIONAL
CATHOLIC WAR COUN-
Gil TOLD IN LETTERS
OF YOUNG LADY FROM
NORTH MANkATO,9
MISS FL0RENC
HODAPP :: 3: I: {:

1890
+ Miss Florence Hodapp. daughter of
Mr.. and Mrs. Wenda! Hoda"p. who
lis touring Europe with tn National
Catholic War Council" tells some
very interesting stories in the follow
ing article, which is made up of her
letters written at intervals for the
past several months.
Miss Hodapp is a graduate OF ST.
Mary's school of Prairie du
Chen. Wis.,, and also of the state
normal school of this city. In October,
1918. she went to Washington, d. c.,
where she took course of training.
preparatory to going across with the
council. On January 81, 1919, she left
the United States for Paris. Upon
reaching Paris the girls, of which
there were 20 in all, worked in the
canteen for the soldiers. Later Miss
Miss Hodapp helped to establish a
day nursery in Paris where French
mothers brought their small children
and left them for the day while they
were at work. She had over IS little
ones to look after each day. After
having served her time out, which
was in November, she again entered
the work and was sent to Belgium
where she will remain until April
when her time is up. Miss Hodapp is
the only girl that offered and was ac-
cepted from Minnesota.
Writing from Roulers, Belgium she
says; I'VE have been here for week
and / guess we will be fairly COM
Portable after a while. The town was
wrecked most fearfully~- by the Ger
mans, hut the people are very coura
geous about coming back and build
ing up their homes and factories. This
was a factory town of about $4,000
inhabitants and the aim of Germany
was to cripple the industries. The
house we are living in was not so
badly damaged, but has hardly any
windows in it. The people speak
Flemish, which as far as can figure
it out, is a mixture of English and
German, but they claim it is Ian
all its own. OF course we have TO be
very careful. here how we talk it, or
the people get suspicious, as they are
very much against anything or any
body German. am not to stay in Rou-
lers here as have been put in charge
of a barracks in Staden which is sew
en- kilometers from here Ihat town
has been entirely demolished. There
is not one building left standing. Can
you imagine that? 1t was done by Eng
lish guns. However. it could net be
helped as the Germans had 4 Big
Bertha located there and it was
while the Enelish were bombarding
this that the town was wiped out. by
the way, the Big Bertha in Staden is
The one that shattered Ypres and Dun
kirk The base is still there and it is
perfectly mammoth. Mon l. Able
made a door for his church treasurer
out of one of the plates and its the
heaviest thing ever saw. The people
are living in Easements and ruins. You
walk past a lot of debris and all at
once younster pops out from some
where. There are 5000 back to build
up their homes. Our barracks is to
be a place where the children, OF
which there are 400, can play indoors
during the winter. In the afternoons
the young girls from sixteen to twent ,
who have done nothing for four
year and learned nothing are to come
there for classes in sewing. There are
Nuns who help teach the children in
barracks and any space they they can
find. At noon We will serve a hot
lunch for these children. Mademoiselle
la Directrice is what am called here.
| have to pay the bills, make out the
reports. plan to feed all these children
every day and keep 100 girls busy
sewing for the refugees. There are
no stores in Staden so have to go
seven kilometres to Roulers for most
everything. There was coal strike
the first of the year so the trains and
trans or inturbans stopped. ] put on
my boots and walked. Once you get to
,Roulers you can always get a ride
back.
In another letter she writes. I'VE
are so busy in our little house here in
Staden that don't have time to do
anything but dash around and eat and
sleep. The place is almost fixed up and
we have started the canteen and the
classes in sewing and knitting There
are about IS girls from fourteen to
twenty and Flemish nun teacher.
These girls help in the soup kitchen,
preparing vegetables and meat and
doing the dishes which is also part
of their training. Our cook is very
nice, good natured and not afraid of
work so it is sort of fun being the di-
rectrice of the house, because then
you don't have to take orders from
any body am left all alone here this
week end with the cook and her lit
tie girl. gave the girls week end
vacation and they went to 0stedn to
the seashore. Everything is closed
during the winter of course, but the
sea is always lovely. They say the
place is very gay in season. like BIZ
arritz or San Sebastian. II is very
lonesome here now as the wind has
been bowling steadily for two days
and it is now the third night Its pitt
full to tn ink of the little shack and bar
racks going down like paper and
those that are holding UP like a sein
The church across the way has been
closed all day on account of flying
timbers. So far no one has been hurt.