Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1926-05-06

women could be found, and tx. P"
was a post of honor.
Mrs. Givenwilson is a great be-
lever in the dignity of all useful
labor. She has no advanced ideas
of the special dignity of shirking the
disagreeable. when it is needed. That
sort of influence might make a spe-
cial course in a woman's training
camp, according also to other au-
thorities in the Red Cross.
The World War revolutionized the
art of nursing. When this country
entered the war. the National Red
Cross had on it's enrolment between
6 900 and 1000 trained nurses, ready
to be assigned to duty. Today, the
Red Cross has more than $4,000 such
trained nurses. and their addresses
and readiness to meet emergencies
are tested out every few weeks. Stand
ards for trained nurses are much
higher than they were 10 years ago.
In addition, there are many thou
sands of auxiliary nurses, and more
are wanted. These latter can be
trained in camps-nOt TO be nurses
but to be aids to nurses-what IN
England in the war was known as
the "V. A. D."-''Voluntary Aid De-
tachment."
There was the wv. A. a. c." of
acknowledgements Army Auxiliary
Corps''-women who drove ambu-
lances and automobiles. They were
sometimes women of rank. as well as
of efficiency. They could change
tire or repair an engine, because they
had been trained, and their service
released the men for the front. 1t took
nerve to drive 20 or 80 miles with an
ambulance filled with wounded men.
perhaps driving at night, alone. and
under fire: but there were giants In
those days'-women weighing hun
dred pounds avoirdupois and a million
in grit. Some were Americans.
i
The PROPOSAL to establish training
camps for women does not meet the
unqualified approval of some of the
officers of the War Department. They
"yiew with alarm" the possibility that
If the War Department undertook to
train women, the trainees would eX-
pect to shoot and to take setting-up
exercises. Therefore. the women are
referred to gymnasiums and rifle
teams of society.
One is reminded that the womens
army of the Bolsheviks, although
WIN DduI16TS, WIS IOL tCl 4DlC. 1iiS
tory, however, tells how Cleopatra de
feated Antony and Caesar, and Joan
of Arc put the English TO rout-for
awhile. We have. indeed, our Mollie
Pitchers and Barbara Frietchies,
while the World War had it's Edith
Cayell, and all nursing began with
Florence htingale-crude, COM
pared with today's scientific nursing.
In 1914 Lord Kitchener refused to
accept womens services, saying, Our
men must fight and our women must
knit" Three years later, when Amer
lea Joined the associates" England
had in various services womans
army for special duties, and was aim
ing to organize q million women, so
as to release every man in England,
from factories, from trans and am
balances and from duty as orderlles
and camp clerks. In France, the
same conditions applied: women OPP
Grated farms and factories, as well
as drove ambulances and nursed in
hospitals.
IT was o. woman-Lettie G. Van
Derveer-who wrote:
"The Woman Behind the Man."
War, All, the word strikes terror
To the heart of womankind!
It hasn't a place in her scheme of life.
Nor a chord Of response in her
mind.
But look-She has squared her Shout
ders,
"It has GOMEZ must do what
can,"
And she finds her work-did she ever
shirk?"
This woman behind the man?
Not in the line of battle
Is that the one place for the brave?
But just in back of the hospital shack.
Who has measured the services she
gave?
Tireless, sleepless, unfa1tering,
Never needing the risk she ran,
Strength she spent-strength she
gave
Hers a passion to save
! This woman behind the man. s
- (Copyright. 1875. By Parf. p. Ccfllne&