Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-02-23
TWO BRAVE WOMEN F..
TO Join HUSBANDS.
Face Jungle HardShips of
Engineer Camps in
Nicaragua.
BIZ GRETCHEN S. SMITH.


The spirit of the pioneer women is
not dead
The Army transport Cambria, which
sailed from New York Friday for ports
south and west, carried as paSsen-
gers two young women, Mrs. c. F. Rob-
inson and Mrs. E. @. Plank, wives of
two heutenants of the Army Engineer
Corps who are now in Nicaragua sur
veying the route for another canal from
the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean.
To Defy JungIes.
Mrs. Robinson and Mrs. Plank, who
will be the first American women to
join the little American colony now
stationed in Nicaragua, have not seen
their husbands since the departure OF
the latter for Central America last Au-
gust That love will find a way is
proven by the courage of the two young
women, who have been willing to defy
the fevers and snakes of the jungles in
order to be near their soldier husbands
for perhaps g. period of at least two
years Although modern science has
greatly eliminated many Of the hard
ships and perils of the wilderness.
hazard nevertheless turks in a residence
of any length of time in the Nicaraguan
country where the Army engineers
have erected their camps.
Smallpox and malaria are quite prev
alent. Smallpox may be avoided by in
oculation, but immunity against malaria
is not so sure. Not all persons are able
to take quinine without harmful results,
and those unable to do so have great
difficulty in withstanding tropical serv-
ice. In addition to the diseases of the
tropics, from which there always lies a
certain amount of danger, despite the
precautions Of medical science, these
two young women, reared in atmos-
pheres of culture and comfort, will have
to endure the diScomforts of climate
where a recent rainfall was Is inches
women have withstood the rainy sea-
son of other tropical climates, but the
housing facilities we're usually far SUI
perior to the crude little shacks which
have been erected for Mrs. Robinson
and Mrs. Plank on a hill at Machuca
overlooking the San Juan River.
Must Travel by BurrO.
Although the radio will keep the Mica
raRuan "coloniStS" in touch with civili-
zation it cannot in any way facilitate
the journey of the young women travel
ing to join their husbands. After dis
embarking at Corinto, a little village
nesting on the Pacific side of Mica
ragua. the two women will travel over
one Of the few railroads in that country
as far as Managua. But from Managua
modern methods of travel will end, and
not even the automobile Will be able to
larry the women to their home in the
Jungle. From Managus the remainder
of the journey to Camp Hoover, at
Machada, will in all probability be made
by means of the Central American
burro and the pack mule.
A humorous story recently released by
h. TYavs vfv 1g flIrNCk Nnt fvyo
of some of the difficulties which await
Mrs. Robinson and Mrs. Plank, should
they desire to serve fresh roasts at their
tables. Learning that the detachment at
San Carlos, post at the head of the
San Juan River, had been reduced to
q meat supply of corned beef in cans, the
quartermaster of the detachment set
out from the base at Greytown by small
boat for the meatleSs colony, supplied
with the detachment pay roll and three
pigs. He made the journey by small boat
up the San Juan River, but shortly be-
fore arriving at his destination at San
Carlos, the turbulent waters of the San
Juan almost swamped his boat. and al
though by grabbing the leg of a pig
with one hand and the pay roll with the
other, Lieut. Talley managed to save
one-third of his live stock and the bank
roll, the loss of the other two pigs was
unavoidable. Upon his arrival at San
Carlos, little sympathy was given to the
wet and bedraggled lieutenant, but it
is told that lusty cheers were given for
the sole surviving pig.
Other Wives to Follow.
Although Mrs. Robinson and Mrs.
Plank will be the first women to enter
the Nicaraguan wilderness, it is ex-
pected that other wives will follow them
before the period of survey roughly eSti-
mated as requiring two years, will be
completed. The Army engineers, after
many struggles, have now established
seven camps in the Nicaraguan jungles,
in most of which there have been in
stalled electric light system, purified and
running water, and radio communica-
tons with the outside world.