The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1937-05-14
TREND OF WORLD AFFAIRS
Prepared by
Lucy Meacham Thruston

but added to by activities OF othef
peace organizations, stress has re-
Gently been laid upon the addition
to the Cabinet of a Peace Depart
ment. If Department of War, why
not a Department of Peace? While
others are making the answer: No
additional department, but a
strengthening of the Department of
State, which brings this Government
department into the limelight
The State Department issues an in
teresting booklet as to it's duties and
activities. 1t needs to be better un-
derstood. And as our Government
divisions now stand it is the nearest
one to a Department of Peace.
The Women's International League
for Peace and Freedom has adopted
a new slogan. 1t is: "All women
against all war"
Nearly twenty years ago an empty
train was awaiting its load at little
town in Southern France. 1t was
quiet part of the country, far away
from the torn battlefields and Scared
lands of Northern and Eastern
France where battle had been fought
and trenches dug and whole villages
destroyed, where women and child
rem and old men had had to pack
their best loved possessions and get
out of their homes somehow, their
homes which they never saw again.
Some of the children were lost and
many could not be taken care of by
those who loved them best. So
friends, who had come mostly from
England and America, gathered them
up and carried them off to refugees.
1t was the children from one of these
refugees which, were now being car
ried back to city where it was hop
ed they could find mothers and faith
ers and friends. For the war, the
World War, was over. Every child
as they came down to the train car
ried a toy. The toy too had been
given by friends, those friends who
had been looking after the little
children. The girls had mostly dolls.
Suzette had doll, so had Marie.
Suzette had her seat beside the win
dow. it was open and there was much
to see. Suzette held up her doll to
look out too, and that doll fell out,
down in a bed of daisies while the
train rolled on. Suzette cried and
cried, she begged to hold Marie's
doll Marie said mo-, and at last
they came to that other station where
parents and relatives waited. Marie
looking far up the way saw her
mother, but there was no one wait
ing for Suzette. Suzette was one of
those war children whose parents
had been lost Marie looked at the
forlorn little figure and thrust her
own doll into Suzette's arms. Take
it, it's yours. Children suffer hor-
ribly in wars. There were all those
lost children" of Russia, $4,000
who didn't know where they came
from who were their mothers and
fathers, and now there are the child
rem of Spain. Some of them are be-
ing taken care of in France, some are
up in the far mountains and people
all over the world are trying to help
them. One thing being proposed is
that the World Friendship Associa-
ton gather up used toys and send
them across. World Friendship Day
is May 18th. 1t was children who
suffered so much in war and children
who made that strong plea for peace
number Of years ago. And the
World Friendship sent toy gifts to
children in various parts of the
world; to Cuba, to Japan, to the
Philippines-now to Spain. What a
J
Welsh children started when they
made their first broadcast for friend
ship and for peace!
Cherry trees are blooming all over
the land, and cherry blossom festi-
walls are being held-in America, in
Asia, in Europe. One cherry bios
som festival being held somewhere
in middle Europe is in honor of the
time when cherry blossoms saved the
town. The town was beseiged, it
knew it could not save itself. One
of its most precious possessions was
its cherry orchards, its most cherish
ed possession of all was its children.
This plan was carried out: the beau
tiful branches OF the bloom were
broken, out marched the children of
the town singing and offering flowers
to the oncoming soldiers. Friends
xnaAa Tho tnxur xyoo ooxyaI