The Hardin tribune-herald. [volume] (Hardin, Mont.) 1925-1973, 1942-05-14

I do not contest it. But one thing
is certain: We have to be more than
physically fit to survive this war.
I think we are turning out we'll
trained soldiers. equal to cope with
any enemy in strength, endurance
and alertness. But there is no doubt
that the nation has been coddling
itself during the last few years. The
letters I get from many well-mean-
ing people with suggestions of what
to do for the soldiers make me think
that this idea Of coddling is pretty
deep. What the soldiers need most
of all is not sweetmeats and goodies,
but the assurances that the folks
back home have faith that the
cause is worth fighting for: and that
the fighters are worthy of the cause
that it is a duty to protect your
country and not simply an unpleas-
ant sacrifice.
I think that kind Of an expression
is the one that does the soldiers
heart the most good. I know that
the only letters which l received
in the last war that annoyed me were
the one which told me what deep
sympathy the writer had for my
many hardships. how I must be
brave and bear it all, that my loved
one yer SC impressed with all that
I was going through.
I was reading over some Of my
war letters the other day. I recall
the two things in them which helped
me most. One was my mothers re-
marks that my new life" as she
called it. might help me spiritual
ly. She never characterized what
I was doing as better or worse; she
never discussed it in military terms.
or the painfully inadequate terms in
which a civilian tries to describe
what he or she thinks military ex-
perience is. My mother suggested
that perhaps my new career would
give me a deeper meaning Of life"
That gave me something to think
about.
The other kind of letter I liked to
get was from my father with things
like this in it: If you have to sleep
on the ground hollow out a place for
your hips. Then you won't be stiff
in the morning." Or remember
this, obey your officers but try to
make friends with the sergeant"
Cakes and cookies are nice but
they get pretty well Dashed up and
you have to open them in the pres
ence of some hundred other guys
so nobody gets enough. Coddling
the stomach doesn't help ones in
testinal stamina.
Here in Washington l find that this
coddling goes for the girls, too.
Thousands Of girls have come
here to work. They didn't have to
come. They r getting so well paid
that girls in private offices quit and
60 with the government. But the
papers are full of long. fearful arti-
cles about how the poor things are
so homesick they can't stand it.
They haven't enough boy friends to
amuse them. ALI in all they have
a terrible lot.
A series of highly thoughtful meet
ings we're held recently by some
anxious people in this vicinity
where 80 per cent Of the civilians
employed by the army in the last
five months have been women.
When the army and navy auxiliaries
are founded a lot more men will be
replaced by women. So it makes
Washington society slightly begged
down on the distaf side.
I'VE can't create men," said one
employees service officer, tersely.
The answer to that Of course is,
well, not Immediately"
1.-The men exist" another official
interested in the happiness of gov.
eminent employees delicately sug-
gested. but the problem is to pre-
sent them to the girls in as normal
a way as possible and without pa
tronizing anybody"
Back in Colonial days it was diff
ferent. Women were so scarce that
when a boatload arrived there was
heavy bidding and many a bale of
tobacco had to be offered for a good
wife. Since then, however, in most
communities I think the supply has
at least equalled the demand. And
yet somehow the ladies used to get
by without pining away and dying.
But now it's problem-a national
problem in the national capital-and
maidens r languishing for dates
because nobody can figure out how
to present the boys to the girls
without being patronizing."
Does that make it a Survival"
war, too?
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