The Wilmington morning star., 1943-10-27
Inside
Washington
BY HELEN FSS,p,-

: fo, si,' iler acceptance O, The s
ferlng OF manned fighria1' 'g Sui
seemed to me both heat Vi e
shocking. iesS acsI
Today, l could not ,rrI.o ..
:: such criticism Of MIS-. Roa a.Io,he'
~ isn't that ! have c5anps5
cwn attitude toward war S x, ~
p'oity and tragedy. Or tSs4 ''s ST.
&c say; Mrs. Roosevelt IS ~. @lsa
Of First Lady the country, ,'g ESQ. sa-'
for another four wears needs
1t is mat Mrs. Rooso,,,.
changed. There is a new F ~. has
Roosevelt. A war-sick. bo '-,eaoo.
Eleanor Roosevelt '' ''Slca
You yourself may have Dis.
ered TINS new Eleanor Roos ,,,5,
in her own newsparer coI.,
), You may have listened In 5 ,@..'''
the air. You may have soo s' on
somewhere on a train IN. ,' l'a De-
CuIe pld lIOfm.
[ glimpsed her when sl
her first press conference at+ nv D'd
return from the South pao; s5 Aef
recognized her completely '', ,.|
she talked to the REQ Cros, "ueN
gressional ladies in tine C O., Og''
auditorium of the Iibra,,. ~
gress. W. eor'
This new Eleanor Poo,o...,
talked of the war, not in ,er,,s.
generals and guns. She tslto .,5
terms of suffering. frightened nt to ID
heroes and victims of or st,',
against the enemy. "S9E
Three weeks ago Whom r
toned that first press confor ,n'r
glimpse of the new Eleanor P0 1u''
welt to several friends. 1o(y
Mrs. Roosevelt has come bss.
subdued and deeply tbo,ob 9@,@
That old exuberance is gor S'',''-
Don't be sentimental" I n
told. ''She is Just tired. A ~ ooo
mile trip is a chore even for LsS
She'll be her old confidont sor
again before you can saw Fo,,r,a
Term" III
She isn't her old confident ,sr
again. Humility has taken tho
place of intrepidity. The 7ea ID,
life that sometimes turned into
rashness and got into he ioke
books is gone. The once daunHess
Mrs. Roosevelt is bowed down with
the reality Of what she saw M
that long Quincy.
The simple, terrible picture sne
gave her Coolidge auditorium an.
dience Of courageous young Amer.
leans, homesick and i'll in hospitals
on far-aWay islands, And her st9g
les of the "eXhauSted7, Shell.
shocked" was the term in the last
war for those stricken in nerves
and mind.
Of one of the 'eXhausted' she
repeated an incident that made
her listeners i'll with horror and
helplessness. A Red Cross girl
worker was sent TO help boy
huddled with bent head. in a camp
far from civilization. The boy was
sick in mind and heart. He had
not spoken for days. The Red
Cross worker hoped She could dis.
cover what particular misery was
making him dumb.
"You mustn't feel so badly, she
said, ITS time to be happy. Soon
you'll be going home
"That's it, cried the boy. "Its
home His voice was thick with
despair. Il can't 60 home"
You can't go home! Why home
! is the best place in the world.
Don't you see" said the bar
I'm not fit to go hone
mot fit 10 60 home! You're been
one of the bravest mer oft here.
II can't go home I tell you.
For five months I've done no(hIl's
! but kill. I'm not good enough iof
home" He covered his face with
his hands. "For five months We
done nothing but kill"
please, please don't feel that
way. You have had to Kill EYe 5..3,
body knows you have had to XIII
1t was your job. You had 10 GO 90
it to get this awful war over Inc
people at home viii undefsj'sa
what you have been tafoos4
They'll be so glad to have y'1
back. They'll not ask "na' wv
did" .,e.5
"Then you don't think they i iia !.
a change in me?' The souAo u
a little hope was in the boy vO-'' ,
Certainly they won't think y@,,
We changed. They'll see a S'lo .s,
brave man coming back. Be'-- -.J
they themselves may have cAS s..s
little. Perhaps you Il go IVA.
to a different world from he ~. ~.
you left. 1t will be d |oT-o D a.
will appreciate what you 4
done" a..s
eve have got to do som 6.....
about that world, " said MIS- MI .sit
welt, solemnly conclddins Ta' . .Jr,,
1--WE have got to see tina. T.. TX +,
world these men come oacn
worth the sacrifice they "
made" .,s,.
l haven't quoted Mrs, hoV,' =,
exactly. I couldn't take lio''s
she talked. I was too dl'-''.
Her words were better no-y
than mine. She was COMP
sincere.
W.