Toledo union journal. [volume] (Toledo, Ohio) 1942-current, 1943-12-03
WACS Sail for
England
(WNU Feature-Through special arrange
ment with Golfers Weekly
BY Doris Fleeson

~ y
ment with Golfers Weekly
There were 500 American girls in
the First WAC Separate Battalion
with whom / sailed to Europe. As
we boarded the transport, each girl
wore a tin helmet, dress uniform
utility coat, pistol belt with first
aid packet and canteen, shoulder
bag, mask. Shoulders bent under
the heavy musette-but hours OF
hiking had enured the girls to this
burden.
Each WAC carried over her arm
heavy topcoat, hiding within its
folds heaven knows what Of last.
minute impediments.
Forward march," Capt. Mary
A. Hallaren, commanding the bat
talon, barked from the dock as she
set off at the head Of the column
carrying her full pack as easily al
anyone in the ranks. WACs arr
on the average huskier than Ameri
can girls used to be, but for Z
leader they have gone back to the
Napoleonic tradition.
Once / asked Captain Hallarer
her height. Her demure answer
was: "You must be five feet to be
a WAC" Her troops call her Cap,
tain Peewee or Captain Five-by'
Five. 1t has been suggested that
Captain Hallaren's small size dis.
arms men, helps her to get along
with them so well. Though small
myself, I've never noticed it makes
any difference.
Precise Rhythm
The troops backs looked grim as
they swung along in precise sol
dierly rhythm that makes all men
officers jealous.
Captain Hallaren never doubted
that her troops would stand the
test of the ocean voyage with its
close quarters and possible haZ-
ard. Since March, she had been
commanding her battalion, pre-
pairing it for its task. The troops
gave her a shileIagh to celebrate
her appointment.
Her five companies were formed
in obedience to a request for clerks,
stenographers, telephone operators
to serve with the air force. The
average age of the auXiliaries is
about %. They are pretty, hOmely,
fat, slim, blonde, brunette, Protes-
tant, Catholic, Jewish-a cross sec
ton of America. Nearly all are
high school graduates, few are
college graduates. The officers are
drawn chiefly from colleges and
tn average age is 33.
Captain Hallaren is SO, comes
from Lowell, Mass, and is a gradu-
ate of Massachusetts State Teach
ers college. She also studied at
Harvard university. The fact that
she had travelled for Is summers
in Europe, Latin America and the
Near East-often with a pack on
her back-was a help, she thinks,
in preparing her for the job with
the WACs.
Sunday services aboard ship were
well attended by the WACS. Of
ficers who censored their mail re-
ported that the girls wrote their
families that the services seemed
like a link with home.
1t was strange TO realize that
this transport of gOOd-tempered
friendly people was actually a
task force and as such rich
prize inviting to the enemy, that
the sea was the haunt of killers
who would destroy us instictively
as wolves tear dogs in the forest.
The transport was crowded to a
point that no self-respecting sar-
dine would tolerate. Each voyage
is such tremendous enterprise, so
expensive to arrange, that it must
pay off in manpower, Eighteen
WACs slept in one cabin.
The approach of debarkation
time was easy to recognize. An
young American, Captain
Sherman, came aboard ship to well
come US with good news from
Sicily, and gave US the first of the
security lectures that began to
lombard our ears with increasing
Step on British Soil
The sun was in their faces when
he WACs first stepped on British
oil. The honor of being the very
irst went to Sergeant Rosekrans.
n the train shed the Royal Scots
'usiliers' band struck up Sousa's
King Cotton march Then once
gain we were on a troop train.
The train moved and the WACs |
ped through a pleasant green |
ountryside that may long be their |
ONE. After the train journey of |
everal hours was over. the WACs |