Salt Lake Tribune | 1917-07-21 | Page 13 | British Women are Nearing the Front

BRITISH WHEN JIBE mini m Thousands Work at Army Bases; Hundreds Work as Carpenters. BRITISH HEADQUARTERS LN FRANCE, June 30. (By Mail.) The feminine section of the British army is growing larger day by day, Khaki-elad Khaki-elad young women, at first confined to the Red Cross section of the field army, are rapidly pushing into manv departments depart-ments of army activity, displacing men who in turn are passed along to work nearer the front line trenches. Every boat coming from England brings new- companies of women workers. work-ers. At first thir work was mostly at the remote bases, but now thev may be found working further and further afield, sometimes within hearing distance dis-tance of tho guns. In the clerical departments de-partments at the chief bases, women have very largely displaced men. As chauffeurs they are being employed by hundreds, not only on ambulances and light supply wagr.'rs. but also on heavy transport ionics, and with entire success. suc-cess. &ix hundred young women carpenters are at work building army huts. They ; have only six weel:.- of instruction and preparation in England before crossing ; the channel. Their work here is practi-i practi-i caily ' shoo w-ork. " The huts are of j the r.ow svmi-cyii-idrical Canadian tvpe, i which is bein turned out by the thousand thou-sand in kon.'k-dov.-p.fGrm, every hut exactly ex-actly alike. The ycung women wear a near uniform . of regulation kh::ki. with short shirt and knickers, and a sleeve bad'ie. Each trirl has to know only i one small part of the whole rrocess of i hut buii iiui2: each day she repents the j same operation, whether it be with saw, jhammer or plane, and then passes on ; the wor to the r.c-xt operative. The hou?ing of the women workers ! has been fcccomnhslied without particular particu-lar ditflc'iltv. ome units are m huts, others billeted in hotels. Each unit has its own suntrvisory officers and ; chaperons. ",Vhi!e "t work it is ;:-.-. i"r who act their part as smartly as any British subaltern with the actual fight-ing fight-ing forces.