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Show I Making Soldiers Comfortable at Recruiting Gatewav I BY FREDERICK J. McINTOSH. TANDINT, as a gateway for thousands of young Americana Who arc taking up a n H recr, St. Loulo Is giving all who pass Its H portals those human little touches that mean so much In the life of any boy. bo H he civilian or fighter, taking on a new H responsibility. H Almost 200,000 American soldiers and B sailors havo already passed through H that gate. Almost 200.000 American sol- 1 dlers and sailors h.iv been given tl a H,, hearty welcome, "Hello, there, I"' f'l uml warm handshakes. Almost Jm'M H American fighting men hae been given H other little human touches that hare H meant so murh to them and which ho.vo . sent them on their way happier and better men fuller of soldier itainlaa B and morr.lc. H This Is the cheering way In which 'i j St. Louis. In Individual St. Iouls it;, I.-. B is backing up those who have donned H the khaki and the navy blue and have I started out to battle for American frce- H dem and to He for It if need be. H . ; Regretful It Is that no other commun- H Ity In the whole great United Sta'es Is H '.! using this self-same cheering way of H backing up the fighting men in hovr- Ing them that "we are with you, boys, . H j first, last and all the time." H ; So broad is the scope of the work be- H J Ing done for the army and navy boys H' by the. St. Louis Soldiers' Welfare I'om- H J mlttee through the Y. M. C. A .hnt H;! many chapters cot:ld be written on It and half the story slJI remain untold. B Meeting troop trains and greeting tho Hn toys, distributing fruits and smokes Ui1 tlon, as chairman. This committee represented all the transportation lines operating into St Louis. It at one? formed tho Soldiers' Welfare Committee. Com-mittee. Dr. Rubens Humphrey, executive secretary sec-retary of flie Union Station Railroad Department of tho Young Men's Christian Chris-tian Association, was named chairman. t")ther members arc: T. K. Knight, S. S. Huffman. V. W. Conley and A. S. Johnson. An auxiliary committee was then formed to meet troop trains passing pass-ing through tho city and tolook after the interests of all soldiers and sailors. This comnflttee Is made up of representative repre-sentative nien and women, who ara active In every patriotic, civic and philanthropic phil-anthropic organization In the city. As early as October tho work was so well organized that approximately 1V men and women were serving on the various subcommittees. Broadening of the Work. Rut by leaps and bounds tho scope of the work has developed since that time. Tho material and commltte growth from merely a single committco appointment, with no funds and no equipment, but a great deal of patriotic zoal, to the present $2.",Q double hut equipment with canteen service, auditorium, audi-torium, evory-nlght entertainment and approximately 250 energetic, patriotic and able St. Loulsans efficiently organized or-ganized to serve every soldier and sailor passing through or stopping over Ir St. Louis. These two bulldlnga. wer erected and paid for by tho Transportation Transpor-tation Bureau of tho National War jy. j Tjjjjj - II 111 - " 11 Union Station 7K.CA. booth.. Left to tiqht: Miss Ha&lGV NottOTvMt5.5.ff RatshaU, --Mrs.Gtotfstf --Mrs.Gtotfstf 5iTnp5onjChairman,Mr5.J.5.MCourtnGy,Mr5,Fr'ank Obeaand Miss Mary MHood,5tation Matron Work Council. The Terminal Railroad Association assisted materially, as did also more than fifty business firms. An information bureau was established" estab-lished" at Union Station and a large committee placed In charge. This committee was made up of women alone, each of whom serves at tho bureau bu-reau or booth during designated periods of the week. Through the booth and tho work being done there is made possible pos-sible the success of St. Louis' undertaking under-taking to glvo the cheering help to those of tho country's fighters who pass this way. Through Its work those who aro stopping over In tho city are introduced in-troduced to tho entertainments and comforts given at the huts. However. In connection with tho booth is provided provid-ed a large rest room whero soldiers and sailors may loiter and be free from any dangers that might lurk in the city for the stranger strolling about. Those In chargo arc the older women who have offered their service to tho welfaro work. They are women mature In Judgment. And well need they be, for almost hourly they find thcmselvos facing some unusual problem. But to their credit might It be said, they have not yet met a situation they hav not been able to And a solution for. There the soldiers and sailors tlrot apply when they are In trouble. They have read the large signs. "Y. M. C. A. Information In-formation Bureau on the Second Floor." Whether they are from largo or small town or from the country, they know, when they see tho red tHanglo sign, that it is a place where they can get help or comfort. From the booths those who have any considerable tlrao to spend in the city are asked to go to the huts. The Information Infor-mation bureau therefore supplies the spacious huts with the guests they were planned to entertain. Tue men U s , , "- NT 'iI'uks Visitor's at GcLrrtsG-a Hut, in shadow J -T g - c Humphrey, Uni : n 5 t at ic n, ... "ffiUiHHLM d cf Soldiers S amo viMtfng H BE INFORMATION ! W X I hot coffee and magazines, arranging for phort meetings with loved ones or friends, posting and even writing letters or them, sending messages, jiving ' them stamps and stationery, sewing on buttons and mending rips in unifoi ms and loaning them money sometimes or cashing checks, arc only a few of the ways In which St Louis Is backing up the boys in a cheering way. Making them guests at the huts and entertaining entertain-ing them with music and nightly programs, pro-grams, giving them access to the cath-ing cath-ing pool and shower baths and the gym-naslum. gym-naslum. taking them on slght-scclng tours of the city, sending them to the ball game, are a few more ways. And sti'd tnere are many others, ea?h different from all the rest One hundred and eighty-two thousand, t five hundred and nlnety-flve soldiers anJ V sailors passing through St. Louis, some ' n route to barracks, come to other I training camps, and some who have, y mcir training and are launch- H lnS Into a mysterlouj future, bound HSl ,or som' unknown place, have L-en j brought Into direct touch with St. Iuls hospltallt . j "Th young soldiers from Jefferson Hjj Rarracks." not long since wrote Col 1 1 H M Murray, commanding offli er at the bar- D racks, "to whom you Kave shelter, com- Bjl fort and entertainment during the re- H cent congestion, are 6lnccrely grateful H to you They were very happy with H ou, and well they may have been, for i to me it looked as If a great and gen- B ' Crous club had thrown wide its hos- Hj! pltablo doors and provided a nevcr- Hlj ending round of cnU rtalnment. Q "It is needless to point out to you Hj the great service rendered to the gov- B ' ernment In an hour of need, for that B Is self-evident. T.et me thank jou for Hl the great support you were during tho 1 trying period." When tho great movements of troops Hj beran a year ago St. Louis was not 1 slow to see the opportunity for doing H a patriotic work, watching over and fl guarding from harm and evil the thou- Bo sands ot boys who would bo passing Hl - this way, the most of them away from H i their homes for the first time in their fl lives, and agonized by the pangs of H homesickness only such as comes over Hl ono when he finds himself among H strangers. Then was germinated the B reed that has grown In such remark- H ably short time into a plant that has H given sheltering comfort to an army H almost 2O0.0UM. Six days after a state of war was B leclared to exist the railroad prcsi- H donts of the land virtually turned over ' to President Wilson all the railroad. 1 61xty days later the Car Service Com- H mission of the American Railway Asso- H glatlon was appointed Soon came the H (ormation of the St. Louis Committee, H : with I. L. Burllngame. general man- B gr of the Terminal Railroad Assorla- and bo s are told of the rest and comfort com-fort and entertainment. At tho huts sightseeing parties are organized dally In automobiles donated donat-ed for tho service, visitors are taken on trips about tho city, all points of Interest In-terest being lowed. Those who are carrying rations with them arc given the privilege of eating at tho huts and, In addition, are supplied sup-plied with coffee and soft drinks and with extra delicacies. A canteen Is running et full blast all the time, with several white-capped women In charge. Anything a soldier wants to buy In tho way of smokes or lunch or soft drinks Is sold to him. If ho has no money, he gets It anyway. If he has a check, it Is cashed whether he Is Identified or not. He has full privilege of bath, pool and billiard tables, bowling alley, reading room, library and other recreation recre-ation and rest without charge. Here Is a large new brick auditorium used In the evening for special entertainments enter-tainments and later as sleeping quarters. quar-ters. Hooks are provided for sailors hammocks, and plenty of cots and blankets blan-kets are alwajs on hand for tho soldiers, sol-diers, that each may feel perfectly at home. The nightly entertainment Is one of the most enjoyable features for the sol-dlor sol-dlor or sailor who Is lucky enough to be stopping off over evening. The entertainment en-tertainment committee Is composed of men who. by their business relations, aro able to provide the best entertainments entertain-ments the city offers. These consist of high-class audcvlUo and drama rt and music, and moving 34-tares. Besides the nightly entertainments at the huts, visitors often are taken In automobiles to some of the best show houses and entertainment places In the city, where they are given the heat eats to be procured. Every" bill at the Odeon Is witnessed by a large number of soldiers and sailors as guests. Not alono In giving Information and other help to those who might cail at the Information bureau nd entertaining those who are guests at tho huts, St. Louis Is doing a great patriotic work among soldiers and sai'.o.c by meeting troop trains en passant and bestowing little favors upon the boys while they are in the coa. hcs. ofte. lying at oomo secluded spot In the great railroad ard3 waiting for train orders t.iat will tako them on. A large pe- cent or '.r-eso trains which pass throufe-h St. .Louis never come into Union Mallon. teing sldetracked In tho yard! and .'atcr picked up by the engine t::at Is to carry them on. But these boys arc not forgotten, for-gotten, not by any means. Loaded with fruits and smokes and hot coffee and magaztie.T and daily papers, the workers 'ma';e'' each troop train, cheer the boys and hand out treats and little presents. This alono Is a big part of the welfare work and forms a task so large, that almost every day is a big day for thj memoir of the committee. Invaluable to Military Service. Attesting the general appreciation feu by those who have been fortunate enough to come In for a sharo of this St. Louis cheer and Indicating the Immeasurable Im-measurable good it has done the individuals indi-viduals wlo havo enjoyed the hospitality, hospi-tality, the Welfare Committee has re-e re-e ive4 thousands of letters trom men distributed to every camp in America, nd from men who havo gone overseas. over-seas. Theso letters have come rrom men who wrote from their own individual individ-ual viewpoint and who expressed personal per-sonal thanks, and from officers. "On many occasions M writes col. a. W. Bufhngton. in command ot the Chicago Chi-cago recruiting district. 1 this ornce has been informed of ttoo cordial ncspital- ity your organization has extended to our applicants for enlistment who stop-psd stop-psd In St. Loui3 while en route to Jor-Xerson Jor-Xerson Barracks. "It Is certainly highly gratifying to hear such reports. We are sending hundreds of applicants to Jctrerson Barracks Bar-racks and It 13 reassuring to Know that, when they are forced to stay over In St. Louis, your organization itanda ready and eager to entertain them and keep them safe. There is no QtfjMtUM in my mind but that your work is invaluable in-valuable to thj w.iraro of the military service." Capt, H. R. Cooper Is with the 1 r.reo Hundred and Fifteenth Engineers, in i i ruary, with a unit of men. ho was in St. Louis and. with his men. p.ir-look p.ir-look of the hospitality oirered bv tno committee. They wcro bound lor a point curtly designated as "somewhere." "some-where." While in St. Louis' Capt. Cooper had occasion to meet many or the welfare workerj and a few days later one of tho women received a letter let-ter from him. it hud been sent ftom Cincinnati. "I want to tako this opportunity to convey to you, the ladles who assisted you, and the splendid chaps at the . M. C. A., my gratitude ror your kindness kind-ness to me and my small 'bunch' of boys," tho letter reaJ. "1 think tho ears of you all must have burnt last right leastwu ir there is any truth in the old saving ror all the men did was to sing your praise. 8uch folk as you mako our men ftel as though the people were really "with tncm.' and there are a lot of them In tho army now who need that assurance. "I feel that It docs resl good for the n en to meet and talk with a real mother, moth-er, who has three boys in the service and yet i.ts the heart and courags to work and cheer others on their way. May those tbreo boys come back to jou. finer, better men. than they could havo been, had thev not done their duty.-' From the United Slates Navy Hi-ciuitlng Hi-ciuitlng Station, St. Jxuls. came another an-other such letter not long since. This letter was wrlttcp by the comm.Ynding olilcer. Lieut. F. M. Willson. "I want you to know that we appreciate your UndnaM In taking car., of the recruits who left the city rece itiy. it has been my desire to send all of tho navy boys out with a smile, and I am sure that no draft has ever lett the city with so pleasant memories as those who recently recent-ly left after having been entertained and dined by your organzatlon." From a far-orr aviation camp not lon since there arrived a letter which was Hgncd b ten young men. it is mtio different from hundreds of others, slmi- ; larly signed, but Is as full or interest as any. "We wish to thank the ladles in charge of the Railroad Y. M. C. A. 'and to show our appreciation for the conveniences that were afforded us during dur-ing our stay In St. Louis. "fceing In many different pl?.ces since we entered tho service, the courtesy Ehown 113 in St. Louts far excels that receive! In any of tho many other towns. Wo heartily thank each one and all of those people who contributed contrib-uted to tho conveniences which havo teen such great picture to us." "In all ot my fourteen years' service." serv-ice." writes First Lieutenant Mm f. Jones of th) Signal Keserve Corp-. from Spartanburg, S. c.. " In the regular regu-lar at my, which has carried me Into ail parts of our country, and outside or It. 1 have never seen nothing so tine as the manner In which wx wcro treated by your cheerful llttlo group of gloom eil.spellers In St. Louis. ' I wish tho entire country' knw tr.a kind of work that you tre doing and realized Its Importance) its military value. Qlad for Train Delay. "Nothing Is so disheartening to th one who finds himself a soldier during the long, dull years between ways aj the attitude from plain Indifference to open contempt shown him by the class of people w ith whom he would ordinarily associate If he were not a soldier. He Is Just about as popular with those who i have no axes to grind as a wet " dog at a prayer meeting." At the Y. M. C. A. Information booth t Union Station Is kept a register, which all visiting soldiers and sailors ore asked to sign. Tho committee alv keeps at hand a daybook. In which are recorded short notes on everything that cornea up during the course of each da Upon almost every page of thla book is written some heart-interest story. It was to tha bureau of Information a young air aervlce officer a few dys ago came when seeking a flag He saw the sign In the station rotunda and made his way to the booth. He asked If I he could be told wh re. he ould procurfj Bj a flag. "Yes.'' was the reply. "How largfl I a flag do ou want" ' He explained thai I it should 1 e B large one- largo enougll I to spread on a casket. Then he told ttadj H story. He 1 K noma's I the body of u comrade who had lost his I life on a Texas (lying field. Before luvll Ing he had been unable to procure a dig I to drape over the casket. ' I w .1 i 1 , ( I don't want to ta.k 1 n to W j paopfe without ,f flag on his casket.'' ,1 ' You just wait Ave minutes, the soI-IW dler was told. He waited I 1 : .1 tl..i j fle minutes In hurried Lr. HumphrejIJ H n wa4 I tasfl H hero who had given up Ins life trylnc tal do something for his country'. Twdjl were standing in his eyes as, later tho day. the friend of the fallen airmail bid good-by to those who had htp H ho "I'll nc r tor j g shouted as his train pulled out and IH fj d himself afc" ' I with tho body of his friend. : Necessary Postage Starapi. J In another raso two young Mid!'' 1 j w. 10 passing through St. Louis en route! 1 to the East, having 1 . . . .1 u nl thf " mother was dying They found that th)'l would be fifteen minutes too late their arrival In an Ohio city to catch train that would take them home on I fl tinie. They told their trouble at the Y I H M. C. A. booth. Here was a problem. if Bat ll wag solved. Influence of such r- N turo was brousht to bear that a Bi J eage was acnt ordering the Ohio traia I be heid until the boys could "mo A letter tola of til ratna 1 this little act the boys arrived noma f I time to tell their mother good-by 1 1 they missed the train In Ohio tht' I wouj 1 bt Many foldlers call to borrow" lH needle and thread to sew on buttoa I f and thread, but do the v ; tf, them. This is a very common oceur ung man, member ef a H eorp4 had lost his Inslgnis , troubles a' ' -h. It then were closed. But that made no dlf-l The committee phoned a 'han- k d htm to go to his sterel and another whisked the young away In her auto. The aviator ft t! lnt-lgnU within a few minutes. No little time an. I at'. ' 'P J ' spreading cheer among the loved onsen JJH men. Into touch with tha wel-J fare committee -ome almost eUllf, mothers and wire and sweethaartsj who ara to be left behind to h'lp kee? j "ni the home fires burning. Often maajj jragelBJ as much as do the men who ara gelat away. Vi;h 'lrc |