Evening Republican, Volume 21, Number 282, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 14 December 1917 — MEN OF INDIANA HAVE LARGE PART [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

MEN OF INDIANA HAVE LARGE PART

’ -■ I ■ Much Depends Upon Their Cooperation if Allies Win the War.' BETTY BLYTHE WRITES Some Suggestions of What Must Be Done if America Does Her Part for Freedom.

Here’s something every woman in Indiana will want to know about. It’s the thrilling Story of how the Hoosier

women have banded themselves into a great army of service, ready to respond Instantly to duty. . And it’s more the first call to war than that for it tells every individual woman in Indiana what her state and her government expects her to do —

and tells her why she should do It quickly. “What are the women doing?” The question was put to Will H. Hayes, chairman of the State Council of Defense. For reply he turned to a card file and showed me FIFTY THOUSAND names of Indiana women who have pledged loyal support to their government and have agreed to give as much time as possible to helping to win the war. But wait —there’s no thrill in fifty thousand. We must have hundreds of thousands. “Go talk to Mrs. Carlisle about it — she’ll tell you what the women are doing,” said Mr. Hayes. Mrs. Anne Studebaker Carlisle, of South Bend, Ind., is the woman member of the Defense Council and the chairman of the Woman’s Section. I found her in her office at the State House, with a corps of assistants working qut the details of an organization that will reach out and gather in every woman and young girl in the state. Already there is a chairman and working organization in every county and pretty soon there won’t be even a wayside farm left without information concerning the part that Hoosier women are expected to play in winning the war. And I want to tell all you other women that it’s the biggest thing we have ever undertaken.

And get this fact firmly fixed in your njinds—THE WAR CANNOT BE WON WITHOUT OUR HELP. it is not enough to send our boys away with brave smiles. Ah, no, we’ve only set our feet in the first steps of the thorny path that is leading us slowly—but surely to victory. The young soldiers have made the supreme sacrifice; they are giving their lives. But the mothers have given their sons—THEIR supreme sacrifice and now they’re making sacrifices and giving every minute of their time to war work. Warm clothing must be knitted, food must be saved to follow the soldiers to the trenches. Red Cross supplies must be hurried forward for each mother fears that HER boy may be the next victim of the terrible Hun. And when that’s all done there is more work. For business must continue and government contracts must be filled on time and thousands upon thousands of women must take the places of those boys who have marched away, heads up and faces grim with the determination to make the world safe for THEIR mothers and sisters, so that the unutterable, things that have happened overseas can never happen again to the women of this world. And while they are making the world safe we women are going to keep Indiana safe and prosperous for them to come home to. We intend to keep the wheels of Industry going round, if need be, and we’re organizing right this minute. Do you i know what I have been wishing, ever since I knew about Mrs. Carlisle’s Indiana women’s army for service —why that Germany could see, in real life, this compact, forceful ann y—thousapds strong—backing up yvjth every atom of strength our boys at thfe fronts But we must first dress up our iines a bit. We must hurry and fill up' the for who knows how soon there may be a hurry up call from the government Don’t think that because we have been at war six months and there has been no definite call for women’s work, other than Red Cross and knitting, etc., that we can continue on in our present placid contentment. Ah sure as the sun shines, there will come to us that awful day—God grant it may be long delayed l —when the fate of the world will be in our bandh, when superhuman action on our part can alone save use from a fate worse than death. Some day > the crisis will come and

your heart 1 w 111 all hut beating from the horror. It has < cine to each of our allies—it will come to us. Oh, wake up! WAKE UP! The Hun is at our very door. When tie threw >ig first crushing strength it left her weak and helpless. 'lne men were called to action -f- nobody was left to "carry on.” 'i Then the women rallied with a courage and efficiency that has won the admiration of the world. "We’ll save our country,” they said, and they have made good their word. But months were lost in organizing the women and thousands of soldiers lost their lives because the country was not ready.

Indiana women were among the first to learn their lesson— they are getting ready now. When the call comes, they will stand forth in solid ranks, ready to meet whatever emergency may befall. And oh. you great mother hearts of Indiana! Here’s one heart-break-ing duty that’s comings Sorpe day there will come back to us maimed and broken men and then’3 when you will be glad that you have signed your service cards as a member of the great Hoosier army of women, for then you Will be ready to go to work to help care for those boys as they come. The first thing that is asked of you is very simple. The government wants every woman, no matter what her position or circumstances, to reg ister. Cards for this purpose are now being by the Committee on Enrollment and Woman’s Service, and Mrs. Carlisle announces that the force of the state-wide organization which she is now,, perfecting will be put behind a drive to secure the names of every woman in the state, and it is probable that the precinct chairmen in every community will conduct a house to house canvass. The government wants to know who and what and where the women of America are. This is a matter on which there is absolutely no definite information, and such a register is one of the vithl things necessary to help win the war. It is an admitted fact that neither France nor England could continue the war without the help of the women —nor could Germany fight another minute without them.

Registration is voluntary on the part of the women and does not mean that they are rendering themselves liable for arbitrary service. It simply means that the government wants to know —must know —with unquestioned accuracy, how many loyal women it can count on. When a woman registers it means that she’s backing her government to the finish of this war—that she can be counted on to help Again, such a register will furnish a list of women to whom the govern ment can turn for instant action in emergency. There are thousands of women in Indiana, for example, who are in a position to take paid positions in ordef to release men tor the fighting line. There are many who will loyally give a hand in helping to complete war contracts if needed. All right—but there will be no time when emergency arises to seek out these willing workers. But with a register at hand, they can be reached in an hour’s time.

If you can give but an hour’s service a day or week, register for that. There are cooking, knitting. Red Cross work, and numberless other things that are as necessary as sending bullets to the front. And remember that now—this very day-some of our boys are dying “over there.” Cannot we, safe in our cozy, protected homes, give one hour to back them up? The departments so far organized by Mrs. Carlisle are as follows: Enrollment and Woman’s ServiceMiss Julia E. Landers, Indianapolis. Food Production Miss Hortense Tapp Moore. Home Economics —Miss Mary Mathews, Lafayette. Child Welfare—Mrs. Albion Fellows Bacon, Evansville. Women in Industry—Miss Mabel Maney, Indianapolis. Health and Recreation—Mrs Geo. C. Hitt, Indianapolis. Food Conservation —Mrt. Carl G. Fisher, Indianapolis. r Liberty Loan—Mrs. Fred McCullough, Ft. Wayne. Red Cross and Allied Relief Mrs. James W. Fesler, Indianapolis. Maintaining Existing Social Service Agencies—Miss v ida Newsom. Columbus. Educational Propaganda Miss Catherine Merrill Graydon, Indian apolis.