July 26. [1918]
Dear Muriel,
I just got your letter of
June 30th
with the photos -- thanks Ever so much. I
think the family group at the Farm very
nice. I should like to connect with Leverett
& if so we will have to have our picture
taken together. If he could only get a few
days off he might come to visit us
here & I am sure that it would amuse
him tremendously to see our unit. I am
now learning to run the camion. I went
to
Paris with Mrs. Daly & Agnes this week
& drove both ways. Last night we came
out after supper & it was great fun
driving in the dark. (We never use
In
Paris I saw Horace Binney, Dr.
Harry Lyman & Reggie
Fitz--we happened
to meet them at the
Crillon & we all
had an orangeade together. The best
luck was seeing Rose Peabody who
has been having a thrilling time.
I had to laugh at her because she
was wearing a French blue tamoshanter
with her goggles pushed up over it
which made her look very business like
& straight from the front. The foolish
part of it is that she cannot
technically belong to her unit in
the American army as a nurse --
therefore she does home service work,
nurses were so badly needed of course
she helped out. It is very stupid
of the American army not to
allow aides -- they are very short
of nurses & then in the big moments
they are obliged to call in absolutely
untrained women. Urge Everyone you
know to take up nursing -- aides
are sure to be used before long &
the more partially trained the better.
Is Lucy really doing nursing? Do
let me know. Also I wish
you would always write me the
news about who is abroad, who is killed, wounded etc. I never hear
a word here, & I only just
learnt the other day about Pete
Sortwell and Bill Willets: it is too
bad. You are wonderful about writing
me & I hope you continue to be
because my friends except for Mary
Hunnewell are very bad (you might
remind them that I still exist).
I don't know whether I told
you that I am changing my job
in the unit & that very shortly
a Mrs. Konnin (sister of Mrs.
Richard Laurence) is coming to
material. I am changing into a
regular chauffeur. I like that
better because the managing job
is growing so large that to do it
well you ought to stay always at
home -- it came down to getting
another person for either one place
or the other & I chose the
chauffeuring which has more
action & variety. It may not
be such a Swell job but I am
extremely glad to be finished
with the house keeping. It was
interesting looking after the material but as the chauffeurs always help
I expect to do that just about
as much as before. Mrs. Daly has a
lot of new ideas & we are
planning for great things in the
future -- as soon as they develop
into reality I will tell you about
them. One great addition to our
unit is the advent of a rolling
kitchen, a trailer, which is being
made for us. We will then be
completely independent with our
tents, cots, folding tables for Eating
etc. We have our own cars so
that at a moment's notice we can pick up stakes & move along.
If this good news keeps up we
hope to see ourselves advancing
again; it is about time, don't
you think? Our hospital has
Especially requested to take Americans
on account of us -- we like having
them & of course they like coming
to a place where they can be
nursed by English Speaking women;
I should think it would make a
lot of difference.
Well, Enough for now. I must
get back to work. My program has
clean the Ford, keep the bees out
of our sugar, arrange some material,
take a nurse to the train, get some
green vegetables, do accounts, make
the maids clear up, and possibly
go on a trip to an out post where
some of our nurses are helping out.
You see my work is not particularly
high toned, but almost any work is
on the same order, 2/3 drudgery & 1/3
interesting, exciting or amusing which
makes up for the rest.
from