The Hanover College Triangle
"Miss Wray Appeals to Women in College: Spirited Talk Brings Results," Hanover College Triangle, 6 April 1918, p. 1.
The Hanover College Triangle
"Miss Wray Appeals to Women in College: Spirited Talk Brings Results," Hanover College Triangle, 6 April 1918, p. 1.
In one of the most pointed, sincere and result producing talks ever made in the college chapel, Miss Esther Wray declared in the Wednesday morning chapel service that the girls of the school were slackers; that the condition of “slackerism” was rapidly growing worse, and that the men in the college are to a considerable degree responsible for this condition. Miss Wray who holds a surgical dressing certificate from the American Red Cross Society, has been instructing, without compensation, the girls of the college in the art of making bandages, pads, compresses and other surgical dressings. In most localities the desire to do a patriotic duty is sufficient incentive for enthusiastic work, but in addition to this ordinarily sufficient incentive, it was agreed that gymnazium class credit would be given for a certain amount of Red Cross work. Most of the girls who took advantage of this offer assumed the attitude that their work was a troublesome duty rather than a privilege, and as soon as the gymnazium credits were earned these slackerettes did no more Red Cross work. Miss Wray branded these as slackers of the lowest degree and said that patriotism which cloaked an easy way to college credit and stopped when the credit was obtained was not prtriotism at all but was an insult to patriotic old Hanover and her loyal sons in the service today.
“It is beyond comprehension that red-blooded American girls can look every morning at that service flag, with its stars representing Hanover men, and never attend a Red Cross class or make a single bandage to help our boys who are now in the trenches.” It was explained that only six girls attended the class on Tuesday afternoon and that many of the girls had never been at any session. The entire blame was not lain on the girls, but was shared by the men who have only enough energy to ask the girls to stroll in the afternoon. This same “lack of pep” is responsible for the negligible achievements of the athletic teams, for the demoralization of the Dramatic Club, which “exists in name only,” and for the very noticeable decrease in all student activities.
These all too true accusations had the desired effect, for at the Wednesday afternoon class were twenty-eight girls, the largest number since the first meeting of the year, and a most gratifying amount of work was accomplished. An entire sixty yard bolt of gauze was consumed and one hundred twenty nine inch by nine inch compresses were completed. During the entire winter term only two bolts of gauze were used. A new and abundant supply of material will be ready for the classes on Tuesday and Wednesday afternoons of next week and there will be accommodations for many more than were present last Wednesday.
It has been suggested that the men of the college have a class some Thursday afternoon under Miss Wrays’ tuteage. The work is easily learned and the men could soon become adept and the patriotic value outweigh the possible idea of effeminacyThe day for the men’s class will probably be Thursday, April 19, and the list of those men absent will be taken as a census of the slackers.