VICTORY MAIDS

Auckland Star, Volume LXXIV, Issue 81, 6 April 1943, Page 5

VICTORY MAIDS

SELL WAR STAMPS

GLAMORISING SALES IN U.S. NEW YORK. Glamour, war stamps, bonds, elegance, a huge white collar, a blue halo with a victory V, all wrapped up in one bundle and you have the newly-created Victory Maid. As the name implies, she is the modern version of the Minute Men of Concord and Lexington, writes Inga Arvad. "Minute Maids are ready for duty 24 hours a day, seven days a week," says Mrs. Marian Citron Falk, prominent society leader of Boise, Idaho, and originator of the idea. "To-day in Boise," says Mrs. Falk, "we have 10 groups, each with 12 girls, and each group carries war stamps in a different manner—depending on where the girls appear. Only their dress remains the same. "For instance, the Cigarette Minute Maids carry glorified, smart cigarette trays. They appear at all trains. The Model Minute Maids carry model boxes, and they can be found at banquets and dances. It is a rule that they neither drink, dance nor stop to talk for more than a few minutes with customers as long as they are on duty. If they are asked to take part in dinners and dances, they may do as they wish, but only after removing their halos and collars. "Then there are the Artist Minute Maids," continued Mrs. Falk. "They carry their stamps on large palettes, and appear at tearooms, museums and so on. Our Bicycle Minute Maids ride bicycles with large baskets—they can be found, at bus stops and terminals. -The Music Minute Maids carry large- lyres and appear at churches and concerts. I find the Pauline Revere Minute Maids very attractive. They carry lanterns and wear pouches. During performances they walk down the aisles of movies and theatres. "One of our most popular groups is the Foreign Legion Minute Maids. They can be found at formal occasions with trays on which'the flags of the Allied Nations are'painted." • Mrs. Falk, who is dark-haired and attractive, and the mother of a boy in the navy and a 17-year-old daughter in college, conceived the idea last April that the sale of war stamps and bonds needed glamorising. "A new approach was necessary," she said, "and my first step was to round up a group- of 12 charming girls—girls from all.walks of life. They would be the attractive daily reminders that every individual can help win the war by carrying a stamp book constantly. In that way the book becomes filled very quickly. I hope that soon every American will carry a stamp book, so that he or she can feel, 'I own a slice of the Government!'" To-day 39 States throughout the nation have copied Mrs. Falk's Minute-Maid idea, and the girls in every group are dressed in exactly the same costumes.