THE ETERNAL "STRAFE "

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 66, 11 December 1917, Page 6

THE ETERNAL "STRAFE "

HOW IT IS PASSED ON,

(By a Girl Typist in a War DepartDient.)

Little did I guess into wfiat an abode of {"rightfulness I was entering w^ie -i at 10 o'clock on a certain Monday morning, I presented myseK for duty ra a certain Government ofhee. I™s comfortably installed with a bran^; typewriter and a kind-looking seij, < in what had apparently been a bath "om andinan'adjoiningtoom originally a bedroom, my c h, f f ~^ P 3 Dasher-assisted by a lieutenant and two girl clerks, was workm,, every appearance of a bsor P t '??; ...... I had barely been there half an hour when tho first explosion occur ed. "Where the has that file OJJ. 123,456 gone to?" I g° fc "P 411(1 tn'e door between the gingerly, but the next moment it burst opwi and one of the clerks dashed m. "Seregant Boslier!" she cried, losing the door behind her, w o l,ere , ° n earth can that file have eotto.CA.i. have just 'phoned to tell kaptai Dasher that they have never received lt- "Good Lord!" exclaimed SfS^ nt Bosiier, clutching he . ad > J have sent it to R.A.T. insteadofto G A.T. Never mind, Miss Jinks,, he added, soothingly, ' you slian t get into trouble ovei it, anyway. - pcet I shall be able to stop it at the Registry. ." imp]orcd jfiss Jink*. "There will be an awful skafe about it if you don't 1" A few minutes later there was 'inother roar from the next room. Hasn't that new typist of mine come? Does she imagine I am going to dictate to her in there? Tell her to come in at once, Miss Bulks. The other clerk appeared at the door. Ca P ta | 1 " Dasher says, 'Will you come and take some notes, please?' " she said sweetly. I entered tremblingly, but no immediate cause for down a few letters, and alter typing them out laid them in a neat little mle on Captain Dasher's desk. A Jew minutes' peace and-another roar. "Mis—erl" • "i opemd the door and went in. "Take a seat!" said Captain Dasher, firmly. "I suppose ye" k, nm ) ~V? , vw are going to be strafed!" I lifted my eyebrows and endeavoured to look '''"Why " he continued sternly, "did you end this letter 'Your obedient rant' when I began 'My dear Mac ? I replied that I had had no lotter to anyone called "Mac," but Captain Dasher remembered it distinctly., an disregarding my denial, fiteinly told m that it must not occur again.

There were many other strafes dur ing tho (lay. General Tantrum s motor car had not been ready for lnm wliei he wanted it.' so the officer m char® of tho cars had to be strafed. , minute had to be sent to the lady m tlu translating bureau strafing her for life e was"Captain Dasher the onlj person who strafed, itrafcd tlie messengers for not cleal inor his trays often enough. General Tantrum, the head of the Department, strafed Captain Dasher for not reminding him of an engagement, the committee having already strafed the general himself for not attending At seven o'clock everyone cleared off, and with a feeling of utter relief I prepared to denart also. . . "Buzz-zz!" went the general s ben. Tremblingly I entered the great man s oom. He regarded me with i cow ve "Where's Cantain Dasher? lie inquired gruffly. I replied that bought that he had gone. And what ) le — w hy the—-doos he mean by going iff before seveii?" ho growled. l ,railed feebly and withdrew. And next morning there was anotlier trafe for me about that. "You should lever say that anyone's gone, one ot ,he other eirls informed me conhclenlially. "You should have said, On, ,e is not in the room at the moment. Jan I take a message?' and then tlie reneral would probably have forgotten ill about it." ' . Well! I am used to strafes now. At myrate, they arc soon over.—' Daily vlail"