ENROLLING FOR NATIONAL SERVICE

Evening Post, Volume CXXVII, Issue 117, 20 May 1939, Page 19

ENROLLING FOR NATIONAL SERVICE

(By Air Wail, from "The Post's" London Representative.)

Ib- LONDON, April 17. '%? Women are playing an important part in Britain's national i? service plans. Already about 155,000 have enrolled in various organisations. The Auxiliary Territorial Service' has signed up about 10,000, the Women's Voluntary Services about 127,000, the Nursing Auxiliary Service Has nearly 12,200, and the Women's Land Army nearly 6000.

Now it has been decided that the . Women's Royal Naval Service, known | during the war as the "Wrens," is to j be revived. The King has given per-1 mission for the formation of the corps, which will replace naval officers and ratings in wartime on certain duties, in naval shore establishments., Training for some of .these duties is to be given during peace.

Rapid progress has been made with irecruiting for the Auxiliary Territorial •Service, which is now more than halfway towards its establishment -of 20,000. There is no falling-off in the speed of enrolment.

Recruiting for the Women's Volunjtary Services began on January 1, and '.by March 18 a total of 87,400 had been ■ enrolled, estimating on a basis of a 60 iper cent, return of figures from local centres. Since then enrolment has ibeen proceeding at the rate of 10,000 a week.

The total of 87,400 was composed of workers in A.R.P. (46.6 per cent.), transport and ambulance (8.3), hospital service (16.2), and evacuation (28.9).

It is estimated that about 40,000 women transport service workers will be wanted. The London County Council will require 17,000.. Statements of needs from all over the country show that most local authorities want about 50 per cent, of their ambulance drivers to be women.

The Marchioness of-Reading, head of the Women's Voluntary Services, has praised the enthusiastic response of British women to the appeals for National Service.

"The importance of learning to do a job before an emergency arises is very great," she said. "I have been struck in going round the country by the considered response of women to the various appeals and by the awareness of women generally of the need to train in advance to fit themselves properly for the work they may have to take up." ■'•■'•

Women who enrol in the Land Army

Dame Katharine Furse, who was Director of the Wrens during the war, has said that she would not take an active part in the reviyed service. "The younger women are wanted today," she added.

"Of all the 'orrible things this 'orrible war has brought us, them 'orrible women are the worst."

must be ready to take up farm work as a full-time occupation in time of war. They are invited to join now, but it is not at present intended to arrange peace-time training courses.

In the event of war, the W.L.A. would be organised under the control of a women's branch of the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries. Lady Denman, D.8.E., has. agreed to become honorary director of this branch if the need arises.

Women's committees will be set up in every county to assist in recruitment, and in the placing of members on farms. The chairmen of these committees have already been selected. The Women's Land Army is intended to be primarily a mobile force, consisting of women ready to undertake air kinds of farm work in any part of the country. But women able only to offer their services for work in a particular district are also needed.

It is probable that most of the members of the W.L.A. would be employed and paid by individual farmers. Some, however, might be organised into travelling parties, for hay and corn harvests, potato lifting, and similar operations.

The members would wear uniform, and the organisation would supervise their lodging arrangements and general welfare. Among the branches of work for which they will be needed are dairying, care of livestock, and field work; some will be trained for tractor driving and care of farm machinery.

The Ministry of Agriculture say that in the event of war arrangements will be made for short courses of training at centres,, or on approved farms, for women who need it before taking up employment. LEADER OF THE "WRENS." Leader of the new "Wrens"" is now a married woman with three children, but she is delighted that she is going to "join the Navy again." She is Mrs. Laughton Mathews. She served during the Great War as an officer of the W.R.N.S., formed at the beginning of 1918 and demobilised in the autumn of 1919. She is one of the pioneers of the Sea Ranger branch of the Girl Guides movement and a Divisional Commissioner of Girl Guides.

Though the W.R.N.S. did not exceed a total strength of 5000 during the war, it performed service of distinct value to the country during the concluding year of the war. Duties undertaken included much confidential clerical work, coding and decoding, : bookkeeping, storekeeping, telephone operating, motor driving, and cooking and stewards' duties.

Still more technical jobs undertaken were those of electricians, mapmakers, wireless telegraphists, mechanicians, and ,the cleaning of rifles and small arms. , At the end of the war all the Admiralty motor transport work with the exception of heavy lorries was being done by "Wrens."

Under the Humber Defence Command many women were put on to mechanic's work, cleaning and oiling torpedoes and making anti-submarine nets. At the Battersea experimental workshops they did drawings and tracings *for all kinds of new machines and guns. A few of them qualified in the delicate work of adjusting gyro-com-passes and the tricky work of priming depth charges. Many of the shore wireless stations had women operators who were engaged on confidential coding and decoding, and seven of the outstanding successes among the "Wrens" were on night , and day watches in the wireless rooms at the Admiralty. ~,...

Speaking of the war days, she. said: "The Navy treated us handsomely once they got over their first uneasiness at having women in the Service." Miss Ethel Boy don, hon. secretary of the Old Comrades' Association, recently told of a Greenwich canteen chiefcook, who said at first: .