LITTLE WAR MOTHERS.

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume VIII, Issue 216, 14 August 1918, Page 2

LITTLE WAR MOTHERS.

A GREAT AND WONDERFUL ARMY. I met her first at the local national kitchen, writes a lady attendant at one of those valuable institutions which the war has brought to England —a tiny little figure in cheap black, with bright, but shabby, boots many sizes too large, and old cotton gloves, many sizes boo small, that left bare an inch or two of red wrists above them. She carried in one hand a jug almost as large as,herself, and in the, other a poor little purse. On her arm there hung a market basket of rush, and to her little short skirt there, clung a mite about three, with great blue eyes and a round wpt mon til. Two small boys, of about six and eight, eagerly watched her as she peepjrd over the high white counter critically examining the tempting dishes arranged there before making her choice. "Two of soup, two of vegetable pie, two of tapioca—and how much will that leave out of a shilling?” she asked the kind-faced woman be hind the counter . With the odd coyyers she wisely bought fruit. I tielped her io put the good food into her basket, and she told me her age was ten 1 “Baby” would soon be three, and had never seen “Daddy,” who had been killed “killing Germans.” “Her name’s Gladys May,” the little mother told me, as she proudly took oil the. close-fitting crochered bonnet to show me the golden baby earls that clustered damply round the little head of that very self possessed small persons who was evidently well used to admiration.. We walked along the hot, sunny road together—ilearried the large jug of nourishing soup, she carried the laden basket. “Mother,” 1 was told, was working in a munition factory. Of the two little boys, Archie, the elder, worked “at a lady’s” before and after school cleaning the knives and boots for 4.,'G a week. Bert, the younger, went round wit it papers. "And I keep; house,” _ she said simply, with a quiet dignity far beyond her ten years. Eventually we turned down a dim and narrow court to a tiny little house, half of which they call “'homo.” With a very big key Archie opened the door, and 1 wa cited the little trio mount the steep steps to the “upper.” Since- that day I have come to krmw my “little mother” well, and through'her I have found that, she is buf one of a great and wonderful army of such brave mites “keeping house” and mothering the vounger children in the many homes where mother is away all day figGt•ing in the factory and father is away fighting in the field. Dear, loyal little heroines’ Wat has robbed them of their blessea voubi; hurried them down the. s-na n cf life, ’p.st the happy, careless fi. ’ds of childhood, on to the t’-ouhled waters cf maturity while std! in years they are babh-s. True daughters of their war waging parents, theirs is not toe spirit of sacrifice —it is the grand, innate spirit of xhe race —the glory of our England.