Our £5000 "Campaign Comforts" Fund.
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£1002 More Received to Saturday Last than there then Remained to be Ob-i tamed. What the Military Forwarding Officer at Southampton Thinks of Our Distributing and Packing Arrangements. More Woollen Comforts Urgently Wanted Before the Cold Weather Ends.
Patroness: H.R.H. Princess Arthur of Connaught.
Ladies Committee: Mrs. S. S. Long (wife of the D. S. and T., War Office), Mrs. Shrapnell-Smith (wife of The Editor). Mrs. R. IL Bagnall-,Wild (wife of a former Sec. M.T.C.. War Office), Mrs. H. E. Slain (wife of the Operating Manager, L.G.O.C.. etc.), Mrs. W. E. Donohue (wife of the C.1.M.T., War Office), Mrs. H. N. Foster (wife of the D.A.D.T., War Office).
There has been one addition. to the list of donors of the maximum of £50 each, i.e., one per cent. of the total which we seek for our fund, since we last referred to the growing readiness on the part of members of the industry to place themselves in that category. We refer now to J. and E. Hall, Ltd., of Dartford, Kent. That name was added last webk, but we omitted to point out the effect of the increase.
Money continues to arrive steadily from different parts of the country, as is testified by the accompanying further list of donations in cash. The total of cash receipts to Saturday last is £3001 4s. 7d. We were, thus, up to Saturday last, in the happy position of having received 21002 more than there then remained to collect.
Will those of our readers who have been cooperating with us by helping over the collecting-card side of the arrangements please remember that we desire to have back all cards, whether completed or only partly filled, by not later than Monday 'next. A point to be noted, in the interesting and friendly rivalry to head the list, which we gather to exist between the Mechanical Transport Depots at Bulford and Grove Park, is that Bulford at the moment is £50 ahead, with a total of £250 to date. Grove Park is an excellent second, whilst Aldershot stands third, with a total of 280 so far.
We understand that collections will be made before the end of February at various A.S.C. messes, and also at the messes of certain transport and supply columns of the Territorial Forces, although it has to be recognized that the latter are in the course of being broken up and converted into regular columns of M.T., A.S.O. The additional help which we are told is coming will be highly valued, and of course duly recorded in our columns from week to week.
We have much pleasure in recording personal donations of .210 each from the two fathers and founders
of the heavy motor industry. We here refer to the donations from Mr. Henry Spurrier, J.P., father of the brothers Spurrier (Leyland) and Sir John I. Thornycroft, F.R.S., fathee of the brothers Thornycroft. These personal remittances, of course, are over and above the 250 each from the companies with which the respective donors are so closely identified. Gilts in Kind Received During the Seven Days Ended the 13th Inst.
Mrs. Black, Harrow-on-the-Hill (6 pairs bed socks, 1 body belt, 1 pair mittens, 1 pair sacks, 2 mufflers, 1 helmet). Mrs. W. Kidman Bird, Cambridge (2 helmets, 1 pair mittens).
Bandaging Class, Miss Hogben's School, Wilmington (2 sweaters).
Per Mrs. Bagnall-Wild (5 pairs seeks, 1 Dry-Foot outfit). Miss B. E. Butcher, Fulham (1 scarf, 3 tablets soap). B. Cumming, Portree (6 handkerchiefs, 6 boxes boracic ointment, 6 boxes boracic powder, 6 pairs bootlaces, 3 tins Oxo, 3 tins dubbin).
Per Mrs. Foster (37 pairs sacks, 1 cardigan, 52 body belts, 81 handkerchiefs, 11 pairs mittens, 4 pairs cuffs, 2 helmets, 24 mufflers, 4 flannel shirts, 15 pipes, 3 mouth organs).
Mrs. M. Gibson, Edinburgh (12 body belts, 4 pairs socks). • Mrs. Gera, Golders Green (2 body belts, 1 muffler). " Mrs. W. Wolluston Grooms Surbiton (5 pairs 'gloves). Mrs. L. Jeffcoat, East Firulley (2 body belts, 3 pairs mittens).
Mrs. Maller, Guildford (6 body belts, 2 mufflers, 11 pairs mittens 5 pairs cuffs, 7 pairs gloves, 1 helmet). Mrs. mittens, London (6 mufflers, 6 helmets). Mrs. Morrison, l3ridgnorth (2 mufflers, 1 pair mittens). Opel Motors, Ltd., London (9 doz. tins " Sharpo " razor paste).
J. Warren, Waltham Cross (2 sweaters, 3 shirts, 6 pairs socks).
Ralph B. Wallis, Kettering (1 scarf, 2 pairs mittens, 2 pai7a cuffs).
Mrs. L. Wallace, Cowdenbeath (2 pairs socks, 6 tablets soap).
Anonymous, East Ham (1 body belt, 2 pairs mittens, 2 packs cards). Miss E. Hopkinson, Linlithgow (4 scarves, 3 pairs mittens). Miss I Matthews, Penzance (1 scarf, 1 pair socks). Per Miss Windsor, Cricklewood (5 scarves, 2 pairs mittens):
More Socks, but No More Body Belts Wanted.
We would take this opportunity of drawing the attention of those, who are still so willingly preparing woollen comforts for the objects of this fund, that the great need, so far as this class, of gift is concerned, is for socks—and more socks, We learn that body belts are to be had in plenty at the railheads and depots where the A.S.C., 1VI.T., "mostly do congregate," and an officer, who paid us the courtesy of calling here to express his appreciation of the Campaign Comforts work at the Front so late as Monday last, told us that he thought we might very well slacken our efforts to send out body belts in particular. We, therefore, renew our appeal for wellknitted socks.
Praise for Our Packing.
The week which has passed has been a notable one in respect of the work of the Distribution Department of our Fund. The services of the voluntary team of ladies and gentlemen, who have devoted so much time and given so much hard work to the packing and forwarding of the cases, have extracted from the head of that remarkably efficient Government Department D24 —the Military Forwarding Office at Southampton, a letter of unsolicited praise. The officer in charge writes to us as follows :—
"I am glad te hear that the comforts collected by your fund are so much appreciated. The War Office has made every possible provision for the speedy delivery of gifts and only urgent military necessities are allowed to interfere with their prompt forwarding. Cases sent through by you a-re always correctlylabelled and very well packed, and I only wish that the public would pay the same attention to the regulations. In spite of the notes in the Press, etc., cases of disappointment occur daily through the consignors' failing to comply with the regulations. In many cases parcels cannot be traced as the official labels, which are plain2 are improperly filled in. About 25 per cent, arrive here with no name of the consignor upon them. Regulations as to the weight are also ignored in many cases."
This is indeed high praise when one remembers the hundreds of thousands of cases and packages which pass through this officer's hands in the course of a few weeks.
We felt confident that our arrangements were as good as we could snake them, and we knew that the work was being done in our Packing and Despatching Departments here was conscientious and honest. Subscribers, we consider, could not have a better assurance that the money which they have so generously put up for the purpose we have in hand is being employed in the most businesslike manner possible. In these days Of many funds, that is something of which we, of the administration, have reason to be proud, and concerning which subscribers are already generous in their appreciation.
Continued Letters of Thanks.
We continue to receive shoals of letters from the officers and men to whom we are making despatches. All these are most carefully filed, and they are held available for inspection by anyone who is sufficiently interested to read them. We, of course, cannot devote anything like adequate space to the reproduction of any large proportion of them. The most we can do is to include extracts from a few, which must be accepted as typical. We encourage the officers and the men of the A.S.C., M.T., to write to us with suggestions, which will assist us to choose such comforts, as will from time to time be most acceptable to them, and to improve, where possible, our methods of distributing and forwarding.
The Help of the 0.C.s and N.C.O.s.
We cannot express too heartily our sense of appreAation of the invaluable assistance which we receive from the 0.0.s and of the keenness with which 0.C.s, N.C.O.s, and men are alike now co-operating to enable the wheels of our organization to run smoothly. Now that a regular supply of cases reaches the men almost every week, their enthusiasm is unbounded. When we first began to despatch cases there was evidently an impression that the first ones would be the only ones, but now this is all altered. Our weekly table of interesting totals, which is part of the heading of the pages devoted to a record of the work of this Fund, is eloquent statistical testimony to the scope of our operations. We reproduce a few extracts, from letters from the Front, below, which tell their own tale.
"I cannot speak too highly of the way your Fund :s run. We are all deeply grateful for it. It is a pleasure to see the delight and hear the praise with which the men receive your gifts. They always seem particularly gratified to think that their friends at home have not forgotten them."—O.C., MN Cav. Sup. C o I.
" One naturally looks out for these cases of gifts when one hears they are coming, in much the same way as a school boy does when he sees a hamper and wonders what is inside it. Needless to say the men of the A.S.C., M.T., benefit very much by your scheme, and although people at home may not hear the praises that are sung concerning them out here, they are in evidence none the less with the lucky Tommy who gets some of the many and varied comforts which are reaching him through your efforts."0.0., Ell Div. Am. Col.
"Two eases have been received from you, one containing an Edison phonograph, trumpet, records, playing cards, etc., etc., and the other containing more records and some overcoats. These will be used by the men in the Recreation Room here, and the coats will be distributed to the men. I again thank you on behalf of the men for sending these things out to me."—O.C., M.T. Light Repair Depot.
1111 Battery Ana. Col., ME Siege Artillery Brigade, A.S. C. , M. T. , B. E.F.
" Dear Sirs,—We all thank you for your boxes of gloves, etc., the weather being very cold out here. They undoubtedly constitute the most serviceable present that we have yet received. Everyone in the
column has a pair, and also a share of the other useful things.
"I may say that the drivers in this column come from all parts of the British Isles, and I am sure that they will not forget your kindness."
(Signed) Corpl. RD., Private G.R. (Commer), Private F.S. (Dennis), „ L.H. (Maudslay), „ E.G.W. (Albion), „ W.H.G. (Maudslay), G.F. (Albion), „ E.H. (Commer), J.B. (Commer),
„ J.W. (Commer), 73 J.W. (Daimler), „ R.H.W. (Dennis). 23 G.A. (Daimler).
With regard to the packing a record was created last week concerning the packages despatched from our own stores. No fewer than 62 standard cases of mixed comforts of all kinds and of gloves were packed and got ready for delivery on Friday night last between 6 p.m. and 9.30 p.m. An organization which enables such a result to be accomplished of course grows with our experience. Such an excellent result would certainly not be possible were it not for the most enthusiastic co-operation of the band of voluntary helpers, to whose hard working efforts we have already made one or two references.
On the occasion of the last meeting of the Ladies Committee, which took place on Thursday of last week, we were particularly requested publicly to acknowledge the indebtedness of the Committee to these helpers, amongst whom are Miss Mayell, Miss Mileman, Miss Pike, Miss Sheasby, Miss J. Thomson, Miss M. Thomson, Miss Windsor, and Mrs. Hall, Messrs. Day, Derricks, Hall, Jolley, Peach and Vacher.
We have no doubt that, as time goes on, even better results will be achieved, and we only wish it were possible for some of our subscribers to pay a visit to the busy scene which takes place in and around our stores on the Fridays of most weeks, and which is increasingly remarkable evidence of the activities of the Fund.