Prisoners of War. In 1915 welfare work was initiated in the German prisoner-of-war camps at home by the late Mr. F. L. Porter, of the English National Council, but ultimately it was handed over to the American Y.M.C.A., and under their aegis extended to most of the European countries. In the British intern- ment camps in Switzerland centres were opened at Murren, Leysin, Seeburg, Interlaken and Geneva, whilst in Holland the Association operated at Groningen, The Hague, Scheveningen, Rotterdam, etc.
Officers. A similar work for officers to that carried on for the ordinary soldier was developed on the same lines, though on a smaller scale. The late Lord Brassey lent his mansion in Park Lane as a Y.M.C.A. club for overseas officers, and hostels were opened in London and the provinces, and also overseas.
Y.M.C.A. Work in London. Tottenham Court Road, the White City and the Crystal Palace were amongst the biggest centres of Y.M.C.A. activity in London during the war. Giro's was a pop- ular mixed club. 250,000 was spent on erecting and equipping hostels for troops passing through the City, and from Dec. I 1918 to Aug. 13 1919 1 ,359,494 service men slept in the Y.M.C.A. hostels in the metropolis, and 1,068,913 in those in the provinces. The grand total from Jan. 1916 to Nov. 1919 was 5,478,774. Primarily for the benefit of overseas troops, enquiry kiosks were opened up by the Y.M.C.A. International Hospitality League in Trafalgar and Leicester Squares, Charing Cross, Victoria and Euston stations, the Strand, and in Parliament Square. From Jan. 1918 to April 1921 826,338 men were dealt with by Y.M.C.A. street patrols; 1,195,496 were welcomed in the social rooms; 55,008 provided with free hos- pitality and entertainment in private homes; thousands of men were taken from the streets and assisted to their quarters; 301,548 were kept from the temptations of the streets by free entertainments in theatres and other places of amusement; 170,637 were piloted round historic London by honorary guides, whilst no fewer than 2,197,840 enquiries were actually registered at the enquiry bureaux.
Motor Transport. 969,970 service men on leave were conveyed free of any expense from station to station and from hut to hut by the Y.M.C.A. volunteer night motor transport during the war, and 254,000 after the Armistice. These figures apply to London alone, but similar service was rendered in many other parts of the country.
On the Western Front. The Y.M.C.A. started work for the men of the B.E.F. in France in Nov. 1914. Centres were opened in all the bases, and, later, the Red Triangle appeared on ruined buildings, cellars and dug-outs up the line. In the great German advance in the spring of 1918 no fewer than 198 Y.M.C.A. centres were de- stroyed, involving a loss of 158,000. At the time of the Armistice there were more than 1,700 workers in France. Specialized work was carried out for Chinese coolies in 124 huts, and many centres were devoted to the use of the Indian troops and others opened for the Portuguese. 69,300 service men on leave stayed in the three Y.M.C.A. hostels in Paris. Seventy-seven Y.M.C.A. cinemas in France were attended by 35,000 men nightly. Y.M.C.A. service to the walking wounded and to the relatives of the dangerously wounded was given free of charge, and after the war many of the huts were retained as hostels for relatives visiting graves, and others for men working in the devastated areas.
In Italy 82 centres were operated by the Y.M.C.A.
Y.M.C.A. Work in the East. There were 10 Y.M.C.A.'s in Malta, serving especially the hospitals and convalescent camps, and one in Gibraltar.
The Indian National Council did effective war work in Egypt and Palestine, France, England, Mesopotamia, and also in East Africa, where there were 51 war Y.M.C.A.'s, 32 being for British troops, 6 for Indians and 13 for Africans. In India there were 115 war Y.M.C.A.'s, 74 for British and 41 for Indian troops, and al- together 412 full-time salaried officers were employed. In Meso- potamia 102 centres were operated by 100 secretaries. The Y.M.C.A. had two steam launches on the Tigris. In Egypt there were 15 centres in and around Cairo, where the bourse was acquired as a hostel for troops, and the 'Esbekia gardens as a recreation centre. The Y.M.C.A. penetrated south as far as Khartoum and Port Sudan, and was established in 35 centres in the canal zone, 6 in Alexandria, and others in Cyprus, Beirut, Suez, Port Said and Aden. In Gallipoli work was opened up in Anzac Bay and at Cape Hellas. Thirty-five centres were opened in the base camps in Palestine and 25 actually in the front line, with extensions as far as Damascus and Aleppo. There were 65 on the Salonika front, and others in the islands of the Aegean and Adriatic. In 1915 a relief ship, the s.s. " Nero," was despatched with comforts and delicacies for the men serving in the Dardanelles.
Russia. The main operations of the Association commenced m July 1918, and continued until the evacuation of the North Russian Expeditionary Force. In the Archangel district 35 centres were opened and 4 railway coaches were equipped as mobile Y.M.C.A.'s. In the Murmansk district there were 21 centres.
The Armistice. With the close of hostilities a much wider field had to be covered; the men were more scattered, and transport- never easy became increasingly difficult day by day. With the Armistice there came a constant flow of repatriated prisoners of war across the frontiers, whose first contact was with the Y.M.C.A. The men were practically starving, and more than 7,000 were fed
in Brussels alone, whilst large numbers were dealt with at Mons, Rotterdam, Aachen, Antwerp, Valenciennes, Vermelles, Nancy, Metz, Amiens, Lille and other centres. At all of these places, as well as at Cannon Street station in London, refreshments were given free at a cost to the Association of 50,000.
The Y.M.C.A. accompanied the British troops to Germany, and 5 big centres were opened up in Cologne, 3 at Diiren, 79 for the use of corps troops, 6 on the lines of communication, and 8 on the Rhine demobilization boats.
Operations were on a big scale in Belgium, where a very strong Belgium Y.M.C.A. developed. Five thousand meals were served daily at the central Y.M.C.A. in Brussels, where there was sleep- ing accommodation for 1,600 men. The Hotel Weber was the largest Y.M.C.A. in Antwerp. Big centres were opened in Namur, Bruges, Ghent, Mons, Tournai, Roubaix, Aachen, Liege, Ostend, Zeebrugge, Spa, Beverloo and other places.
In Constantinople there was a large central Y.M.C.A. and tea gardens overlooking the Golden Horn, whilst several other branches were opened in the vicinity. In the Dardanelles centres were opened at Chanak, and Kum Kale. In the Caucasus there were centres at Datum, Tiflis and Baku. In southern Russia at Taganrog, Novoros- sisk and Ekaterinodar. There were eight posts on the Vardar and Doiran fronts. A mobile railway Y.M.C.A. ran between Salonika and Constantinople. There were three Y.M.C.A.'s on the Danube, and seven along the Anatolian railway.
In Serbia centres were opened at Monastir, Uskub, Velles, Nish, Belgrade and Mitrovitsa.
Work for Ex-soldiers. During the closing stages of the war a Y.M.C.A. labour exchange was opened in London. Within two and a half years 29,000 ex-service men had been placed in situations, and more than 19,200 enquiries registered regarding pensions, al- lowances and other matters of vital interest to the ex-soldier. Seven large hostels and many huts were set aside for the use of demobilized men in London, and others in the provinces. Training schemes were carried out at Kinson (Dorset), Woldingham and in London.
Finance. The total net cost of the work in all the war areas (excluding goods purchased for sale) was 8,189,406. This cost was met as follows: gifts from the public, 2,848,374; grants from Ameri- can, Canadian and Australian Y.M.C.A.'s, 448,082 ; gross " profits " on sale of refreshments, 3,625,522; receipts from beds, baths and billiards, 369,756; proceeds of sales of properties and equipment, 212,574; sundry other receipts, 78,321 ; payment by War Office in respect of services rendered, 610,500. That left the Association with a surplus in hand of 3,723 with which to begin its extensive and costly after-war work for the troops.
It is interesting to note that out of every i spent on the war work of the Y.M.C.A. 6s. lid. came from the public; is. id. from the American and Dominion Y.M.C.A.'s; 93. gd. from gross " pro- fits " on sale of refreshments and receipts from beds, baths and billiards; gd. from the sale of properties and equipment and sundry sources; is. 6d. from the War Office.
It will thus be seen that there were no net profits from the war work whatever. Every penny of the gross " profits " on sales of refreshments, etc., was spent upon the work, and the Y.M.C.A. had every reason to be proud of its business record in this matter. The prices to be charged were fixed by the military authorities, so that there was no question of profiteering. The Y.M.C.A. began without any intention of becoming a trading concern in any respect, but it was soon evident that by supplying cheap refreshments it had its biggest opportunity. The scope of the work was enormous; the total sales amounted to 17,387,804, and the percentage of gross " profits " was 2O'8. The great bulk of the turnover consisted of the sale of penny cups of tea, penny buns, etc. No less a sum than 991,216 was returned to the troops in the form of direct gifts, including free stationery, games and sports, concerts and lectures, hot cocoa and refreshments given free at night in danger areas; to the walking wounded ; to returning prisoners of war, arid in hospital- ity to the relatives of the wounded. (A. K. Y.)
UNITED STATES
The activities of the American Y.M.C.A. in connexion with the World War were so extensive and novel in character that its normal routine of work was eclipsed. But the usual educational and physical work continued through the decade 1910-20 and the Association experienced a healthy growth. In 1910 there were in the United States and Canada 2,017 associations with 496,591 members, of whom 91,756 were boys; the total operating ex- penditures were $7,809,625, and the total net property and funds $60,377,122. In 1920 there were 2,194 associations with 868,892 members, of whom 199,615 were boys; the total operating expenditures were $38,484,800, and the total net property and funds $128,019,000. In the summer of 1916 when the National Guard was sent to the Mexican border, the Y.M.C.A. followed and afforded help and means of recreation for some 150,000 troops. For this purpose over $300,000 was raised during its
