VOLUNTEER NURSING SISTERS

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2696, 16 February 1916, Page 2

VOLUNTEER NURSING SISTERS

A LKTCER- FROM ONK OF THEM. In tho course of an interesting letter to her family in Wellington, Miss Sylvia Wilson, who was a member of tile little band of volunteer nursing sisters that left New Zealand some months ago, gives an account of the work she has beon engaged in since they arrived in Hgypt ,and of the. way in which that work is appreciated by tho soldiers. It will be remembered that «t the present time Cor rather at the time of writing) there iiad been ail influx of nurses from several quarters into Kgypt, and at the same time tho casualties had greatly decreased, so that many trained nurses had absolutely nothing to do. As that, was tho case, tho . volunteer sisters looked around to find other ways in which they could he of use, and some of them undertook tea-room work, among their number being Miss Sylvia Wilson.

In the courso of her letter Miss Wilson writes: "The tea-rooms are situated in the Eshekiah Gardens, and I went there on our first morning with Miss Higgins and four others, at niua o'clock. Mr. and Mrs. Dunn are the managers, but Miss Greenhorn and Miss Allan (the shipping family) run it. With tho latter is a niece. The rooms, however, are under tho Y.M.O.A. The tables are all outside and in the middle of the gardens ' the Y.M.C.A. has a roller skating rink, Just like a large tennis court, with a stago at 011 c end, and along one side writing and reading tables, fitted up- for the soldiers uncler a shelter, the side of which screens it from tho rest of the gardens. At the other end is the tea place, in which we do our work. Along the fourth side of the rink are the tea tables for tho men, for whom tho tea-rooms have been started. They skate and havo skating hockey matches, and in the evening there are moving picture entertainments, concerts, etc. The tea-rooms arc just supposed to pay for themselves, not to make anything.

"The soldiers come in at all times, in hundreds, from three to nine, and they make the tea their proper meal. Numbers of them say how much they enjoy seeing white women, and the ones just back from the Dardanelles especially enjoy it. It seems to be a thing they cannot seo enough of. Any one who had money could, do splendid work of this kind, and for several friends to combine and do it would he just the very thing. There is no question of its not being appreciated."

Miss Wilson gives a vivid picture of the way in which tho soldiers thronged the place. Sho writes: "I made sandwiches all day, and except for half an liour 1 stood in one place all day, even when I had what was supposed to bo lunch. We had five or six helpers, with natives to do the washing up, but even then we were «o rushed we didn't Know what to do. Even the crusts of bread with paste on them tn -which wo wero finally reduced tho soldiers took ■willingly, and food that had been got for two days' supply, at least, went in this one -flay.

"Over and over again the men will come and say: 'May 1 shake hands with you, Sister? You are the first whito woman to whom I have spoken for months (it might bo ten, twelve, or more months, as the case might be). Over and over again they say how splendid it is to he surrounded by their own kind ancTto eat proper food again, and that just to talk to lis is a pleasure. One Australian lad showed me tho photograph of his mother, who had died whilo he was away."

In a later letter (January 1), Miss Wilson tells her people that in a few days' time she is to enter the Walda Palace Convalescent Hospital for the English, as a probationer. The hospital is from about half an hour to threequarters' train journey from Cairo, aiid was a Turkish palace before the war._ If tho other sistors are like Miss Wilson, it -will beseen that' they arc not likely to be stranded. As a matter of fact,-it Tvo-uld seem that quite a good proportion of them have secured something to do.