The Red Cross Girls with the Russian Army

Ar

ttle wooden house, where, to her surprise, she

n Sonya Valesky did

y the old peasant man w

d. His little black eyes were red rimmed

ead disconsolately and then motioned her to

the room and on this co

d only her profession, yes, and one other thing. She recalled the words th

and women never care to help one another? This war

was, or what she had done, she must be restored to health. First and last Nona m

services belonged to the sol

ckly as possible N

earance indicated that she was sufferi

ause of a greater lack of sanitation and cleanliness the fever had bee

ore, yet she had heard the disease discusse

as cleaner than most of the peasants' huts, so far Sonya must h

n a few words of their language, Non

anions for the beautiful Russian woman, were probably old servants. If Sonya was a follower of

irl could see that in spirit old Katja and Nik

conscious of the seri

ned far whiter in the past year, was partly concealed under a small lace cap such as the Russian peasant woman often wears. Then, al

d with her orders she cam

should have found out about my own mother here in a strange land. But perhaps I was meant to take care

p when Sonya took

hed and her dark

d. "I cannot explain to you why not, but perhaps when I am strong aga

ds in her hot ones and hel

t the American

an, who had once been her friend, lay seriously ill at one of the nearby huts. Would one of the hospital physicians come

moreover, after certain formalities Nona was all

American girl that nothing in her past

d, amid surroundings which she could not

tasks day after day mute and dolorous. Sonya was too ill to recognize her nurse, and Nona could not a

to make them see her side of the situation. She had written them that Sonya Valesky had proved herself to have

ere the fragments of conversation which s

she even called the name of Captain Dalton. Nona supposed that she must be recalling her meeting with Captain Dalton

lace. Neither did she give any clue to the kind of work that must have engaged her time and energy. Surely Sonya Valesky must have been upon some secre

rtunity for surmising. Nona would never have left her alone for a mo

er the house, now and then the young Russian lieutenant would join Nona along the road. This could only oc

"Anna Orlaff." Of course she gave no reason for her question. But it m

nfided to Nona that he was a younger brother, but t

Sonya Valesky's history. He explained that their families had long k

Nona was wise enough to discover that he was not so simple and direct as she had first believed him. A Russian does not readily betray either his deeper thoughts or his deeper feelings. The young Russian lieutenant would not even spe

eing in her present strange position. No one brought her papers; Barbara's and Mildred's letters contained litt

d nearer the fortress of Grovno. Like stone houses built by children the other ancient Russian forts had f

of an almost fatal illness, and asked for n

rls and women than it is to boys and men. But ever since their first acquaintance Nona had realized that the horror of it wen

Nona's mother when they were little girls. They had both been allowed to go away to college. It was i

her chair the day when the summ

or the two men in uniform. They were not dressed like soldiers, and as s

od, for at the sight of the strangers they drop

o bring her to Petrograd. She had been in hiding here near Grovno for several months and had

patient was not well enough to be moved

rting did she bestow any con

lden brown eyes with her own strang

ship. It may be that I can make the Russian people understand, but I do not feel sure. This wa

lked away a few steps

as you can, Nona," she urged. "Russia

f to speak, Sonya afterwards went away wi

to co