Page:This side the trenches, with the American Red cross (IA thissidetrenches00desc).pdf/43

 The children, however, went to school. They learned the English language and they learned American ways. When the two oldest boys reached working age they were able by reason of their greater knowledge of things American to earn almost as much as their father. More and more they saw the difference between the foreign atmosphere of their home and the American tone of the rest of the city. They began to feel superior to their father and mother, and dissatisfied with the family life. When the United States entered the war they enlisted, partly as a means of escape from their home.

Without the wages of the boys the family found it difficult to live. The man sought the advice of the Red Cross. The Home Service worker recognized immediately that the trouble lay largely in the failure of the parents to adapt themselves to the life about them. The man looked very much the foreigner. His hair was long, his moustache trailed down over the corners of his mouth—even the color and cut of his clothes stamped him as being an outlander. The first Home Service remedy was the barber and the clothing store. Then there were talks with the man about his ambitions. He was made to feel that he had the backing of the Red Cross. The Home Service worker learned of a position in a bank. Armot was sent to apply for it. With the new feeling of confidence which the Red Cross had given him, and the consciousness that he was groomed in American style, he obtained the job. He has proved himself to be a valuable worker and is earning twenty-five dollars a week.

In the mearitime, several members of the Home Service Section had called to see Mrs. Armot. She