nightmare to think of that first winter of the war, with its gales, rain and mud, and it was when the weather was at its worst that the men of the first Canadian Contingent were encamped on Salisbury Plain. It is difficult to conceive what they would have done, but for the timely help of the Red Triangle. The roads were almost impassable, and the mud in the vicinity of the camps appalling, but the Canadians stuck it, and so did our leaders and workers. The tents were crowded to their utmost capacity, but it was soon found that no tent could weather the gales of Salisbury Plain in winter. That discovery led to the evolution of the Y.M.C.A. hut. Wooden frames covered with canvas were tried first of all, but they, too, were incapable of withstanding the fury of the gales, and something much stronger had to be provided.

It meant a great deal to the country during that first winter of the war that the men were happy and contented, because they had their leisure hours pleasantly occupied, and because the most popular place in camp was almost without exception the one that bore the sign of the Red Triangle. And what did they find at the sign of the Red Triangle? They found there an open house, a warm welcome, a place of recreation and enjoyment, where they could meet their friends on terms thoroughly cordial and unofficial. Coffee and buns were always a great attraction, and as for music—the piano was hardly ever silent. Tommy Atkins loves a good tune and loves a crowd; the quiet place does not so much appeal to him. At the Y.M.C.A. he found diversion for his hours of leisure; opportunity for study if he cared for it; libraries, classes, and lectures. There, too, he found an expression of religious life that appealed to him, the inspiration that comes from religion without the controversy and sectarian bitterness which, alas! too often accompany it, a religion to work by and a religion that can do things. Before the war nobody had heard of our mystic sign, but within a few weeks letters bearing it had found their way into hundreds of thousands of homes, bringing joy and consolation wherever they went. That, in brief, is the story of the coming of the Red Triangle. And what is its significance? As the emblem of the war work of the Y.M.C.A. it has not been chosen by chance, but because it exactly typifies the movement it represents. The threefold needs of men are its concern, and its programme is adapted to meet the needs of body, mind, and spirit, whilst its colour symbolises sacrifice. In an old book of signs and wonders called Mysterium Magnum the inverted triangle appears as a symbol of the divine spirit, and in the third year of the war a famous Belgian painter asked 'Qu'est-ce-que c'est—cet Y.M.C.A.?' and without waiting for an answer went on to say that the Red Triangle meant emblematically—'Spirit informing and penetrating matter,' which was, he supposed, the function of the Y.M.C.A. 'The Y.M.C.A. is attempting the impossible,' said one of its critics; 'it is building on the apex of the triangle.' Thank God it is. Yes! and thank God it has achieved the impossible. If any one had dared to foretell four years ago, a tithe of what has already been accomplished, no one would have believed it. The secret of the inverted triangle is that it is upheld by invisible hands, and it is the full programme of the Red Triangle that appeals so irresistibly to the men. If we were merely out to run a canteen, others could perhaps have done the canteen work as well, or nearly as well, as the Y.M.C.A. Others could run lectures for the troops, and others cater for their spiritual needs, but it has been left to the Y.M.C.A. to formulate the appeal to the whole man—Body, Mind, and Spirit—and the appeal to every man, irrespective of creed or party. Every man is equally welcome in the Y.M.C.A.—Protestant, Romanist, Anglican, Free-churchman, Jew, Mohammedan, Buddhist, Hindoo, or Brahmin—the men of every religion and no religion, and yet the religious note is ever dominant, though no man's religion will ever be attacked from a Y.M.C.A. platform.

The story of the Red Triangle is, indeed, one of the great romances of the war. Its work has never been regarded as an end in itself, but rather as auxiliary to that of other organisations. It is auxiliary to the Church, and its doors have been thrown wide open to the Padres of all denominations. Protestants, Catholics, Jews—even Mohammedans—have worshipped God in their own way within the hospitable walls of the Association. It has been auxiliary to the official medical services of the Army, the R.A.M.C., and the Red Cross—in hospitals and convalescent camps, and with the walking wounded at the clearing stations at the Front. It has arranged concerts and entertainments by the thousand for patients and nurses; has looked after the friends of dangerously wounded men, and has often handed over its huts to be used as emergency hospitals; while in hosts of other ways which can never be recorded, it has been able to render vitally important service. It has been auxiliary to the Military machine at every turn of the war. In the midst of the camp though not of it, its secretaries and workers conform to military rules and are subject to discipline, although they are themselves civilians. In this way the Association has provided the human touch, and officers and men alike have appreciated the fact that there is one place in camp where discipline through being temporarily relaxed, has been permanently strengthened.

The Romance of the Red Triangle, like the story of the first crusade, has been the romance of the pioneer. The Y.M.C.A. was first in the field, though now there are many other organised societies and private individuals doing similar work on the lines which it thought out and proved to be practicable. Indeed, the whole story of the Y.M.C.A. has been full of adventurous episodes of romance, not merely during the war, but long before it, commencing seventy years ago, when George Williams came as a boy from Somerset to London, and as one of a band of twelve intrepid young men, founded the first branch of a movement destined to spread to all corners of the world. It is only during these years of war that the Society has fully come into its own, and received universal recognition, but we do not forget that to those pioneers of the early Victorian days and to the Y.M.C.A. leaders, who during the years before the war hammered out a policy for work amongst soldiers in the Volunteer and Territorial camps, the widespread movement of to-day is largely due.

To know what the Army thinks of the Y.M.C.A., one need only note, on the one hand, the facilities given to the Association by officers in high command; and on the other, how the N.C.O.'s and men—officers and officer-cadets too—make use of the huts.

HUT IN THE GROUNDS OF THE RUINS OF THE HÔTEL-DE-VILLE AT ARRAS

Prior to one of our great advances in 1917, the district to be attacked was reconstructed behind the line in a large map carefully worked out on the ground, every road and path being clearly marked. Every trench, redoubt, and dug-out; every hedge and ditch was recorded, and every gun emplacement shown. 'Reserved for the Y.M.C.A.' was written over a vacant plot near the centre of the map.

In France 'Le Triangle Rouge' is often called 'Les Ygrecs' (The Y's), and the Red Triangle