Whilst the men were away fighting a number of my great, great aunt's friends, who were all young women between 18 and 25 years of age, corresponded with one another by postcard, many of which show contemporary cartoons. They sent them for birthdays and to cheer one another up as well as to discuss every day life. The messages they wrote on the postcards were very basic and said very little, but I understand they developed a code to share messages, for example about news they had from soldiers overseas, or about other matters they did not want either the postman or the censor to see. The code involved the specific placement of the stamp on the postcard in relation to the box provided for it. Unfortunately I do not know what their code meant, but the stamps on their cards can be seen in a range of carefully placed positions, and I understand that they were using a combination of the number of notches on the stamp above or below the box and the angle at which the stamp was placed to communicate a certain message. || World War 1 Cartoon postcards sent between women on the home front Rear of postcard showing carefully placed 'coded' stamp.

ΦΩΤΟΓΡΑΦΙΑ ΜΕ ΤΟΝ ΠΑΥΛΟ ΜΠΑΙΛΑΚΗ || Επιστολικό δελτάριο με λευκό περιμετρικό πλαίσιο, μέσα στο οποίο απεικονίζονται τρεις (3) άντρες : από αριστερά, ο Παύλος Μπαιλάκης, ο Ιωάννης Βερύκης, σύζυγος της Ανίτσης και ξάδελφος του Παύλου και ένα ανιψιός του Βερύκη. Στην οπίσθια όψη, φέρει ένα σημείωμα του Π.Μπαιλάκη, με ημερομηνία 29/9/1917, από τη Θεσσαλονίκη, όπου ήταν στρατιώτης, προς τη σύζυγο του Αθηνά που διαμένει στην Ανώπολη Σφακίων Χανίων. Παραθέτει και μια μαντινάδα Λάβε κορμί δίχως ψυχή και σώμα δίχως αίμα και την φωτογραφία μου να μου ενθυμάσε εμένα Λάβε κορμίν που έχεις καιρόν και μήνες να ανταμώσεις και τη φωτογραφία μου να με αποκαμαρώσεις. Είναι σκιάν δεν ομιλήν Είναι ξηρόν το σώμαν και εαν μιλούσε σου έδινε χίλια φιλιά την ώρα || || Ο Παππούς μου ο Παύλος Μπαιλάκης στην Θεσσαλονίκη || Postcard || ΦΩΤΟΓΡΑΦΙΑ ΜΕ ΤΡΕΙΣ (3) ΑΝΤΡΕΣ, ΜΕΤΑΞΥ ΑΥΤΩΝ Ο ΠΑΥΛΟΣ ΜΠΑΙΛΑΚΗΣ || Front || || Postcard || Back

This is a badge for the Scottish Women’s Hospitals for Foreign Service who raised funds and provided doctors, nurses, ambulance drivers and other support personnel in France, Serbia, Greece, Romania, and elsewhere, and they operated from 1914 through to 1919. Dr Elsie Inglis, also a suffragist, was the main factor in setting up the Scottish Women’s Hospitals, having put in an initial £100 of her own money, the fund snowballed and, despite domestic indifference from officialdom, she was able to organise practical medical help overseas through the use of all-women hospital units. Their work was invaluable and deserves wider recognition. || A Scottish Women’s Hospitals badge, which has the text 'SCOTTISH WOMEN'S HOSPITALS' on it, and FRANCE' and 'SERBIA', with the years '1914-19', surrounding a thistle, the national flower of Scotland.