222 THE ZEMSTVOS DURING THE WAR
of Towns regarding the division of sphere of action, the Zemstvo
Union actually found itself compelled to organize bathing stations
at the front; though up to January 1, 1916, only one detachment,
which opened three bathhouses, was in operation. After that date
eight additional detachments were formed. By June, 1916, twentytwo
 detachments were already in operation on the southwestern
front. During June, 1916, a month for which we have complete
data, 112 bathhouses, 29 laundries, and 15 tea rooms were operating
 on this front. In the course of the same month 481,796 men used
the bathing stations, 879,796 pieces of underwear were issued,
392,740 pieces of underwear went through the laundries, and 30,318
pieces were repaired. During the same period the canteen attached
to the bathing station was used by 118,882 men. In the second half
of 1916 the capacity of the bathing stations at this front was estimated
 at 6,000,000 men a year.
At the beginning of 1917, 25 bathhouses and 28 laundries were
in operation on the Caucasian front. The number of zemstvo bathhouses
 on all fronts during the second half of 1916 was 372. When
working at full capacity, they were able to deal in one day with
about 200,000 men; the actual average daily number of visitors,
however, was slightly over 100,000. It would appear, therefore, that
the need of the army for bathing facilities was fully met.

Canteens.

The creation of the zemstvo canteens has a direct relation to the
relief work conducted for the benefit of the sick and wounded. They
were originally designed to provide food for the wounded and sick
men, but soon extended their activities to all soldiers. At the beginning
 the work of the zemstvo canteens met with little approval from
the military authorities. In their opinion official army canteens,
which provided food for officers and men traveling on official duty,
met all the requirements of the army. The zemstvo canteens, on the
other hand, by feeding all who applied to them, were thought by the
higher army authorities to be encouraging desertions and vagabondage.

After a short time, however, the military command was compelled
to have recourse to the services of the zemstvo canteens for the
refugees and the local population in the war zone were begging for