THE CENTRAL COMMITTEE 255 
able. During the second half of the War, when university students 
and pupils of the higher technical schools were mobilized for service 
in the army, it was found necessary to enlarge the class from which 
chauffeurs might be recruited. About the middle of July, 1916, 
women and girls were included among those authorized to receive 
training at these schools. They were warned by the Union of the 
dangers and difficulties that they were likely to experience in this 
work; nevertheless 430 women and girls applied for instruction. 
Many of these, however, had to be rejected, either because they were 
too young or physically unfit or because their educational qualifica- 
tions were judged inadequate. During that year, fifty-eight women 
and twenty-eight men were admitted, and the examinations that 
were held two months later fully justified the experiment, since all 
the women students passed successfully and were found, upon the 
whole, to be even superior to the men in the theoretical understand- 
ing of their subject though slightly inferior in practical work. 
Where women students were deficient in educational preparation, 
they more than compensated this deficiency by zeal and diligence. 
On March 1, 1916, the Zemstvo Union had at its disposal 754 
machines and in September of the same year this number had risen 
to 1,410. Approximately 62 per cent consisted of light cars, 23 per 
cent of light lorries with ambulance equipment, and 14 per cent of 
heavy lorries. Most of the lighter cars were Fords and Studebakers, 
whilst most of the lorries were of the Selden and Harford type. The 
average cost of a machine was 5,500 rubles, which gives an idea of 
the large amounts invested in automobiles alone. Additions were con- 
tinually being made to the stock. In March, 1916, 86,000 rubles 
were spent on the purchases of automobiles and accessories; in Au- 
gust the figure had increased to 3,877,800, and in September to 
6,665,900 rubles. Toward the close of 1916 the maintenance of the 
automobile department alone had cost about 1,000,000 rubles, ex- 
cluding the new purchases mentioned above.® 
Relief of Prisoners of War. 
The participation of the Zemstvo Union in the relief of prisoners 
of war was only indirect. Down to the end of 1915 this work was 
* Izvestia (Bulletin), No. 20, pp. 41-44; No. 29, pp. 61-68; Nos. 45-46, 
pp. 46-47; No. 48, pp. 84-836; No. 50, pp. 15-19; Nos. 52-53, pp. 186-192; 
Nos. 64-66, pp. 28-39.