Since she is older and had many more experiences than young Editha, she understood that there were many more negatives than positives about war, and it must be someone's own decision to enter a war if they are going to risk their life in that manner. She saw that it was George's life on the line, and she knew that she must be empathetic to him. Talking about what women think of their men going off to war, Mrs. Gearson says "They think they'll come marching back, somehow, just as gay as they went, or if it's an empty sleeve, or even an empty pantaloons, its all the more glory, and they're so much the prouder of them, poor things" (121). She is able to empathize with all men put in George's position by a woman, and since she has first-hand experience watching her husband come back from war crippled, she has completely negative feelings towards violence and the war in general. .
Regarding George's decision to enlist, it is clear that Editha felt a huge amount of pride, while Mrs. Gearson felt nervousness and sadness for him. Because of the misfortune in their family where George's father lost an arm in the war, George was raised in a home that abhorred war, and he "was always a timid boy." Therefore, Mrs. Gearson knew that the only reason George went to war was to please his beloved fiancé Editha. The fact that Mrs. Gearson had experienced a tragedy within her family in the past because of the war, makes her feel even worse that it happened again and there was nothing she could do to prevent it. It is clear that she felt total sadness about losing her son, and even more bitterness towards Editha for being the main influence on George's entering of the war. Also, although Editha was passionate about George going to the war, she felt much responsibility and guilt when she heard of his death. She felt so much guilt that she even admitted, "I would rather have died myself than done it!" (121).