The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, March 13, 1904, Page 5

THE SAN FRANCISCO SUNDAY CALL. Ll 2 U o RIZD CROSS IN THE IAR MLEs @LAIQA BARTON N fl“fil@ OPGANIATION HERE AND N JAPAN. THERE . 19,000 s Red Cross, the 4 ton, and like- gainst a wooded back ss bare. Red of the suburban g which single car [} hour to and fron which Miss rks flies the well- lag, and it was here e da t week sittting espond- to see two somewhat When the door had Miss Barton re with ted me to take as Red Cross merriment tender, sympa- ch, next to volce her eyes, characteristic mobile mouth, ansversed with deli- wrinkles which impress one it i a large ps are tr hiful sense of owing their Barton’s seventy-five ars, but to an old- ¢ decorum which for- full expression to a imorous and ridie- In each ome of those thousand little seems to read the con- eyewitness of a funny ppening e midst of grim under circumstances where uld have been little short of sac- laugh smile. Miss Barton pointed to the piled up letters tragedy rilege even to on her desk, and the tremulous smile was now no longer repressed Poor girls! Every one of them wants to go with me to Japan. They seem to think I am recruiting an army of y take it as a matter of shall invade Japan. 1 sa in every war. Red Cross appears to these foolish g women as offering an excellent get away from home quest of strange adventures. er of fa I doubt very much Japar have any need of ross during the present war. w Red The ve one of the fipest Red Cross cieties the world, and there are women in the world better fitted ¥ ee the Japanese women. have a natural tenderness, a gen- s n such matters which xceed those of most other contingency in which it d be possible that the Red Cross ould go to Japan would be in case se resources would not prove fhicier number In such event, Cross of America assistance, just as ocieties of the other ne- come to lend a helping Red late rse, the room where we were sitting was office and sitting-room com- bined, Clara Barton’s innermost ghrine and sanctum, and within its four wallg were the trophies and memoirs of more than forty-three years of active service private R CFERFY TRE TBE B in the cause which has made her name and fame world wide. On the wall are the photographs of great historic scenes in which she has played her gentle part of ministering angel to the suf- fering and afflicted—line drawings and old-fashioned engravings showing her on the battlefields of Antietam, Peters- burg, the Wilderness and others of the terrible scenes of carnage through which she passed in her four years' continuous service during the Civil War. There are reminiscent pictures of the Franco-German war of a few years later—Hagenau, Metz, Strasburg and the fall of the Commune, when she led the first hospital relief into the van- quished city of Paris. There are scenes of the Johnstown disaster, of the Michi- gan fireg, of yellow fever epi- demics, the South Sea Islands hurri- cane, the Armenian massacres and of the recent Spanish-American War. There are the inscribed photos of kings and queens and royal princes and princesses of a half dozen different na- tions, to whose subjects Miss Barton has some time or other rendered ser- forest vice. Of herself it is almost impossible to induce Miss Barton to talk, save in the most impersonal way and upon the most trifiing incidents in her ca- reer. Of her actual experiences in the fleld it is proverbial that no man or woman has ever heard her relate a single concrete incident of all the numberless frightful and highly sen- sationa! =pisodes to which she has been an eyewitnees; nor can the most persistent friend persuade her to dis- ESE RED CROSS NURSES AT ERACKICE WORIC close a hint of aught that might frighten or chill the blood. Her po- sition in this matter Miss Barton ex- plained. “To relate a painful incident. depict a scene of horror, whether that or to horror be physical or moral, always seemed revolting to me. Besides it is useless. It only arouses the latent morbidity of the public and does little toward arousing sympathy and help.” Miss Barton would talk freely, how- ever, about the Red Cross and its work, and her clear, steady, rich voice and with a soft light shining in her fine old eyes—eyes that are large and clear and hazel in color—she touched briefly upon the events of her early life until she became associated with the movement. She told of the childhood spent in her native New England, of starting out to teach school at the age of 13, and of her entry into Washington some years later to fill the first Gov- ernmental department position ever given to a woman by the United States. One memorable morning word came to her as she was working in in her department that the Sixth Massa- . chusetts regiment had been attacked in the streets of Baltimore on its way to the front. She instantly dropped her work and stepped boldly out into the stream that was to bear her into the vortex of the Civil War. The career of Clara Barton during this period forms a brilliant page of the history of American womanhood. At any Grand Army post in the coun- try one may gather moving lines of it, told by veterans in strange voices, full WHAT THE LOCAL RED CROSS IS DOING | VOLURNTEER . © Hose or © ‘Mm’fi’l‘o\r DC MIJVION NURSES WHOST SERVICES GOVt RMENT of strange, pathetic echoes. In the summer of 1865 she went to Ander- gonville under instructions from jthe Secretary of War for the purpos& of identifying the dead and laying out the first national cemetery. Four years of incessant work followed, devoted ex- clusively to searching for missing men who had been killed, and of whom no trace could be found upon the Govern- ment records, and the result of her in- vestigation was that eighty thousand missing men were added to the rec- ords. A total collapse at thz end of this arduous work necessitated a rest and AMERICAN RED CROUW JOCIETY CFOUS HQSPITAL ar TOKIO #aVF LEES CEFERED TS LHE change of scene, and she was ordered to Europe, where she came in contact with the Red Cross and its work for the first time. And here the history of the Red Cross in relation to this coun- try may be said to commence. The fame of her war record and the stu- pendous work she had just completed were fresh in the minds of European philanthropists when she arrived in Geneva, where the Red Cross Society had originated some years before. She was waited upon by, the Presi- dent ‘of the little republic and the members of the international commit- tee for the relief of the wounded in FASTERN WAR INTERVE POPULARITY OF o o THE ORBER ° o o ‘h!..-e.-*q:r | RED CRovr JOCIETY anDd ADMIRAL KQIFIOKOEY OF THE RWCUTAN NAVY = war. They wished to learn why the United States had declined to sign the treaty of Geneva, which provided that all wounded and sick soldiers and all surgeons and nurses attending them, all hospitals and supplies for their con- sumption, should be held neutral and sacred by both armies. This treaty, upon which the Red Cross Society was founded, had twice been formally presented to the ernment at Washington, in 1864 and in 1868, and had been rejected in both In- Gov- stances, and no satisfactory or ade- quate reason had been given by the nation for the course pursued. Miss Barten mediately set about to study the Red Cross idea in all its details, with a view to urging our Government to action immediately upon her return. While she was en- gaged in her labors France declared war against Prussia. This was in 1870, and within three days Miss Barton, still broken in health, had stepped into the ranks of the Red Cross and was en route to the scene of war to take up the same work she had performed in the Civil War. In all the great battles of this bloody war she took a leading part in caring for the sick and wounded. She worked in Paris through the winter of the siege and through all the horrors of the com- mune, and at the close of the war, after King William of Germany had been proclaimed Emperor in the palace at Versailles, she organized a complete system of relief camps throughout the distressed cities of France. Her reputation had now become world- wide, and when she returned in 1873 she not only brought back an intimate knowledge of the Red Cross, but she hadebeen decorated with the Iron Cross of Prussia, bestowed by Emperor Wil- liam and Empress Augusta, and the Gold Cross of Remembrance from the Grand Duke and Duchess of Baden. Her Buropean work she had passed over to the central committee of Ge- neva and to the rulers of European na- tions in order to devote herself to the organization of a similar society in this country. After five years’ work she succeeded in getting Congress and the United States executive forces to listen to her appeal and permit this country to become signatory to the treaty of Geneva. “It seems incomprehensible that it should have taken a humane and Christian land so long to make up its mind upon a subject so universally-ap- HOSE who know little or nothing about the workings of the Red Cross think that the members have stopped their labor, in fact, that they are not called upon to do anything these days, but such is not the case. In reality they have never ceased their work and areé still at their post of duty, for they are keeping up their hospital duties, aiding discharged. disabled sol- diers and cheering those who are about to leave their native land for an indefinite length of time. Perhaps the casual observer thinks that there is little to do. and of a truth, the task is not an arduous one, yet it takes more time and strength than one is apt to think. Literature and trifling remem- brances are luxuries after one has seen nothing but water, water for sev- eral weeks, and in this simple way we try to make the boys' journey a pleas- ant one. In the midst of all this ceaseless work Clara Barton has issued a call to all the Red Cross societies to hold themselves in readiness to respond to the Eastern cry and, as a consequence, the local societies are quietly gathering together their forces and will be ready to respond quickly if necessary. These workers, who have been trained by years of experience, are prepared and willing to reach out a helping hand to aid suffering humanity from what- ever direction the cry may come. The Oakland society is already planning to .give an entertainment for the purpose of increasing its finances so it will be in a position to lend substantial aid when the demand finally arrives. Suf- fering humanity is the dnly cause the Red Cross knows or understands and the nationality of the sick or wounded is never considered for a single in- stant. To be sure, the society is largely de- pendent upon voluntary contributions, and when Clara Barton wrote to us it was to gsk if we of this coast would be willing to render any assistance that might be asked of us. Evidently she was not absolutely certain and perhaps she fancied that we had been fright- enéd by our last experience, for the work was very heavy and we were kept more than busy. But when our amswer went back it was a big “ves,” and then we straightway set to work to see that our forces were strength- ened in every possible direction. The principle of the organization ap- peals strongly to the hearts of the peo. ple and not in all hlnor_y have they failed to respond to the cry, and very generously, too. Her call was not spe- cific, but no matter what it might chance to be we will meet it whether it will be for money, nurses or hospita! supplies. There are two ways of obtaining all we need. In the first place, the mem- bership is very large and, of course. they are always the first to put their hands down deep into their pockets 2nd bring them up well filled. Besides the philanthropic of every station, rich and poor, come forward with their portion, and even the children are a great assistance, =o it really isn’t such a difficult matter to raise large sums of money. The question of nurses and doctors is one that is very easily and simply answered. too. They freely give their services and are transported from one. place to another free of expense. As to provisions ef all kinds, much has been voluntarily given by.merchants, and when we feel that our supply is not as large as we would like it to be all we ‘are obliged to do is to let it be known and the necessary articles are strajghtway forthcoming and in abun- dance. Occasionally a canvass is made if we are in a great hurry.or the de- expensive, but as a rule the news spreads like wildfire and we are kept busy receiving and taking care of the contributions that pour in from every- where. ‘Whether the people would give as freely for the Japanese-Russian cause h@s not been widely demonstrated as yet, but I think there is not the slight- est doubt of it. The Red Cross is the same the world over—always intent on relieving the suffering and making life a little easier for those who are down cn their luck, and whether it happens to be our own boys or somebody’s else should make no difference. And it does not to other nations. Already England and Germany have responded with material ald and certainly we should be ready to do as much, But whether we will be called upon to ‘do anything at all-is still unsettled, as Japan has one of the best organized Red Cross societies in the world and they have splendidly equipped hospi- tals and hospital ships, besides any quantity of nurses who are already upon the field and are engaged in active work. Clara Barton did not teil us to pre- pare any special line, but to be in readi- ness and as money means quickness and dispatch, all the societles of this coast have been working toward that end and when they really get to work it means that they accomplish some- thing. On account of the great dis- tance it is doubtful whether doctors and nurses would be sent, as we hope to hear that the strugsle is over every day; but notwithstanding all this we have not neglected this end of it and could be able to lay our hands upon the required number of volynteers with- in a few hours notice and have them on their way as soon as need be. Unfortunately, hospital supplies and nourishing, tempting foods are :he things that usually run short before the fact is fully realized, and in all proba- bility this would be one of the things specified for us of the West. No nation does as mueh for their soldiers as the United States, but not- withstanding all this there is great need for the society among them, and even if we were called upon to turn ouc ome and all in the cause of another country or countries, I believe 1 can truthfully say that not one jota of out work at home would be neglected, for the more we have to do the more ‘we can do and the better we can do it, or at least, from past experiences, such has seemed to be the case. MRS. ADA VAN PELT, Vice-President Oakland Committee and Chairman of %{u Committee, pealing to the heart and conscience of mankind,” said Miss Barton to be the fate of every humaniiarian movement to meet at first prehensible opp “It seems an incom- his respect tion. In the Red Cross movement shared .- Iy less indifference and contempt than had the abolitionist movement some years before. To-day wherever in the world there is need of aid in time of war the Red Cross Society of America is ready at a few hours’ netice to dispat supplies and nurses to aid its sister leties wherever they may be i er in Japanesc or 1 an territory and no matter whe may needed we are sure of saf scort enemy, Geneva ment of a strictly as neutral power to go w “As things | is to have a los Japan and it is a@ age newspaper reader to rcalize how vastly the hospital improved since of st »ur Jap on the pit duct camp. ninsula Pit ribl i s acres of 1 and its arth day its dead and starv- ing wounded frozen to the ground and cur commissions and their supplies in ‘Washington, with no ctive organ- izatior: to go beyond: of Petersburg mine, with its 4000 d and wounc and no flag of truc the wounded broiling in a July sun, and then dying and rotting where they fe “I remember our prisons—Libby, derson and others, all crowded starving men, whom all the powers and pities of the world could not reach, even with a bit of bread. Th Cross exists to. not because has ever been conscious lack of ir vidual kindness in times of war distress, but because there has been and always is a lack of system gover ing individual charity. Without sys- tem individual efforts in anything count for very little.” As Miss Barton ks one becomes impressed with the consciousness that she is a veritable stickler for system and order, even into the minute details of everyday life and conduct. There is pleasing precision about her trim spare little figure and neatness shim- mers from the very texture of her black satin gown. She was dressed for an afternoon call hich was to be made later in the y. which fact ac- counted for the satin gown and the splendid amethyst brooch worn at the throat, a gift from her long time inti- mate friend, the Grand Duchess of Baden. On the table, scattered among the photographs of princes and prin- cesses, were a few books—old-fash- joned poets and two modern novels. “Are you a great reader, Miss Bar- ton?” 1 asked, expecting the usual conventional appreciations and one or two overpowering enthusiasms. “No,” replied the lady, decidedly. “l am not a great reader. I don't read much of anything.” “You are too busy now, of course, but you have read much in the past? and the question was sincere, for in desultory conversation Miss Barton seems to be tinctured with the litera- tures of all the lands. The insistence upon the subject did not meet with a cordial reception, however, and she shook her head impatiently. *“No, I do not read much now, and I never have read a great deal—that is, judged by the way the people of to- day devour books. Reading in my young days was a sort of recreatiom, although it could be hardly called a fashionable recreation. There weren't so many books to read, and there was not nearly so much time to read them. Perhaps I might have read more had I not been so busy all my life. I must confess, though, that books are not much to my taste, not much more than theology Again Miss Barton's delicate littie wrinkles began to show signs of sup- pressed merriment. “You are not a church woman, then, although you did come from New Eng- land?” “No, I am simply a well dispos pagan.” “You will probably be a Japanese sympathizer, then?” Miss Barton shot a humorous flash across the table toward a particular picture, which showed her standing side by side with a flerce admiral in full dress uniform. “Oh, no,” said she. “I love the Rus- sians, and I could not take sides against them, even if the Red Cross were not an avowedly neutral body. The Rus- sians I have found to be the tenderest hearted people in the world, especially the Russian soldiers, and I have met a great many of them. Why, the last time I was in St. Petersburg I stood up and had my picture taken along- side of Admiral Kosmokoff, and there it is.” Reposing in no greater security than that offered by a bureau drawer Miss Barton has a collection of jewels that wouid make a society queen envious, each and every one of them a token from the royalty of the Old World. There are splendid bragelets, and pear! and topaz brooches from Prus- sian princesses, innumerable gems from the Duchess of Baden, a lid gold liqueur service, richly inlaid with rare enamel, from the Tsar himself; silver and gold medals innumerable; old and rare jewel from the old Emperor ‘William's Queen, and countless honor- ary decorations, the most important of which are the Iron Cross of Prussia and the Order of the Red Cross from the Tsar of Russia.