Chapter I: Part 1

VOLUME EIGHT APRIL, 1913 NUMBER TWO

THE AMERICAN
RED CROSS
MAGAZINE

ISSUED FROM THE NATIONAL HEADQUARTERS
WASHINGTON, D. C.

FOUNDED TO AID IN THE PREVENTION AND
ALLEVIATION OF HUMAN SUFFERING IN TIMES
OF PEACE AND WAR]

CONTENTS

American Red Cross Officers 2

Form of Bequest 3

Frontispiece 4

Opinion and Comment 5

New name, new paper, new department.
Mayor Gaynor’s Southern Flood Relief Committee.
Cincinnati Chapter wide awake.
Chapter news wanted for publication.
Red Cross law and those who violate it.
Our countrymen’s splendid service in Turkey.
Brigadier-General Carroll A. Devol, U. S. A.
Physicians will help the Red Cross.
The forty-ninth State Board.
The Red Cross in Baltimore.
The Red Cross Building.

Vivid Glimpses of the American Red Cross in Turkey 12

Fighting the Cholera in San Stefano.
Situation in Salonica.
Red Cross Work for Refugees in Western Asia Minor.
Activities of the Red Crescent Society.
Savages four hundred years ago.
Faik Pasha Della-Sudda.

Red Cross and White Cross in Mexico 27

Dynamite Explosion at Baltimore 33

Public Works and Relief in China 34

Nicaraguan Famine Relief 39

Important Conference on Red Cross Christmas Seals 41

What the Red Cross Seal has done for Brooklyn 45

First Aid Department 48

First Aid in Australia 52

Red Cross Nursing Service 54

Rural Nursing.
Home Nursing and First Aid Instruction for Women.

The Red Cross at the Inauguration 60

Red Cross Endowment Fund 63

Advertising Section 65

THE AMERICAN RED CROSS

_President_

HON. WILLIAM H. TAFT

_Vice-President_

MR. ROBERT W. DE FOREST

_Treasurer_

HON. SHERMAN ALLEN

_Counselor_

HON. WILLIAM MARSHALL BULLITT

_National Director_

MR. ERNEST P. BICKNELL

_Secretary_

MR. CHARLES L. MAGEE

CENTRAL COMMITTEE

_Appointed by the President of the United States._

Major General George W. Davis, U. S. A. (Retired), _Chairman_.
Honorable Huntington Wilson, Assistant Secretary of State,
To represent the Department of State.
Honorable Sherman Allen, Assistant Secretary of the Treasury,
To represent the Department of the Treasury.
Brigadier General George H. Torney, Surgeon General, U. S. Army,
To represent the War Department.
Rear Admiral Charles F. Stokes. Surgeon General, U. S. Navy,
To represent the Navy Department.
Honorable William Marshall Bullitt, Solicitor General,
To represent the Department of Justice.

_Elected by the Board of Incorporators._

Miss Mabel T. Boardman, Washington, D. C.
Mr. Robert W. de Forest, New York, N. Y.
Colonel A. G. Kaufman, Charleston, S. C.
Judge W. W. Morrow, San Francisco, Cal.
Honorable H. Kirke Porter, Pittsburgh, Pa.
Honorable James Tanner, Washington, D. C.

_Elected by Delegates._

Brigadier General Charles Bird, U. S. A. (Retired).
Mr. William W. Farnam, New Haven, Conn.
Mr. John M. Glenn, New York, N. Y.
Honorable Charles Nagel, Washington, D. C.
Honorable Charles D. Norton, New York, N. Y.
Honorable Beekman Winthrop, Washington, D. C.

FORM OF BEQUEST

A will in the form following may be used to bequeath money for the purposes of the Red Cross. It would be well to have the same signed by THREE WITNESSES in the presence of the testator and of each other.

All legacies, not otherwise specified, are applied to the Endowment Fund.

I, A. B., of __________ (testator’s domicil), hereby make and
publish the following as my last will and testament:

I give and bequeath to the American National Red Red Cross,
a corporation in the District of Columbia, created by Act of
Congress of the United States of America, its successors and
assigns, the sum of

____ Dollars.

(A. B.) __________

Signed, sealed, published and declared by the above named A.
B. as and for his last will and testament, in the presence of
us, who have hereunto subscribed our names at his request as
witnesses thereto, in the presence of the said testator and of
each other.

__________

__________

__________

© Underwood & Underwood]

THE
AMERICAN RED CROSS
MAGAZINE

VOLUME EIGHT APRIL, 1913 NUMBER TWO

Opinion and Comment

NEW NAME, NEW PAPER, NEW DEPARTMENT

Unless attention is specifically called to the fact, our readers may not notice that with this issue they receive a MAGAZINE instead of a BULLETIN. That time-tried query of the cynic, “What’s in a name?” may be flung at us, and our answer will be that the contents and character of this publication are more in keeping with the accepted idea of a magazine than of a bulletin. At any rate, we like the new name better than the old, and we hope our readers will approve our taste. But whatever may be the verdict upon the slight change of name, we feel assured that we shall hear only approval of the heavier and better paper on which the magazine is printed. We hope also that the new department of “Opinion and Comment” may prove acceptable. Furthest from our thought is any idea that the MAGAZINE is perfect, and any concrete suggestions of improvement which readers may offer will be cordially received and given careful consideration.

MAYOR GAYNOR’S SOUTHERN FLOOD RELIEF COMMITTEE

During the Mississippi River flood in the spring of 1912, Mayor Gaynor, of New York, appointed a committee to collect money for relief purposes. Mr. Robert W. de Forest, head of the New York County Chapter of the Red Cross, was made chairman, and Mr. Robert Adamson, the Mayor’s secretary, became secretary of the committee. Among the prominent members were officers of the New York Southern Society. This committee undertook its duties with such vigor and effectiveness that it became much the largest contributor to the flood relief fund placed in the hands of the Red Cross for expenditure. The committee held its final meeting in Mayor Gaynor’s office on January 21, 1913, when the secretary presented an interesting account of the work accomplished.

Money was received from all parts of the country, although the greater part was contributed by residents of New York City. The New York Southern Society received $14,281.05. From this sum $10,000 was paid to Mr. Jacob H. Schiff, treasurer for the Mayor’s committee. The Southern Society also paid all expenses of the campaign for both itself and the Mayor’s committee, amounting to $1,612.49, and forwarded $600 directly to flood sufferers. This left a balance in the hands of the Southern Society of $2,068.56, which later was turned over to the Red Cross. Including the $10,000 paid in by the Southern Society, the Mayor’s committee received a total of $67,322.39, all of which was transmitted to the Red Cross.

Summarizing the work of both the Southern Society and the Mayor’s committee it appears that the total collections amounted to $71,601.44, of which $600 went direct to the flood district, $1,612.49 was paid for expenses and $69,390.95 was turned over to the Red Cross.

By invitation of the committee the national director of the Red Cross attended the final meeting and gave an account of the relief operations as carried on in behalf of the quarter of a million persons whose homes were affected in the 15,000 square miles of country inundated.

CINCINNATI CHAPTER WIDE AWAKE

Good news comes from the Cincinnati Chapter of the Red Cross, where Mr. Julius Fleischman is chairman and Miss Annie Laws secretary. A permanent office has been taken at 220 West Seventh street, and Miss Hilda M. Reinecke, a well known nurse, has been placed in charge. Miss Reinecke will also serve as instructor in home nursing, for which classes are now being organized. During the flood in Cincinnati in January the Chapter participated actively in relief operations in co-operation with the committee appointed by the mayor, who, by the way, is an active member of the executive committee of the Chapter. Plans are in contemplation for other important activities, and no great prophetic power is required to predict a useful career for the Chapter.

CHAPTER NEWS WANTED FOR PUBLICATION

It is hoped to devote an increasing amount of space in the RED CROSS MAGAZINE to accounts of the work and plans of Chapters. For this reason chairmen and secretaries are invited to send in reports and notes of anything of interest in which the Chapters are engaged or which they are contemplating. In this way the experience of one Chapter will be made available for the help and guidance of others. While establishing policies and strengthening other parts of the national organization the creation and upbuilding of Chapters have been necessarily retarded. It is believed the time has come for a vigorous effort to bring the Chapters into their proper place of importance in the Red Cross scheme of things. Officers of Chapters are invited to study the little handbook recently published with a view to finding suggestions for local activities of an interesting and useful character. It is to be remembered that the handbook is not intended to specify all the activities permissible to a Chapter, but is meant to define in a broad way the legitimate field for Red Cross activities, with a few suggestions of specific lines of work which are consistent with the purposes of the society. The national director will be glad to correspond with Chapters which contemplate embarking in new work. Reports or items of Chapter news intended for the MAGAZINE should be sent to the national director.

RED CROSS LAW AND THOSE WHO VIOLATE IT

That persons who use the name or emblem of the Red Cross illegally, do so, as a rule, in ignorance of the federal law prohibiting such use, and are quick to discontinue the violation when their attention is called to the statute, is a fact frequently demonstrated. A recent instance in point was that of the William Windhorst Company, of Cincinnati. This company had issued some attractive advertising matter which contained the Red Cross emblem. As soon as it was informed that this was in violation of law, the company took prompt measures to recall and destroy the objectionable printed matter and to inform its customers that it holds the American Red Cross in the highest respect and would, under no circumstances, knowingly infringe upon its rights.

Another striking illustration of the same spirit was that in which Mr. Arthur Letts, proprietor of a large department store in Los Angeles, not only discarded all use of the Red Cross in his own advertising, but issued an order to his buyers that no goods bearing the name or emblem of the Red Cross should be purchased or sold in his store.

Members of the American Red Cross everywhere who observe locally the use of the name or emblem on signs or tags or vehicles or for other advertising purposes are urged to call the attention of the users to the federal law which prohibits such use. The secretary of the Red Cross in Washington will always be pleased to learn of such efforts and their results. If a user declines to discontinue the practice, the member of the Red Cross who has called his attention to the law is invited to send the user’s name and address to the secretary in Washington, together with a description of the character of the violation observed. A copy of the law will be sent to any one on request.

OUR COUNTRYMEN’S SPLENDID SERVICE IN TURKEY

Every member of the Red Cross who reads the several short reports from Turkey in this number of the RED CROSS MAGAZINE must be stirred by a deep sense of pride in the great work of humanity which is being carried on by the Constantinople Chapter of the American Red Cross. In the dreadful cholera camp of San-Stefano, in the hospitals filled with sick and wounded soldiers in Constantinople, among the starving refugees, children, women and old men, in Salonica and Asia Minor, the story is the same. Brave men and women giving of their time and strength and skill, disregarding danger and hardship and forgetful of their own personal affairs, are making a record of effective accomplishment under extreme difficulties in that foreign country which should touch the deepest springs of American patriotism. Slight, indeed, as compared to this splendid service is our duty and privilege of giving something of our abundance wherewith to sustain these efforts.

BRIGADIER-GENERAL CARROLL A. DEVOL, U. S. A.

When the Red Cross first knew him he was Major Carroll A. Devol, U. S. A. He was then performing a herculean task in the relief of San Francisco, and was doing the job in such a manner as to arouse general admiration for his executive ability, his promptness and his calmness under extremely trying conditions. Since those days he has proved his mettle in relief work for the Red Cross following the great storm at Hattiesburg and Purvis, Mississippi, and after a great fire of two years ago at Colon, Panama. On the Canal Zone, where he has for some years been United States Quartermaster for the Canal Commission, he was instrumental in establishing a very active and efficient Chapter of the Red Cross.

All this leads up to the announcement that Major Devol, after promotion to the rank of colonel, has now been appointed a brigadier general, and the Red Cross, could it express itself through its MAGAZINE, would extend to him its hand in hearty congratulation and good wishes. He has been a strong and reliable friend of the Red Cross at all times, and through his unselfish devotion has done much to advance its cause and establish its good name. While his well deserved promotion has come as a result of eminent services in the army, we shall no doubt be pardoned for utilizing this opportunity of recalling his great services to the Red Cross.

PHYSICIANS WILL HELP THE RED CROSS

In the RED CROSS MAGAZINE for January, 1913, announcement was made of the appointment, by the American Medical Association, of a committee whose duty it was to confer with the American Red Cross with a view to establishing a comprehensive system of co-operation between the Red Cross and the medical profession of the United States. The committee has proved to be prompt and active. Following is a copy of a circular letter which has been sent to all the county medical societies in the country. It will be found to contain a clear outline of the co-operative plan proposed by the committee and approved by the executive committee of the Red Cross:

February 14, 1913.

TO THE SECRETARY,
County Medical Society,

DEAR SIR:

The undersigned have been constituted a committee by the
President of the American Medical Association to cooperate with
the American Red Cross, in the matter of medical work.

The Committee feels that a great deal of substantial good will
come to all communities by providing a body of representative
physicians of approved qualifications to direct or participate
in medical work carried on by the Red Cross in different
localities in times of emergencies and to advise with the
representatives of that society on questions of medical policy
and procedure. Besides its activity in emergency relief work,
the Red Cross is engaged in an educational campaign for the
mitigation of human suffering and the saving of lives. So
far it has extended this movement only to the teaching of
prevention of accidents and first aid to the injured, but it is
hoped in future that it shall include popular instruction in
the prevention of disease. These medical committees are not in
any way bound to this educational work of the Red Cross, but
members of the committees who may be interested are invited to
correspond with the First Aid Department of the Red Cross.

In the opinion of this committee, the plan may be properly
considered under the following headings:

1. OBJECT. Primarily this service is designed to meet local
emergencies when conditions of disaster are such as to call for
the intervention of the Red Cross. When exigencies come about
in any community the Red Cross would be glad to feel that it
might call upon carefully selected physicians in that community
to lend their aid in the medical work incident to the situation.

2. ORGANIZATION. It is desired to have in every county a
central committee of five physicians, two of whom shall be
the President and Secretary of the County Medical Society,
_ex officio_. The President of the County Medical Society
shall select the other three members, preferably from the list
of councilors or of the executive committee. This committee
should be designated the “Committee on Red Cross Medical
Work.” The names and residences of the members, immediately
after organization, should be reported to the chairman of the
American Medical Association. In case of disaster, requiring
relief action by the Red Cross, these county committees will
be called upon to nominate qualified medical men in their
respective counties for Red Cross service. The committees will
also serve in an advisory medical capacity to the Red Cross in
time of disaster and in other lines of Red Cross activity as
indicated in a preceding paragraph.

3. QUALIFICATIONS. The certification of physicians by County
Committees will be accepted as ample evidence of the physical,
moral and professional qualifications of the gentlemen
recommended for appointment. It may be pertinent to state that
service in time of disaster may entail severe physical effort
and physical fitness of appointees to perform hard work is,
therefore, important.

4. COMPENSATION. In some instances the Red Cross may require
the services of physicians at a distance from their places of
residence and for varying periods. Under these conditions the
Red Cross will be prepared to pay traveling expenses and a
moderate honorarium to be agreed upon between the physicians
and the National Director of the Red Cross.

It will be obvious to you that the arrangement here proposed
is primarily intended to provide for emergencies which may
suddenly arise in any community or, on the other hand, may
happily never occur. Thus it may be that the committee which
we are inviting you to create may never be called into action,
while, on the other hand, it may have occasion to perform a
very great public service. Your cooperation in the completion
of this plan at as early a date as convenient will be
appreciated.

Please address all communications bearing upon the contents of
this letter to the Chairman, Doctor George M. Kober, care The
American Red Cross, 715 Union Trust Building, Washington, D. C.

Very respectfully,

GEORGE M. KOBER, M.D.,
_Chairman._

F. A. WINTER,
_Lt. Colonel, Medical
Corps, U. S. Army._

E. M. BLACKWELL,
_Surgeon, U. S. Navy._

At a meeting of the Executive Committee of the American
National Red Cross held in Washington, D. C., February 14,
1913, the foregoing plan of cooperation between the medical
profession and the Red Cross was unanimously approved.

GEORGE W. DAVIS,
_Major General, U. S. A., retired,
Chairman Central Committee._

CHARLES L. MAGEE, _Secretary_.

Many replies are coming from county medical societies indicating a cordial acceptance of the committee’s plan. It may be said, in this connection, that the medical profession has always been generous and responsive in the highest degree in all its relations with the Red Cross. The purpose of the new plan is to provide a simple system by means of which this cordial relationship may become more effective.

THE FORTY-NINTH STATE BOARD

The New Mexico State Board of the American Red Cross was appointed on February 26, 1913, this being the forty-ninth Board organized since the inception of the State Board form of organization.

Immediately the new States of Arizona and New Mexico were admitted to the Union the first steps looking to the organization of Red Cross Boards therein were taken. The cordiality with which Hon. William C. McDonald, Governor of New Mexico, and Hon. George W. P. Hunt, Governor of Arizona, entered into the negotiations was keenly appreciated by the Red Cross officers at Washington, and it is hoped that the announcement of the completion of the Arizona Board will be made in the not distant future. The membership of the New Mexico Board is as follows:

Hon. William C. McDonald, Santa Fe, _President_.
Hon. Richard H. Hanna, Santa Fe.
Mr. Nathan Jaffa, Roswell.
Mr. John R. Joyce, Carlsbad.
Mr. H. S. Kaune, Santa Fe.
Mr. Owen N. Marron, Albuquerque.
Mr. W. D. Murray, Silver City.

A decision has not as yet been made as to which of the above-named members will be appointed Treasurer of the Board, but no time will be lost in putting the Board into workable shape.

The past election brought changes in the gubernatorial chairs of twenty-three of the States in which the American Red Cross has State Boards. Men elected to such important positions in the governments of the various States must find little time at the beginning for matters other than those pertaining strictly to their new offices, yet out of the twenty-three new Governors fifteen have already accepted the Presidency of the Boards in their respective States. That the Red Cross can make this announcement gives it great satisfaction, and it feels confident that the remaining eight new Governors will also accept the leadership of their State Boards as soon as the first rush of their new administration is over.

During the past year the State Boards of Missouri, Kentucky, Tennessee, Louisiana and Mississippi again demonstrated, during the relief work incident to the Mississippi flood, as did that of West Virginia in connection with the flood in the Northwestern part of that State, the value of the plan adopted by the Red Cross and which comprehends in each State a group of successful business and professional men to act as its financial representatives and advisers in connection with disaster relief work.

THE RED CROSS IN BALTIMORE

On another page will be found a brief account of the recent great dynamite explosion in Baltimore with the relief measures which followed. The incident offers an excellent illustration of the adaptability of Red Cross methods and of the fact that the organization, though national in scope and policy, is none-the-less local in its relations and an integral part of the community in which its service is needed. When a disaster is of such magnitude or character that local agencies of relief are prostrated or overwhelmed, the Red Cross is prepared to provide the necessary machinery for relief distribution; in smaller disasters the Red Cross simply joins hands with other local agencies and lends its strength and influence to concentration of resources and cooperative effort.

In time it is hoped that at least in our larger cities and towns there will exist Red Cross Chapters in affiliation with all the local agencies that can be utilized in case of disaster, so that relief work at such times will all become Red Cross work.

THE RED CROSS BUILDING

In the RED CROSS MAGAZINE for January, 1913, appeared an illustration of the beautiful building which the Red Cross hoped to obtain through the combined generosity of the New York Commandery of the Loyal Legion and the Congress of the United States. The proposed building was to be a memorial to the loyal women of the Civil War and was to become the permanent headquarters of the American Red Cross.

The Loyal Legion offered to donate $300,000 toward the memorial on condition that Congress would give a suitable site in the City of Washington. A bill was accordingly introduced in Congress to carry the plan into effect by appropriating $300,000 for the purchase of ground. Everybody was favorable and all conditions seemed auspicious.

Those who have had opportunities to observe legislation in the making, are familiar with the fact that the only certain thing about it is its uncertainty. A resume of the career of this particular measure affords a shining example in point. The bill was introduced in both Senate and House in the spring of 1912, and was referred to committees in the usual manner. The Senate committee gave prompt consideration to the bill, and of its own accord increased the amount of the proposed appropriation to $400,000, after which it reported it to the Senate, which passed it without opposition. The Committee on Public Buildings and Grounds of the House, after hearings, submitted a unanimously favorable report to the House on the last day before adjournment for the summer of 1912.

When Congress met in December, 1912, the status of the Red Cross building bill seemed most fortunate. It had passed the Senate without opposition carrying an appropriation of $400,000. The House Committee had unanimously accepted the Senate bill and had recommended it for passage. All that remained was for the House to pass it and the President to attach his signature. The road looked straight and easy and not very long, with a bright blue sky overhead.

And then something interfered slightly with the forward movement. Many other bills with many active congressmen behind them crowded into the foreground. There seemed to be no opening for the Red Cross bill to slip through. Big bills for the support of the vast governmental departments had to be given precedence. Time flew and congressmen began to refer to the fact that it was a short session with much to be done. Also the leaders began to urge economy in appropriations.

It was found impossible to get a definite place or date set for a vote on the Red Cross bill. At one time it was proposed to try to call it up by unanimous consent, but nothing came of that. Then those in charge thought better to abandon it as a distinct measure and insert it as an item in the big Public Buildings and Grounds Bill, which contained appropriations for many buildings. Later the cry of economy became more strident and the plan for the Red Cross bill was again changed. Now it was decided not to bring it forward in the House but instead to pass the Public Buildings and Grounds Bill in the House without it and let it be inserted by the Senate when the big bill reached that body.

It is customary for the Senate to add numerous items to bills of this character after the House has passed them. Then the bills as amended by the Senate must go back to the House for the House to accept the Senate amendments. If the House declines to accept the Senate amendments a committee is appointed from each side to confer and try to agree on the items in dispute. Usually both Senate and House accept the recommendations of the conference committees.

So the House passed the Public Buildings and Grounds Bill without the Red Cross item and the Senate was asked to insert that item. It did so. Then opposition arose because the Red Cross building was a memorial to the _loyal_ women of the Civil War. It was argued that the Confederate women were just as brave and devoted and self-sacrificing as the women of the North; that no memorial should perpetuate sectional feeling. The proposition was made that the word _loyal_ be eliminated and that the building be a memorial to _all_ the women of the Civil War. This could not be done, however, because the gift of $300,000 by the Loyal Legion was conditioned upon the retention of the word _loyal_. A sharp discussion followed with the result that the Red Cross item was entirely stricken out. A little later the subject was reopened and the Red Cross item was again inserted and remained there when the Senate passed the bill.

The House refused to accept the Senate amendments and a conference committee was appointed. Several important Senate amendments, among them the Red Cross item, became the subject of prolonged discussion. Congress must adjourn on March 4th. It was now March 3rd and it became imperative that an agreement should be reached. Finally the dispute had narrowed down to this:

The House conferees would consent to the passage of the Red Cross item if the Senate would abandon the item for the purchase of the Rock Creek Valley in Washington for park purposes. The Rock Creek Valley purchase was of the utmost importance to Washington. It had been urged for years and there was no question that it was of greater public value at this time than the provision of a Red Cross building. The Senate forced to this hard choice wisely held on to the Rock Creek Valley item and the Red Cross item was lost.

Perhaps this story of high hope, of keen suspense, of alternating optimism and despair is not worth the space here given to its relation. It is, however, a tale of a gallant fight in which the Red Cross won many friends and made no enemies. Shall it fare better in Congress another year? Who so faint hearted as to doubt?

Vivid Glimpses of the American Red Cross in Turkey

_Following are several illuminating extracts from reports recently received from the fields of Red Cross activity in Turkey. The American Red Cross has been extremely fortunate in the character of its representation in this work. Some of those whose services have been particularly noteworthy are mentioned in the statement below by Mr. G. Bie Ravndal, American Consul General at Constantinople, who is also secretary of the Red Cross Chapter in Constantinople. The composite picture of widely extended and many-sided activity presented by these brief reports conveys an impression of magnitude and importance which must gratify every American who takes pride in the achievements of his fellow countrymen._—EDITOR RED CROSS MAGAZINE.

FIGHTING THE CHOLERA AT SAN STEFANO

BY G. BIE RAVNDAL, _American Consul General, Secretary Red Cross Chapter._

Our Chapter was just withdrawing from the earthquake stricken coast of the sea of Marmora, where, owing to the generosity of charitable Americans, acting through the American National Red Cross, it had been enabled to furnish medical and other timely aid, as described in my report of October, 1912, when the wardogs were let loose in the Balkans, and then began the initial scenes of that terrible drama which, during the winter, has monopolized the attention of the world.

Hardly had the curtain fallen after the first battles, which followed each other in swift, unrelenting succession, before the cholera began its fearful ravages, competing with the shrapnel in deadly work.

Thousands of families, mostly women, children and old men, fled before the onrush of soldiers from the north. Their suffering on the trail baffles all description.

No feature of the catastrophe proved more heartrending than the condition of affairs in the San-Stefano cholera camp, in which masses of sick and wounded soldiers were thrown together after the battles of Louleh Bourgas and Wisa. It is gratifying to be able to report the fact that it was Hoffman Philip, secretary of the American Embassy in Constantinople; Major Clyde Sinclair Ford, of the Medical Corps of the United States Army, and Frederick Moore, of the Associated Press, who taking their lives in their hands, first undertook the heroic work of organizing relief in this place of horror. They were nobly assisted by Reverend Dr. Frew, of the Scotch Mission in Constantinople, by two Swiss ladies, residents of San-Stefano, Miss Alt and Mrs. Schneider, and also by Hon. Maurice Baring, of London. The details of the relief furnished by our Chapter in the San-Stefano cholera camp have been described in letters by Mrs. W. W. Rockhill, wife of the American Ambassador at Constantinople, and I shall not attempt to add to the information submitted by her, as at the time under report I was in the United States. Mrs. Rockhill has taken a leading part in the relief work instituted by the Constantinople Chapter in the present emergencies, and the Chapter is deeply grateful to her. Ultimately the San-Stefano situation was taken in hand by the Red Crescent.

Even before the San-Stefano need had been discovered by Mr. Hoffman Philip, whose action in this relation cannot be too highly praised, the Constantinople Chapter had established two Red Cross wards for wounded soldiers in the barracks at Tash-Kesla in Constantinople, and a fully equipped operating room. This hospital work has been, and is still being, conducted by Major Ford. Major Ford came here while on leave and generously offered his services to the Constantinople Chapter. His professional skill and administrative experience have enabled the Chapter to render invaluable help, which otherwise could not have been furnished by us, in saving lives and alleviating suffering. Major Ford has been ably assisted by D. Alton Davis, secretary of the International Y. M. C. A. in Constantinople; Dr. Walton, surgeon of _U. S. S. Scorpion_, and Dr. Kazakos, a graduate of Robert College.

Since Christmas the Chapter has been giving special attention to the “refugees.”

Dr. Wilfred Mellvaine Post, of the American Medical Mission in Konia, magnanimously volunteered to superintend the Chapter’s efforts in the field for the relief of refugees. Associated with him is Miss Jeannie Jillson, of the American School for Girls in Broussa.

Next to Broussa, as far as the Chapter’s present activities in behalf of the refugees are concerned, comes Salonica. Our relief work is also being extended into Monastir and Koricha in Albania.

SITUATION IN SALONICA

_Letter from Mr. E. O. Jacob._

Salonica, Jan. 3, 1913.

I trust you will forgive me for not writing you earlier. My trip unfortunately lasted 13 days. I had 5 days’ quarantine in Pireus and then had to wait 5 days for a steamer, so that I did not reach here till December 30. I found, as I had feared, that the most urgent need was over, and the work of relief in Salonica itself was already pretty well organized. It seems, however, that my services will meet a real need at least for some weeks. Some one is urgently needed to visit the towns and villages of the provinces and Mr. Haskell is certainly the best man for that.

I am writing this letter also as a sort of report, any material of which you are at liberty to use. You have already received, I understand, a copy of the “Independent,” describing the work of the “Societe de Secours aux Refugies.” This is a quite modest and impersonal description of the work of Mr. Haskell, Mme. Christo Hajji Lazaro and the association whom they have gathered, namely, Pastor Brunau, Mme. Yenny, the wife of a Swiss merchant; Sister Augustine of the Catholic Mission, and lately Mr. van Bommel. They began at once the collection of funds, the investigation of the condition of the refugees and the giving of bread. It must have been a terrible task to locate 50,000 refugees, scattered as they were all over the city, and still more so to inaugurate a system of distribution, for the imams of mosques and the former Mouhtars of different districts tried in every way to turn the funds into their own pockets. But by frequent and tiresome inspections a fair degree of efficiency is now maintained. The committee has now the aid of three native pastors, who are proving very effective in tracing irregularities, removals and other changes.

FRONT ROW (BEGINNING FIFTH FROM LEFT)—MAJOR FORD C. S. A.; TURKISH DOCTOR; MADAME DEPAGE IN NURSING COSTUME; UNKNOWN LADY; MARCHIONESS PALLAVACINI, WIFE OF AUSTRIAN AMBASSADOR; MRS ROCKHILL, WIFE OF AMERICAN AMBASSADOR; DR. DEPAGE.]

This group of people has thus far had to confine its activities to the giving of bread, the most immediate necessity of the unfortunate “muhajjirs.” For a long time they gave at the rate of 9 ounces per person per day, surely a minimum ration. Since this week it has fortunately been possible to raise the rate to 12 ounces a day. Four distribution centers are operated, the people coming to these places for their allowances. At the one where I am working we are now distributing 2,700 loaves a day. The total daily distribution is 8,000 loaves and costs a little over 100 Lt. a day.

In certain directions the financial support has been very encouraging. The largest giver, unofficial, of course, is the Greek government, which has put into the hands of this society about 180,000 francs. Queen Olga has in addition given the good sum of 40,000 francs out of her own purse. From Holland came, as the result of an unsolicited appeal from the Dutch Red Cross Mission here, 25,000 francs. The American Red Cross is credited with about Lt. 350 and about 7,300 francs have come to Mr. Haskell from friends in Switzerland. So up to the present the work has been maintained without a deficit.

It seems clear, however, that as the harder part of the winter comes, aid will, in many instances, have to be given in other ways than the one I have mentioned, as 12 ounces of bread a day will not indefinitely keep the body and soul together. Thus far, in fact, most of those who have received aid have enough money for a little salt and a few olives, for a few candles and a bit of charcoal. But lately we get the complaint more and more frequently that these resources are exhausted and that the bread ration no longer suffices alone. Once in two weeks, in fact, each person gets a half bowl of soup. This is made possible by a very efficient little soup kitchen which the Catholic sisters have opened. But this, too, is certainly only a trifle. Again, as wintry weather comes, we get calls for clothing, bed quilts, etc. Practically nothing has yet been given in this line.

I have thus far been speaking exclusively of the people under the care of the “Societe de Secours.” There is also in the city an “International Committee,” which has been taking up other sides of the same work. It has, for example, in operation an observation camp for those who have been exposed to smallpox. It also charters steamers to convey to Asia Minor free of charge those who wish to seek employment there. I had a long interview with Mr. Forbes in Smyrna and brought to the committee details about his offer to employ several thousand men in licorice digging. They are therefore now sending him a first load of 1,100 persons by the steamship _Assouan_. It strikes us all that to give them like this an opportunity for steady work is about the best service that can be rendered. The largest enterprise of this committee is the maintenance of a concentration camp, which houses 6,000 refugees. Though they have to live in tents they are otherwise under the best of care. The government is military, the sanitary conditions are excellent and everyone directly under the eye of the workers. Unfortunately the operating cost of this camp (about Lt. 80 a day) is so great that the scheme cannot be extended to the others. This committee, moreover, finds itself in a less encouraging financial condition than the “Societe,” and with a deficit already on hand, is not venturing beyond its present range of work.

Then, finally, the needs of the towns in the provinces are begging to be brought to our attention. In many respects they are more sadly in want than Salonica itself. Naturally the armies have absorbed all the available foodstuffs. Moreover, dozens of villages have been burned to the ground and many towns have been quite thoroughly looted. The same sort of story comes from all the surrounding regions, Monastir, Uskub, Strumitza, Brama, etc.

The British Balkan Committee has begun to help in several places. Mrs. Lazaro has gone with a member of the Macedonian Relief Committee to Gumendje, and Mr. Haskell expects to start next week on a two weeks’ tour in the region of Strumitza. Those trips should make clear just what the most urgent needs are.

RED CROSS WORK FOR REFUGEES IN WESTERN ASIA MINOR

_Part of a letter from Dr. Wilfred M. Post._

The number of refugees who have passed over from European Turkey into Western Asia Minor since the commencement of the Balkan War is probably in the neighborhood of 56,000; the large majority of these have settled in the Broussa vilayet, a smaller number having found their way to the Konia and Angora vilayets. Most of the refugees have traveled by rail, their carts and oxen having been carried with them at the expense of the government, but a fair proportion have “trekked” into the interior all the way from European Turkey, spending several weeks on the journey. The main distribution is along the line of the Anatolian railway, the usual plan having been for a definite number to be allotted to each city or large town along the line, and then sent off as fast as possible to the villages—a few families to each village—the government hoping by this arrangement to cause the refugees to amalgamate with the Anatolian population, and also by allotting a few families to each village, to throw the burden of maintenance on the people and avoid the problems arising from concentration in large camps and settlements. This policy has been carried out most thoroughly and the many hundreds of villages from one or two hours to two or three days distance from the railway have almost all received their quota of unfortunates to care for, an exception having been made for the Christian villages, few, if any, of the latter having been thus called upon.

About a quarter or a third of the refugees have come with some personal clothing and bedding, and with some property in the shape of carts and oxen, cooking utensils and money. These have been allowed to shift for themselves, but the remainder have arrived in the interior in more or less wretched condition, having little or nothing but the clothes they wear, and in many cases only half-clad and in very poor condition to meet the rigors of the cold Anatolian winter. As long as this class of refugees remains in cities the government makes regular distributions of bread to them, about 50 paras’ worth to each adult, and 25 paras to each child per day, in some cases giving the money instead of the food, but as soon as the refugees have been shipped off to the villages the government ceases to distribute help.

ESTABLISHED BY DUTCH RED CROSS MISSION UNDER DR. LINGHEEK.]

Those refugees remaining in the cities have also been scattered as extensively as possible, a notable instance being Konia, where 2,500 people have been scattered all over the city and surrounding gardens, a few dozen having been put into each “mahle” or quarter of the city, so that it took a week of careful search and inquiry to obtain statistics that were anywhere near accurate. This extensive scattering makes the work of relief very difficult; nevertheless much has been accomplished already and by systematic canvassing by American missionaries and native agents it is hoped that much of the suffering and need of the refugees will be discovered and relieved. Relief of over-crowding, supply of adequate clothing and bedding, opening of soup kitchens and supply of food other than the dry bread given by the government, distribution of fuel and medical aid, indicate the principal lines along which the Red Cross must work for the next two or three months. The officials everywhere express the hope that they will be able to send the refugees back to Europe for the spring, but, of course, nothing definite can be planned as yet. Whatever may be the political outcome of the Balkan war, a large number of the refugees will undoubtedly remain in Anatolia, and the Red Cross may then consider the advisability of providing employment for these people, supplying them with farm implements, etc. The large majority of the refugees are women and children, many of these having been rendered widows and orphans by the war; the few able-bodied men who have come have for the most part, been drafted into the Turkish army and sent to Chatalja, so that the question of employment will have to be considered later on. A few of the refugees are able to earn money by carting wood and grain, using their primitive oxcarts for the purpose, but most of them are idle, and on account of the great scattering throughout the country they must, unfortunately, remain so for some time to come. It is most fortunate that the general health of the refugees is good, and from the hygienic standpoint the policy of scattering has no doubt been a good one. There are, of course, many cases of sickness among them, and in the process of investigation we have found many people at the point of death from exposure and cold, the most pathetic cases being among the children. Here again the scattering makes it impossible to do much visiting, and though the communities may be saved from epidemic, many individuals, sad to say, will perish from cold, hunger and disease this winter.

Our investigations have been confined chiefly to the cities, where several hundreds or thousands of refugees are gathered, but we have also looked into the condition of a dozen or more villages and have found that in general the villagers have been kind to the refugees and have given them food and shelter, and have lent them clothing and bedding; but in some places the villagers have thrust the refugees into stables and broken-down hovels, with little or no clothing and bedding, and just enough food to keep body and soul together. In some instances the unfortunate, defenceless women and girls have been forced into prostitution.

The Constantinople Chapter of the American Red Cross has established relief work in Konia and Broussa along the lines indicated above. In Konia a systematic canvass of the city and surrounding villages has been made, and bedding and clothing distributed according to need; in many cases eight or ten people were found sharing one quilt, and women and children walking about the frozen streets with bare feet. For people in the city we distributed tickets having the articles they were to receive indicated on them, and the distribution was made on the mission premises. The government, however, forbade us to carry on independent work and insisted that all articles for distribution must be handed over to them; we were unwilling to accept this condition, so work was stopped for the time being. In Broussa an effort has been made to get the people into more sanitary quarters than they now occupy; we found many places where eight, ten and even twelve people were packed into a tiny mud-floored room about ten feet square, damp and dismal, and with one or two of the family sick—in one case three people, one with ulcers and two with dysentery, reposing under one small and filthy quilt. Not only must these people be gotten speedily into more healthy surroundings, but some sort of sanitary supervision must be established over the quarters to which they are to be removed. It is our expectation to open one or more soup kitchens and inaugurate some medical work.

We have turned over the city of Eski-Shehir to the Germans, who promise to attend to its needs and to those of the surrounding region. We hope through the above arrangements to get into direct touch with more than half the refugees in Asia Minor, and trust that where our work is unable to reach them other helpers may come forward to tide them over this first difficult winter.

ACTIVITIES OF THE RED CRESCENT SOCIETY

The Turkish Red Crescent Society has come forward so nobly during the present war that it has delighted observers by the depth and force of its vitality. A national institution of humanitarian aims, it had been recognized as such in the Geneva Conference of 1864—but though it had worked efficiently in the Russian and Turco-Greek wars of the last century, it is only lately, through the impulsion given to it some years ago by Mrs. Rifaat Pasha, wife of the present Turkish Ambassador in Paris, that its more modern organization and increased capital have brought it to the front, able to compete in usefulness and resource with the Red Cross Societies in other countries.

The society is managed by a Central Committee, composed of 30 members, subject to the approval of a president and to the occasional control of the government. At present His Excellency Hussein Hilmi Pasha, Ottoman Ambassador in Vienna, is president of the Red Crescent.

At the beginning of the Turco-Balkan war the Red Crescent Committee founded three hospitals for the wounded—one numbering over 600 beds—in the capital of the Empire, and several in the provinces, notably at Salonica, Adrianople, Uskub, Loule-Bourgas, etc., appointing well-equipped staffs of nurses and doctors. The necessary surgical instruments and medical supplies were procured from abroad, and recently ambulances were ordered from South Bend, Indiana. Four transportable hospitals of 100 beds each were received from England, and following the example set by European nations in such cases, the Red Crescent established field kitchens in the principal camps, which supplied the harrassed soldiers with soup and bread.

When the cholera broke out among the hapless troops, and they were sent back to Constantinople for treatment, the society organized three more new hospitals in the choleraic centers of Hademkeny, San-Stefano, etc., and as the sick soon filled to overflowing the epidemic wards hastily founded in the capital, the Red Crescent had the mosques of the city opened to the sufferers and supplied them with food, linen and medical care. It is computed that about 3,000 soldiers were supported in these improvised hospitals between the beginning of October and the end of November, 1912, and in this heavy task the Red Crescent was assisted by its branch missions of Hindoustan, Egypt and England, who took their full share of the heavy nursing and relief work. Besides the hospitals thus run, the Red Crescent sent Lt. 7500 in cash to the military sanitary authorities of Constantinople, as well as very numerous suits of clothing, articles of bedding and medicinal supplies.

The arrival of the refugees in Constantinople created a new and tremendous demand for aid. The Red Crescent immediately forwarded another Lt. 7500 to the prefecture of the town, and housed thousands of the unfortunate emigrants in old Konaks (palaces) and in temporary sheds. Committees of investigation and distribution were organized in the chief provincial centers to which the government sent the refugees and bread or money doled out.

The Ladies’ Section of the Red Crescent Society has proved most active on behalf of the patients and refugees. Societies were formed for the cutting and sewing of linen, of which the hospitals were continually in need, and the garments made reached the total of 70,000.

The foregoing facts (culled from the columns of the _Jeune Turc_), brief and incomplete as they are, suffice to show, however, that the energies of the Red Crescent Society have been severely taxed during the present terrible happenings, and it is an act of justice as well as one of keen satisfaction to say that these energies have been not drained but richly developed by the call made upon them.

In the present emergency the Red Crescent has been generously supported by the Red Cross Societies of different countries. Sisters of the Red Cross and the Red Crescent have worked shoulder to shoulder in alleviating suffering, as shown by the photograph herewith inclosed of the Imperial Hospital in Nichantache, Constantinople, kindly furnished by the Phebus Atelier.

SAVAGES FOUR HUNDRED YEARS AGO

Writing from Konia, January 15, Dr. Dodd sends in the following about an old Moslem priest:

“An old Turkish hodja named Saduk Effendi called today and said he came for the special purpose of asking me to give his thanks to the people in America who are sending help to the poor here. I report his words as near as I can do so. ‘May the Lord of the Universe, the God of all men, who are all of one family on this earth, look graciously upon those who have shown such love and kindness. The servants of God here will always remember and rejoice in these good deeds. How wonderful that a people that were only savages four hundred years ago should have awakened to such noble deeds! When shall we have such an awakening?’”

REFUGEES WAITING OUTSIDE THE PROTESTANT SCHOOL WHERE CLOTHING AND BEDDING ARE DISTRIBUTED. A CLINIC IS HELD EVERY AFTERNOON IN THIS BUILDING AND PATIENTS OBTAIN THEIR MEDICINES FREE OF COST FROM THE DRUG STORE AROUND THE CORNER.]

DISTRIBUTION IS MADE FROM THE ROOM AT THE LEFT. TEA IS BEING SERVED WHILE THE PEOPLE ARE WAITING. SEVERAL OF THE WOMEN ARE SEEN COVERING THEIR FACES OR TURNING THEIR BACKS TO THE CAMERA, BUT THE MAJORITY MAKE NO OBJECTION TO HAVING THEIR PICTURES TAKEN.]

FAIK PASHA DELLA-SUDDA

One of the prominent Constantinople personalities, Faik Pasha Della-Sudda, died on Jan. 11, 1913. He was the founder and honorary president of the Red Crescent Society, which during many difficult years owed its subsistence to his devoted management, and the AMERICAN RED CROSS MAGAZINE is indebted to his courtesy for the interesting article on the Red Crescent, published in Vol. 5, No. 3. of 1910.

Born in 1835, Faik Pasha Della-Sudda was sent when scarcely sixteen to France, where he studied under the famous chemist, Ganot. He completed his training at the Superior School of Pharmacy, Paris, and at the laboratory of Wurtz & Gerhard, and on his return to Constantinople was immediately appointed to the post of professor of chemistry at the Imperial University of Medicine in that city. For nearly half a century he personally conducted most of the pharmaceutics and chemistry classes in the capital of the Ottoman Empire, with a range and depth of knowledge that has been universally recognized and appreciated.