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About Daily capital journal. (Salem, Or.) 1903-1919 | View Entire Issue (May 18, 1918)
THE DAILY CAPITAL JOURNAL. SALEM. ORE. SATURDAY, MAY 18. 1918. ML "A Great Net of et of Mercv drawn tfircmcjk f an Ocean of Unspeakable Pain" -n a Tfc -t at r ineamencanKea trass ytfe4W4tet. 1 fet HUSBAND GONE SONS GONE- EARNS 14 CENTS A DAY; THE UTILE HOUSE AT THE CORNER PUTTING HIS MONEY TO WORK HAS WIFE AND BABY TWO 1 A HOME AND RELATIVES GONE f A Fact Story Telling Just What the Red Cross , Did for Mme. Pellier. -' . . ! ' By mi Eye Witness MAUDE RADFORD WARREN This Is tlie picture 1 saw lust Janu-llng Into Switzerland und then Into ery Id France, and you liuve mercl-j Hnute-Siivoie. From there they went fully changed It I Color enough there: 10 Lorraine. Mine. Pellier hoped that, was above, the eternal blue; In the I evwi hUfih her village had heen bom- backe round. H..I.U of 'living rreen.l "," nome migm nave es apeu. which the German shells could not I She found nothing except her bare i fields. prevent from creeping hack; In the . ,,,, , , , ,,, i Vo" chimgod that picture, you Amer- mldUle foreground, a long village, ,0rttlSi wllo cnn nevcr ,)e bolllbariMi street so hntlered and burned that ho can never lose through war five U was merely u canyon of cream-col-ored ruins. In front of one little broken house were four figures In blin k an old woman, poking among the fallen si ones In a vain search for omellilng tlint could be used; n younger w-oninn, seated on what had once heen a doorstep, with her face hidden In her arms; and a little hoy anil girl, who stared, half frightened, half curious, ot the desolation about mem. The little hoy held In his thin band fl Ited Cross ling. All four were pale and gnunt ; the faces und bodies of the children showed none of the round curves that make the beauty of a child. This Is their history: When the war broke out, Mine. Pellier, her mother and her four younger children were visiting her husband's mother In the ' north of France. Her husband and two elder sons were at home In Lorraine taking care of the summer crops. Then the war I The mother In-law of Mine. Pellier was 111 and could not be left. Her old 'mother was afraid to travel to Lorraine with the full care of the four children. Be fore they could all start together the Germans Invaded. Had news Is allow ed to como Into northern France, and so as the months passed Mine. I'elller learned that her village home had been bombarded and that her husband and two sons had been killed. Except for the Belgian Relief Commission, which operates In northern France also, she and her little ones would have starved ov' right. At the best they were un s nourished. Then the great push Hn, and hopes for France grew .t But as the French soldiers ad turned they had to hombard the north er towns. Mme. I'elller begged the On-mans to let her go away with her children even Into Germany. This wa ret ited. She tried to seelt safety . In fome jellnr whenever there was a bombardment. Nevertheless a shell killed two of her children. Found Her Home Gone. TTome gone; husband gone; brave so'dler sons gone; little, tender boys torn Into shreds! That woman's face would liuve tiliown you what she hud sulVeied her face against the batter ed ruins the Germans had made. At IhI she and her mother and her two rnmaliiinf children wore repatriated. They ki.rjw the Infi'ilte relief of cross- out of the seven dearest to 'you. It was not your husband and children who died ; not your wife who was widowed; not your little ones who came buck, bony and tuberculnr, to a home (hut had vanished. Not yours, hut only the grace of accident saved you; not yours, but It might have been ami so you changed the pletjire. You could not build up with your own hands that heap of stones Into a home, nor till the fields, nor bring Mine. Pel lier back to hope and the children back to health. But through the Red Cross yon saved the remnants of Hint family that hud suffered as you might have suffered. Things the Red Cross Did, You took the mother of Mme. Pel lier to a Ited Cross hospital to be treat ed for anaemia. You took the little girl, who was In the first stages ot tuberculosis, to a Red Cross sani tarium. You found a place which could be made habitable for Mme. Pet Her near her fields which she was anxious to till. Yoa gave her clothes and furniture; you got her seeds; you lent her Implements. You sent a vis iting doctor to watch over her health and Unit of her little boy. You sent nurses, who achieved the mighty vic tory of making her and the child tuke baths. Later you persuaded her to let him go to a refuge not far away where he might attend school and where she could often visit hi in. Through the help of your Red Cross hope and cour age and ambition have come back to that woman, and she Is rebuilding her family life. The biggest thing one hu man being can do for another you, If you are a helper of the Red Cross, have done for that mother. Red Cross! I saw Its work every where In France In fields and In blasted villages; In hospitals and schools and clinics; In refuges and vestiaries for widows and orphans and for the sick children of soldiers fight l,ig to keep you safe from the enemy, This symbol of help has a double meaning now for Americans, who have always taken for granted the blessing of safety. It stands for your willing ness to pay (he price of exemption, of pity,, of sympathy. A bitter, black road thit road of war, but across It, like a beacon Of hope, you have flung the Ited Cross. HE GAVE HIS SHIRT OFF m TACK How an Italian Officer Traveling on Train Helped a New Born Bab. On ot the ways to say that a man i good hciirk'd is to descend to ex isIt Anieitcauese slung und an y "he d giv you his shirt." A tminf Itnllan officer did exactly thai- gjv the shirt off his back to a ktby Just born. It was during a flight f the Italian refugees Just after the Italian army hud been tricked by the 4.uMihins, Here's the story : 4n-Italian officer, v. ho had been a eeluntcer worker ut the million when Ifci crush came through, walked Into lk American Ited C'roi", i.lllco at Ho texuii, Italy, i,d told 01 t poor .vcmiiis: weatu who hod i;lven i'.r'h lo u huhy the train In whli h it was riding ti night's previously. They bail been sMlng for over Id hours, nod the wretchedly poor and disheartened mother had been Jammed In with the hundreds of other frightened Italians on the same tiiiln. Hungry, tired and miserable and In a frightfully weak ened condition, she had scarcely suffi cient clothes for herself, not to speak of properly curing for a newborn hube. The young officer stripped himself of bU shirt, und there among this frlght iieil, half starved, forlorn crowd the poor iii'luH Infant was wrapped In Its llrsi body .'verliig. Mother it mi babewere afterwards nursed hack to health, clothed and looked tiller by ihe American Red Cross. And this Is oi'ly one small, Is olated Incident umong thousands that mine under the working of I lie Red Cross, FULL MAN.SIZED W SANDWICH What Tea Minutes for Re freshments Means in Modern War. Think of what refreshments mean "over there," Thing of the Sample or tbe Pollu coming ont f the trenches with a thirty il Ur leave of ab sence, getitnl itoar tbe train or ma-M- ob h U 0. ttft Line of Cora MiMca'a Bti & front and tbe i r, i4si II frts tired follows stopping ten minutes for refreshments ut a Ited Cross Canteen. Think of a big cup of hoi coffee and a wealth of nuiii-sincd bam sand wiches served by the Ited Cross wo men with the Joy of service in their eyes. Think of ten minutes for re freshments w ithin sound of the guns such refreshments served by such wo men, Did ever a weary lad have such refreshments? Did ever a cup 'of cof fee and a sandwich taste so good? It is service like this, ;he supplying ot "food thut's got a homey taste" at p time when a man's spirits are likely to be at lowest ebb, that moved a Com manding General of the American Forces to write on December 30 ! "The extant of the work of the Red Cross is only limited by the number of mem bers It has and the amount of funds available for Its use." :- fw If stv rvTS 1 iMi . COP1i6HT ft un pu a c Contributed by Charles Dana Gibson. THE HOPE OF THE ' WOKLD By M.ROLD SILL WRIGHT. THE hope of the world is not alon that the armies of humanity rill be victorious, but that the spirit and purposo of our warfare will prevjil in our victory, The hope of the world is in the Red Cross, because the Red , Cross is voicing this spirit and pur- ' pose that must, through the force o our arms, triumph. Just to the de gree that we can evidence this Red Cross spirit of mercy and brothor hood we will hold true in the dan gerous hour of victory to the ideals that havo forced us into the trenches in tho defense of human rights and human liberty. The one sano and saving thought in this delirium of death that now possesses the world is the Red Cross. Wherever the storms of battle hell rage, amid the fires of ruthless destruction, in trench and camp and hospital, these soldiers of mercy with heroism unsurpassed are carrying the (lag of tho highest conceivable ideals of humanity. Tho ideals for which our armies have .taken the field are, by these unarmed hosts, proclaimed to friend and foe, in that unmistaka ble language of universal mercy and brotherhood. In the terms of wasted towns rebuilt, of broken humanity salvaged, of dying children rescued, of desolate families succored, the Red Cross declares the cause for which we war and proclaims the principles and ideals that must and will in the end prevail. Above the thunder of the guns, tho roar of exploding mines, the crash of fallen cities and the criea of tortured humanity, the voice of 4he Ked Cross carries clear and strong t&e one message of hope to our war burdened world. The black horror of this world's crisis would be unbearable were it not for the spirit and work of this ' mighty force. The normal mind re fuses to contemplate the situation without this saving power. It is the knowledge that in every city, town and hamlet, men, women and children are united in this work of declaring to the world, through the Red Cros3, our message of mercy and brotherhood, that keeps our hearts from sinking under the burden r . of woe and sustains our faith in hu man kind. It is the constant daily, almost hourly touch with the Red Cross work that is felt by every citi zen in tho land, that inspires us with courage and hope. Out of this hell of slaughter the Red Cross will guide the warring na tions to a heaven of world-wide pesce and brotherhood. Because it is the living expre.-.ion of those ideals and principle In e fense of which we are giving our all in lives and material wealth because on every field of death it is proclaim ing its message of life bwuae t keeps ever before us and the "vorid the cause for which we war berrt9 it will preserve us in the horn of oar victory from defeating ourselvee- tho Red Cross is the hope of the world. THE RGO CROSS IS HELPING IN UNITED STATES ENGLAND FRANCS ITALY SERBIA ARMENIA RUMANIA h'.'SSIA lip . . And Yet This True Story Has a Happy Ending. Even a Frenchman sometimes loses, for awhile at least, his "unfailing" sense of humor. Take, for Instance, the case of a man from Lille, a soldier, Waeltele by name and only twenty-three. He had done pretty well, for the youngster had already his own printing shop In that northern French town, which Is still in side the German lines. In the trenches Waeltele developed tuberculosis, and he was sent to a hospital at Grenoble. There he was considered Incurable, and after the usual three months of treatment he was granted his 14 cents a day pension. Said his fatherly army doctor, "My son, you cau perhaps cure yourself If you will live In the moun tains, If you will eat plenty of nour ishing food and, above all, If you don't worry." Waeltele should have smiled, but he didn't. He was thinking of his baby and his wife and his 14 cents. "Don", worry!" The humor of It entirely es caped him. Then the Red Cross stepped In. He was found by nn American woman with some American Ited Cross money for Just such cases, and within a few hours he no longer had need to worry. He was sent to the mountains at La mure, In the French Alps, happy In the knowledge that his family was be ing cared for by these amazingly kind Americans. And now the army doctor's words are coming true. Wacltele's lung Is healing fast, and he Is dreaming of another printing shop and of living again some day with that little family. There have been over 400,000 new cases of tuberculosis In France sinie the war started, and to care for these cases and check the White Plague's spread Is merely one of the big Jobs the American Red Cross has set out to accomplish. FATHER AT WAR, TRAGEDYAT HOME bi Heme Service Kjis ia a Soldier. The father kisses his wife and kid dles goodby, shoulders his gun aud inarches away to war. For a time the current of life flows smoothly for the soldier's little fami ly. Then conies the tragedy. Mother Is taken 111. The little brood of broth ers and sisters Is helplesp. No father to turn to. A helpless mother I To whom can the American soldier's family look at this critical period? Must a brave mails loyalty to his country mean desolation and suffering to those nearest and dearest to him? No! Emphatically no! The Ameri can people will not permit the fami lies of their soldiers and sailors to suffer because their breadwinners are fighting for their country. . And so the Ited Cross Department of Civilian Re lief has created n nation-wide orgar- l.ation for home service for the fami lies of soldiers and sailors. Under the banner of "Home Serv ice" patriotic men and women have enrolled and are devoting themselves to the noble task of helping soldiers' families to meet and adjust the prob lems of everyday life and aiding them to mnintnln the standards of health, education and Industry. Home Service True Service. Home service means keeping the sol dier's children well and In school It means tiding the family over financial troubles, arranging the household budget, meeting insurance premiums adjusting a mortgage, bringing med ical aid and legal advice to bear at the right moment. In short "Home Serv- v . .evice, ln lmt ,t provWes the warm handclasp of friendship By RALPH HENRY BARBOUR. Of the Vigilantes. The Director laid his pen aside, yawned, stretched, and, leaning back, looked from his window. The Head quarters, a temporary wooden struc ture with a tar-paper roof, had beea knocked together ln the shadow of the half-ruined church, a.nd from the wU dow, Just above Uie street level, the Director could look almost the entire length of the little village. They had been rebuilding It, that village, and now the work was almost done. In 1914 the Germans hud shelled it and burned It, and then, passing over, had left It empty and silent for two years. But recently, In the early Autumn, the tide had turned and the retreating gra hordes hnd passed back the way they, had gone, destroying aud defiling. Now the roar of their guns was aoft ened by distance and miracle had taken place In the village. Village Rebuilt In a Month. In a short uionlh, houses unlovely, if you like, but warm and comfortable and weather-ttght had replaced the sorry heaps of stone and plaster and splintered beams. In' some cases the original walls had been repaired and roofed over, In others small, neat wood en structures had entirely replaced the former dwellings. Shell holes had been filled in and blackened tree stumps removed, ln another week the battered church would alone tell of the havoc of war. There were many such miracles being performed at tliut minute all up and down the narrow strip of France regained. An assistant thrust his bead In. "The Mayor and the priest to see yon" he whispered. "I told Uiem you were busy" ( t "Ask them to come In, please." They entered. The malre was aa elderly giant of man, dark-visaged, gruff-voiced, before the war the Til Inge blacksmith. The priest was siaall and slight, with a parchment like pal lor in his sadly kind face, and he held something half hidden under the folds of his rusty soutane. "M'sieur will he leaving us soon?" "Yes, Father, the work Is about fia Ished. 1 go the day after tomorrow. The others remain a while longer." "It Is sad news," said Father Jean, and the maire nodded gloomily behind the smoke of his cigarette. "But we could not expect m'sieur to remala , with us always. Others demand his services beyond doubt. But we shall be very sad. M'sieur has been so greatly our friend, has done so much, performed so many wonders In our poor village" The priest blew hi nose vigorously. "You owe me no thanks, Father t nor those who aid me, nor the Society I represent. What we do Is done la the name of Humanity." '"Tis well," growled, the malre. "Thunks are difficult to express, m'sieur." The Favor the Priest Asked, "We have much gratitude but few words In which to clothe It," sighed Father Jean. "And It Is because we of this little village, cannot say te m'sieur what is ln our hearts that friend Bonot and I have come, repre senting the citizens to Whom m'sienr has restored homes and food, com fort and courage, to beg a favor." "A favor? Have the goodness te name it, Father." "M'sieur knows the little place at the end of the village, where the well stood before before " "Place?" ' The Director shook Ms head, smiling, puzzled. "I did aot know there was a place, Father." "M'sieur would doubtless, not noUce It. It Is but tiny. Besides, we have never called It so. There was no need. But now, with m'sieurs permission, we would give it a name." The priest slowly withdrew from beneath his sou tane what had been In hiding there. "There is so little we of the village rather than the humiliation of charitv I Cnn 1,0 ln return he, murmured, "hut It calls for sympathetic understanding lf m'slel"' permits we shall place this and Intelligent consideration of the .m,. I1WS OI me soldier's familv uie l ed Cross Is pledged to "Home !erviee wherever needed In th i-.,. ed States. In each chapter of the Red Cross there will be a horn. .,-.!. section, under competent hands, whose mission will be to protect the welfare of the soldiers' and sailors' homes and to safeguard the normal development of their families in employment and in v. m.,p gna self reliance. m. . . .. ... . no wrn mat the Red Cress is doing in France this winter is worth more than a million and a half American soldiers In the lines In France today." General Petatn. on the corner of Pierre Martin's bouse, where for all time It shall remalD as a token of our gratitude. If m'sieur per mits," he added apologetically. He held forth with... hesitation a piece of board newly painted. Against a white ground had beea wrought, first, a red cross, then words In oddly formed black letters, thea a red heart. The Director read the In scription. Then he opened his month, and closed It Finally he, too, blew his nose . . , All of which explains why, should you ever happen on that little village when the war la over, von will rtnnht. i less observe, facing a square no larger ! than a kitchen gardeu, a quaint sign j bearing, between a red cross and a ted , heart the PLACE DE LA CROIX-ROUGE AWERICAINS, . Place of the , American Red Cross, ; J