The evening world., 1888-05-19

plessed By Gifts which show They Are
Not Forgotten.
Memorial Day is near at hand and the Me-
mortal Committee Of the Grand Army Of the
Republic, which has its headquarters in q
little room in the basement of the City Hall.
has already begun to bestir itself to prepare
for the annual ceremony of doing honor to
tbe memory of the brave soldiers who fought
and died for the Union.
There is ever 80 much to do, and during
the last week of the month, especially, the
the committee has its hands full arranging
for the big public procession, and collecting
and distributing the flowers, which are to be
used on Memorial Day for decorating the
graves in the various cemeteries in the
vicinity of New York. This duty of collect
ING is perhaps the most onerous which de-
wolves upon the committee and its assistants.
Il has been the custom for many years past
70 call upon the public school children to
send in flowers, and by far the larger proper
ton of those used come in this way. Within
a day or two the annual appeal for floral con-
tributions will be sent out.
In this the children are asked TO contribute
according to their means a pot or two of
flowers. They bring them to the school Q
few DAYS before the end of the month, and
the ianitor, who usually takes charge Of them,
sends word how many. he has to the Special
Floral Committee, which has its headqua.-
tiers OF the cottage in Union Square from May
o. to 80. The committee then sends to the
different schools and collects the flowers
until the committee has as many as 1t can
use, o quantity which 1t has not been round
at ali difficult to obtain during the past two
On the contrary there has been such an
enormous increase in these floral contribu-
.t h-a fx,- - .AAn~lr
impossible to use them all, end the result is
that it has been necessary to throw or give
away hundreds of pots OF flowers, for want OF
o. place to keep them, or they are left to
wither and die for lack Of care.
Why not send these flowers to the many
sufferers in the city hospitals, instead of per-
hitting the gifts of the children to go to
wastef .,.
would be a splendid opportunity of doing q
noble work Of charity.
There is the Charity Hospital on Black
wells Island, with its thousand or more OF
homes. who seldom receive q kline re-
membrance from the outside world. ,
The Emigrant Hospital on Wards Island
has more than fifteen hundred patients, and
besides these. there are the German Mount
Sinai, the Presbyterian Bellevue, the Hos
,pital for the Ruptured and Crippled, st.
Tincent's Hospital and many other similar
too glad to accept Of the generosity Of the
Memorial Committee, which, It is gratifying
to say. has been freely offered.
w nThe ), plan ea;d pr PROPOSED ' d A X aan s hsrsmS
Of the Memorial Committee, to a reporter OF
most admirable one. 1t is certainly strange
that we have not thought Of it before. Why.
to do with the surplus flowers, and last year
we had about six hundred pots OF plants left
over at the summer house In Union Square
schools because we had no place TO put them
"Some of the uptown schools especially
i contribute enormous quantities OF flowers
We gave somelof the Posts in those neighbor
instead of collecting them ourselves, bu
1 afterwards heard that the %janitors of sav
eral schools had from 800 to 500 pots apiece
They might Just as well have gone to tn,
hospitals, if there had only been some one II
90 and get them.
I'VE would not only be willing. but glat
to cooperate with THE EVENING. WoRLD il
carrying out its project, and will not onl.
give the hospitals orders for the surplus flow
ers which are left at Union Square, but fur
supply on hand that has not been utilized. Il
this way all the flowers sent in by the schoo
children can be made to do some good. 1t i
really shameful the way in which they hav
been wasted.
There is no danger that the supply. vii
fall short this year. for the children hav
now come to look forward to the time an,
they save their pennies to buy o pot of flow
enthusiasm as they do for their Are-crackel
on the Fourth of July.
"Another reason Why these plants NOR
than any others should be acceptable to tn
very little care can be kept alive and in blool
q long time. There is nothing which is 8
gratifying to the sick and especially those i
the hospitals, as to have q little y t bit OF gree 60
watch it grow 1t is q source OF continui
Most Of the flowers that patients get a,
injurious instead of beneficial to the sick. ]
Isl great work that TIL EVENING WORLD
doing. and I wish it all success"
The opinions expressed by the superb
pitfalls, which were visited by The EvENrN
WORLD representatives, coincided in the
hearty and enthusiastic approval of theipla
suggested.
DR.. Krieger. who il at the head of Il
medical stan Of the German Hospital,
Seventy seventh street and Fourth avenu
said: The idea is an excellent one an
poor sufferer in New York hospitals ought
thank The EVENING WORM for thinking
them. l will gladly cooperate in any q
Tansement that may be made for distribu
At the Hshnemann Hospital DIR Daniel
the Superintendent, said THE EVENT.
WORLD deserved the greatest credit 4
originating this movement. The sick a
always fond of flowers, and / can safely o
that there is no gift which is calculated
give them greater pleasure than the one "
PROPOSE"
Theodore Hadel, the Superintendent of Il
Mount Sinai Hospital, said A admiral
plan, and one that will meet with favor ever
where. We often get cut flowers, but th,
last for so short a time that the sight of the
is only on aggravation to the patient. II
Is Just what will please them more than an
thing else. / wonder the plan was new
thought Of before"
The Rev. T. G. Wall, Superintendent
the Presbyterian Hospital, said Tho pl
PROPOSED by Tn EVENING WORLD is 80 q
mlrable that il cannot be otherwise than cf