The morning call., 1892-07-03

lss
own laws and they are allowed 10 do AS :hey
please where they do not come into contac.
with the Gar. They have their own courts
and they pass their own sentences now ard
then. even TO sending prisoners TO Siberia.
The Russians are doing great deal in re-
lieving the distress of The famine. and Rus
sla Is spending millions of dollars for this
purpose. i don't believe there is more
courteous, kinder and better people ID the
world than the Russians, and | consider
them one OF the great nations oil the world"
MINISTER SMITH ON THE FAMINE
Charles Emory Smith, who has Just re-
turned from Russia, says that the famine
there Will last up until late in August, and
without the crops are coed 1t will probably
extend on into the coming year. THE
desttGtion OF the people IS" says he, "in-
conceivable, ana great part of their loss
comes from their stock. The famine was so
terrible that the cattle were carried of by
il. and the people have nothing with which
10 work their fields. In some provinces
more than half the horses were killed, and
those that lived are hRggard and lean.
great umber 0f the cattle are either killed
or starved to death. and inasmuch as these
are largely used for draft animals in Russia
the loss is incslculable." Minister Smith
says that the Russians have given between
seventy-hYe and a hundred million dol
lars to relieve the famine. and they
are continuously sending food into
the famine districts Many of the richest
and noblest ladies OF Russia are working
among the starving, aud they have estab-
lished s0up-kltcheDs and food supply points
throughout the worst of the districts. Mr.
Smith says that the Russians feel very
kindly toward the Americans for the aid
they have sent to them, and be thinks the
action has brought the two countries closer
together.
A few days ago / called at the Russian
Legation in Washington on the Hon
Charles de Struve, who has Tor years repre-
serted Russia in the United States, and
he told me that Americans could not appre-
ciate how kindly Russia felt toward them
for their sympathy and aid in their time Of
trouble, aud it is said that this feeling is
current throughout the Russian Empire
and that Is moral influence would be very
great.
A FEW WORDS WITH CLARA BARTON.
1t is well known that all the gifts of the
United States have been through the Red
Cross Society, with Miss Cara Barton at
its head. How much these gifts amount to
will be surprising TO the people. Already
four shploads have been sent and these
will average about 100000 each in value
The Iowa corn which lett on the Uynehead
loaded that great ship down to the water
and il Will be of great use in the Keeping
alive OF the cattle. This included 30 car
loads of corn, and it came from Iowa alone
The millers Of the Northwest furnished a
shlplOad Of -four and the citizens of Pbila-
deipha bought 5000 barrels of Minneapolis
-four and sent 1t off. great deal of money
has been contributed. and mnch of this has
come from little children. Miss Bar
ton tells me she received the other
day S63, every cent OF which was contrib
uted by children who had worked for the
pennies or had denied themselves some lux
ury in order to get them for the Russians.
Many children throughout the country have
been llOwed by their parents cent meal
for doing without butter or sugar, and some
little ones have been paid by their parents
cent day for doing certain chores, and it
is from such pennies that hundreds upon
hundreds OF dollars have been gathered to-
getber ana have been sent 10 the little
children Of Russia. The other day little
girl was brought into the Red Cross Society
rooms here by her father. She had tightly
clasped in her hands thirty cents, which
she said she wished TO give 10 the hungry
little oueS OF Russia. She had saved this,
ana the giving Of 1t was her
own idea. Her father told her while
she was IN the room that she need not give
the money without she wished to. lie said
10 her that the Russian children would
never know that the money came from her.
and explained that it would 20 into gen.
eral fund and 10 one would know that she
had anything TO do with it. But" said
the little girl, 'the people will have that
much more TO ear, wont tbeyW And when
she Was told yes she gave the money. M
merous instances have occurred here and
all over the country, and the gifts amount
IN some cases TO thousands of dollars. A
few days ago q lady handed Miss Barton a
sllp OF paper, saying she wanted to give this
to the Red Cross Society, bur she did not
want her name connected with il. 1t was
a check for $1,000.
HOW THE RED CROSS WORKS.
There is no more modest woman in the
United States than Miss Clara Barton.
She works very quietly, and to talk with her
you would never imagine that she had man
aged some OF the largest charitable efforts
IN the history OF this generation. She is Of
medium height, and weighs, i judge. not
over 125 rounds. She dresses in black and
her only lewelry is her round pin of white
enamel with red cross in the center at her
neck, and below this great pansy made Of
an amethyst and presented to Miss Barton
by the Grand Duchess of Baden. She does
not court ewspaper notoriety, and her man
neTs in conversation are as quiet and simple
as those OF any mother in the country. She
makes you think more Of good mother
thaDz OF any one else, and her eyes fii with
sympathetic tears 81 she discusses the woes
of the famine or the sorrows of suffering
humanity. She is woman who loves her
feilOWmen and who Is endowed with O large
amount of the practical ability Of knowing
how to help them. She was the frs woman
nurse during the late war, and she did great
good in the Franeo-Prussian war among
the wounded. She believes in doing good
on large scale, and she tells me that the
Red Cross Society deyotes itself to a study
Of the condition Of the world, and wherever
ii finds that there is want, destilutiOn aud
suffering. it considers ii its duty 10 point
out TO the rest OF the people the fact It
does not stand before the world as a beggar,
but as great information bureau which
announces TO the people who have means
where they may have the privilege Of giving
to help their fellowmen. 1t also under-
takes to forward such gifts 10 those who are
in want, and it deVOes itself 10 national
calamities rather than to indiv idual ones.
WHAT HAS BEEN DONE.
ut is now more tlan a year." said Miss
Barton. since we saw the coming danger
in Russia We knew that the famine was
imminent, but before We went to work we
called upon the Russian Legation and asked
as TO the situation and whether Russia
would accept our help We were told there
that the reports had not been exaggerated
and we found that 20,O00,0C0 peasants
were affected by the failure of crops
and that the people were living on
roUts and other refuse and that mil
lions were on the verge of starvation. We
organized our work at once ana the result is
we'll known. We will be sending over
money ana food from time to time, though
we may not send it in shipluads. We are
receiving contributions daily. and we are
glad TO forward all that sssent."