The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-11-29
GREEN CROSS SOCIETY.
HOUSES IN THE ALPS AND OTHER
DANGEROUS PLACES.


Clara Barton's Red Cross.
Copyright 1896.
New York. Nov. 2S.-With three crosses
mon his breast man can travel around
the world without money for food or a
trunk for raiment yet come back home
clotbed and fed. He can go unequipped
and unarmed for conflict with nations or
elements yet come back unframed by
either. These magic decorations are the
crosses, red. white and green.
The red cross entities him TO succor and
be succared, to brotherhood with Clara
Barton and immunity even from monarch
ial encroachment. The white cross guar
autees his social purity and temperance.
And the green cross, the last ornament
carries him where he might not otherwise
be able TO goes
During the present presidential admin
istration Minister Broadhead wrote home
from Switzerland that he could look from
his windows and see the trolleys running
along the banks of Lake Geneva. And
q government official travelling in Ireland
last summer reported the naphtha launcn
upon the Lakes of Killarney.
Next summer when Or. Parkhurst and
other travellers climb the Matterhorn they
will be surprised to see standing high and
secure upon the mountain peaks small
houses evidently built by men and inhab-
tied by them.
The order of the Green Cross was found
ed for the purpose of rendering mountain
travel more secure. A party of adven-
A1aVra m
the Austrian Alpine Club, called together
a number of phiIanthropists of Vienna
and laid certain facts and plans before
them.
They showed that large portion OF ter
ritory of the old world is mountainous,
and that for purposes of commerce, for the
carrying of mail. for discovery and for
the delivery of certain provisions in noun
tain towns there must be frequent trips
across the mountain ranges. These are
always difficult and often dangerous.
In addition to this they mentioned the
large number of travellers who every year
seek the mountains of Switzerland, Aus
tria and France for health and pleasure.
The death roll from accident footS up sur
prisingly large, and to consider and re-
lieve this was the object of the meeting.
The result was the establishment of
the Green Cross Society 1t is new yet,
but has started out, as all great charities
do, with the mysterious lot Of donations
that insure it a footing until it gets strong
enough to run itself.
The Green Cross will have for it's aim
the establishment of stations in the
mountains. These will be small wooden
huts covered with skins for warmth, Sc
curely anchored to the mountain peaks.
1t would be much easier to place them in
the valleys or in small, obscure places
where they would be defended from the
winds the mountain drifts and currents
But on discussion it was decided that the
nuts If located in out-of-the-way places
would be less easily observed by travellers,
and so would defeat their own purpose.
The object of the stations is to give re-
lief to travellers. Those starting for a
mountain climb need not go burdened with
food and water for the entire trip. They
can make the huts their stations and re-
plenish as the food gives out
But the mission of the Green Cross Is
more serious one than the comfort of
pleasure seekers. 1t is to help couriers
that must cross the mountains. The Car
pathian mountains must be often travers-
ed, and always with great danger News
and provision couriers are lost every year.
Farmers starting across the mountain
paths of the Alps are oVertaken by SHOWS,
and after consuming their produce in the
effort to Keep themselves and beasts alive
are compelled to abandon all in a desper-
ate attempt to get back to the nearest
settlement on foot, the drifts making il
impossible to urge beasts to travel
The Green Cross will erect small sta
tions in conspicuous places and upon the
front of each there will be nailed a great
green cross, the emblem of the society
Travellers seeing II from a distance will
know there is succor at hand. And from
the huts couriers. will constantly watch
for distressed travellers.
At night il is the intention Of tho socia+,,
70 burn lights from dark until dawn. and
In each window there viii shine forth the
sign of the cross. In the mountains It is
not easy to get electric light, and the
Green Cross has resorted to an ingenious
way to show their sign in the darkness.
The window viii be cut in the form of
big, narrow cross, and through this cross
the lights viii shine out. traveller fail
ing within sight of the cross will know
that some one will come to the rescue
soon.
The people who WIFI take charge of these
nuts are philanthropists who may volun-
teer. 1t is thought the stations may be
placed in the hands of an order of monks
But it is more likely that philanthropists
VIII volunteer to take charge. Relief re-
lays will be sent out every three months
A class of people who will profit by the
Green Cross Will be hunters. There are
certain fur-bearing animals that can only
NC SOuSA Al l4iG tLOuuAdlnS IN winter.
They live In the snow, and to get the furs
needed for commerce hunters must climb
the mountains and hunt their bis, game
il may be fascinating work to read about
those tales of hunters, but there is a side
of terrible privation. Our own Rockies
hide many a seamy tale of suffering of
those who hunt our fur-bearing animals.
And so, too with the wild meats, game big
and little-hunters risk their lives to get
81.
The stations Of the Green Cross are TO be
placed not only on the mountain peaks.
but ii is intended when the society shall
have grown older to establish supply huts
in other impossible places in the deserts.
the death valleys and the great barren
tracts that must be crossed by man con-
tinually. The Austrian Alpine Club may be
in time only an auxiliary attending to
the mountain branch.
1t Is not impossible that these stations
may be established in midocean There
are barren islands in both the Atlantic
and Pacific passed by ships on infrequent
courses. yet for some reason near the
scene Of many a shipwreck. The Islands
cannot be removed. And there they re-
main a constant menace to the unaccus-
toned mariner. The Green Cross homes
10 establish stations upon these And there
are other fields Of labor. one is in the