The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1899-05-21

agether-subsisting on whatever they could
forage, and grown shy as the burrowing
creatures of the field. A branch of the
Red Cross society, under Miss Bartons
field agent, Dr. HubbeIl, came to Gaia
lima some two weeks ago and gathered
all these orphans into comfortable.
home. The, task of collecting them was
no easy: matter, for, young as they are,
previous hard experiences had taught
them the fearFe man and nothing but the
pangs of hunger induced them to come in.
After this sorry fotsam and jetsam IF
war had been fed, washed and clothed in
decent garments they seemed altogether
different mortals. 1t was reward enough
for our unpleasant. toll to watch the
dawn Of hope in the little faces and to
see the expression of abject misery; dis
placed by heavenly content. When the
few who were first gathered in found that
no fresh calamities awaited them, but on
ly food and kindness, one and another
stole away to bring back their more timid
friends who had hitherto eluded our
search In some eases the sick hal
dragged themselves off,, like wounded ami
mails, to secret hiding places, and others
fled like frightened hares at our APP
proach. In one filthy hut two young girls
were found, one of them dying of con-
sumption. In another were five small
brothers and sisters, the Oldest girl. of
perhaps 13 years. who, with brute-mother
instinct, stood ready to defend the little
brood with her life,s If need be. An older
girl, delicate and refined, the daughter of
once well-to-do family, every member
of which but herself and one small
brother had died of smallpox, was liter
ally shelterleSs and with no protection
whatever. Another very pretty girl of
Ii
leg, primarily caused by impoverishe.S
blood, which had eaten to the bone and
grown large as the palm of a hand. But
why multiply eases? The above are only
samples of many equally narrowing.
WORK OF Relief.
With their own willing hands Our la
dies scrubbed, the vacant house given for
our use by the village alcaldi, or mayor;
after which 1t twas thoroughly disinfected
OF all possible disease germs and fitted
with clean cots and other conveniences.
Meanwhile the young ladies of the town,
aroused by good example from their
apathy of grief banded themselves into
a club to carry on the work begun by
los Americanos. They brought two or
three sickly sewing machines owned in
the neighborhood and came every day to
work under intelligent direction. They
made clothes for the children, assisted in
the simple cooking, gave the little ones
their daily baths, and undertook the task
OF teaching them to read and sew Dr.
Aurelio de Flores a young physician of
Catalina, took charge of the medical de-
partment and came every day to treat the
sick. and in due course the clean, we'll
appointed orphanage was turned over to
native hands,. equipped with stores and
medicines for some time to come, and
the Red Gross went on to other fields.
friXy Ne. han ton fIxyI
scription of the Catalina work, because
1t is typical, with slight variations, of
what is done in every other place.
AS to the future of these children, who
cannot always be kept in an asylum, Dr.
Hubbell's idea is to fit them for useful
lives by having each taught some trade
or occupation. To this end a meeting of
the citizens was called one evening in
the alcalde's house. The bare but clean
parlor of whiteWashed boards was filed
with sad-faced, but earnest-looking, men,
most of them gray-bearded, and many
still wearing the dangling machet and
cotton uniforms of the Cuban soldier
The English language Is not spoken in
Catalina. and DR.. Hubbell is no Spanish
scholar; but he; manages to make him
self clearly understood. Through his in
terpreter-the eloquent young Cuban, DR.
Carbonell-he assured the people that
the purpose of the Red Cross is never
to offer demeaning charity, and that it's
representatives had come to Catalina
merely as neighbors, to lend helping
hand in time of trouble, as all good
neighbors should, whether nations or in
divfduals. He explained the folly of
bringing destitute children up to pau
perage in idle city asylums, and the wis
dom of training them to useful occupa-
lions, particularly farming, so that they
may become self-supporting, as soon as
they arrived at suitable age, and called
upon Catalinians for help in this direc-
ton.
They responded gladly and with ex-
IRENE iberality, considering their i'm
poverished condition Dr. Flores ten
dered the use of an untitled tract of land;
one offered to fence it, another to lend