The evening times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1902, 1900-10-29
WORK OF THE RED CROSS
Worthless Gan ments Sent to the
Galveston Sufferers.
Boxes of Clothing of which No Pos
sibIe Use Could BE Made-BroIsem
Pairs of ShOes-Needs in Texas Not
Sutisfied-Mo:.ey Wanted TO AIIevi-
ate Misery-Many Com, .tIaints Made

| GALVESTON. Tex. Oct. 29.-An trr4re-
Gus impression seems to be gaining in the
North that Gaiveston's greatest need g
| over. and that her wants have been fui,y
| supplied. During the last week Several
| small donations have come TO the Red
| Cross, accompanied by APPEL eies from he
| donors for the lateness OF the gift, ard
! expressing q hope that opportunity for
| its has Eot entirely gone by. The
| truth is that contributions wers never SO
! urgently needed now. When the storm
| survivors are just beginning to realize
| their losses, and to take up the business
| OF life anew. So far. donations have been
mostly in old clothes; and it is nigh liIno
| that halt was called in that mistaken
form of charity. From every city, town
and crossroads hamlet in The United
States clothes have poured in upJn Us, by
shiploads and trainloads. Most Cf the gs,r-
ments saw their best day long, long ago:
Inany are entirely out-worn, and sCme
are so dirty that the distributors are fain
to handle them with gloves, ut arm
length. Perhaps even these produce In
the breasts of the giyers that romforta-
bic feeling OF having lent TO the Lord
but, remembering that the ladies and
gentlemen for whom they are designed
lately had homes and belongings MS COED
ticn of clothes which back-door tramp
would disclafm is insulting, to say the
least. few merchants have contributed
new goods-mostly shopworn and out of
fashion, but still usable-and may heaven
bless them. everyone, for the worthy
charity, even ne who sent a whole box
OF beautiful new shoes, all for the lett
foot probably drummers' samples) IS
there really are a few one-legged felix
in Galveston.
The worst box yet opened came from
New Jersey-it would be unkind to tell the
town. Fortunately the box was not very
large, containing a dozen or so pairs OF
workmen's trousers, plastered with mud,
paint, and grease, filthy and odortferous
flannel shirts, female undergarments, rag
ged and dirty. aud WOODEN dresses fairly
dropping TO pieces from the rayages of
moths. OF course. 1t would never do TO
offer these to anybody, nor even to con-
tdminate better things by putting them in
iuxtaposition. What is done with such
useless articles is q well-kept secret: but
perhaps at this late hour it may whisper
in your ear. The natural impulse is TO
pitch such things out of the rear window
and afterwaTd 10 make a bonfire of tie
whole business. But that would be bad
policy as false stories would be sure TO get
abroad concerning wicked waste OF good
material" So we adopt the same plan
which that wise woman, Miss Barton, orig
mated years ago and has practiced success
fully on various fields that is. All WORTH
less articles are carefully put into Lew
barrels which are rolled outside toward
evening and apparently forgotten. And
every morning the barrels are found
empty-the very last dirty rag stolen,
which the poorest plantation negro would
refuse to accept as a gift!
The Office which is facetiousiy termed
Mistress of the Robes''-that is, chief OF
the clothes distributing department-is no
sinecure.
Some weeks ago a change was made,
when local committees, composed OF Ia
dies from the various churches, took hold
of the work. Now the big Red Cross
warehouse is like a wholesale emporium,
whence boxes are sent out unopened TO
the several wards, in each OF which is
distributing station in charge of the Ia
dies aforesaid
From every one OF these station comes
the same Complaint-that there Is con-
slant, impe' alive call for warm garments,
wooden underwear. wraps. bed blankets,
and other articles necessary for the win
ter, now only few weeks away. There
Is no means OF satisfying the demand, for
the good people of the North seem to be
leboring under the idea that this is a
torrid climate, and all the clothes they
send are thin and summary. The truth Is
that this little island of the Mexican Gulf
does have some severe winter weather
accompanied by ice and snow, while
uorthers that chill the very marrow IN
ones bones are OF frequent occurrence.
In lieu of the million muslin shirtwaists
we have received and the equal number
OF scant calico wrappers with inch-wide
hens at bottom, it would be much wiser
to send flannel and other material suited
to the season, and infinitely wiser yet to
send money and allow the Galvestoptans
to buy garments to suit themselves Of the
local merchants.
The latter have suffered enough, heaven
knows. from the storm without being ut
terly ruined afterward through misguided
charity They have dried their drenehed
and deluged goods, cleaned out the mud
and salt left by the sea from their places
OF business. and are making heroic efforts
to avert utter failure. The insurance com
panies are making good no storm losses
and the merchants, having destroyed thou
sands Of dollars worth of ruined goods are
Offering those slightly damaged. but still
disable, at greatly reduced prices. But
naturally, nobody will buy at any price
SO long as trainloads and shiploads OF goods
continue to arrive for free distribution
and mercantile failures are the order of
the hour in Galveston. 1t cannot be too
strongly impressed upon the people that
money is the oEe thing most imperativeIy
needed for E1aS relief-money by the
millions OF dollars-for clearing I'D the
mountains OF debris, rebuilding the houses.
furnishing Them when built and purchas--
ing tools, sewing machines, ETC., for those
who have lost everything, but could earn
their own support if provided with the
implements of their trade