Newark post., 1911-09-13
A GREAT WOMAN'S CAREER
Clara Barton--The Angel Of The Battlefield

men made her become medium
4: communication between the
soldiers and their friends at home.
Her own apartments were soon
overf1owing with such contrlbu-
tions which continued to increase
in quantity. The difficulty of get
ting this much needed help deli
vered increased as the war adj
vanced, converting itself into the
most serious problem which the
courageous worker confronted
throughout the war, and finally af-
fording a pitiful example of the fu-
tility of unorganized effort.
J The record of the good accom-
plished single-handed, and in spite
OF every handicap, can never be
told.
| One biographer gives us slight
idea of the self-sacrihce and ser
vice rendered in the cause of hu-
manity, in the following para
graph I'VE may catch glimpse
Of her at Chantilly-in the dark
ness of the rainy midnight bend
ing over dying boy, who took
her supporting arm and soothing
voice for his sister 's~-or falling
into a brief sleep OH the wet
ground in her tent, almost under
tie :eet of flying cavalry; at the
terrible battle OF Antietam fur
nishing from her wagons cordials
and bandages for the wounded,
extracting bullet from the cheek
OF soldier, tending the fallen all
day with her throat parched and
her face Dlackened by sulphurous
smoke, and at night, when the
surgeons were dismayed at finding
themselves left with only one half
burnt candle amid thousands OF
bleeding, dying men, Illuminating
the field with candles and lanterns
her forethought had supplied.
* y We may watch her after
defeat, when the half-starved, half
frozen soldiers were brought to
her, having great fires built to lay
them around, administering COR
dlals, and causing an old chimney
to be pulled down for bricks to
warm them with, while she herself
had but the shelter of a tattered
tent between her and the piercing
| winds" She was repeatedly under
fire, but although her clothing was
!, pierced or grazed again and again
she escaped without a wound.
/ Following the war she under
: took the stupendous task of reply
e ing to the friends of missing pris
: oners. The work was done in ;
: thorough systematic manner, il
: many cases being only confirma
: tions of dreaded losses. She dis
e played wonderful executive abilit
!. which might easily have won he
: great wealth had she not prefer
: red to be rich in the most roya
n way-that Of doing good
: This unselfsh worker had eve
S labored to alleviate suffering
/. never recognizing among til
i wounded friend or foe, and the az
e complishment of one unselfish tas
only led to broader service i
1t the field of humanity. Her symps
l. thy, as has been Illustrated in a
: the noblest lives, outswept tn
# boundaries of nationalism and en-
IS braced the realm of humanity.
er Forced to seek renewed phys
IS cal power after the terrible strai
l. the last decade had entailed, II
e autumn of 1869 found Miss Ba
to ton i'll Geneva, to benefit rom Il
er lnvlgorating mountain climat
is Here she first met the Information
in al Committee OF Geneva, the ge
| tlemen who were working for Il
g relief of the wounded in war, doir
he as all organization what she h;
ed attempted personally and alor
The treaty, providing for neutr;
Of ity for all who wore the society
a badge, had been signed by most
h the civilized nations, but not
of- the United States.
he Miss Barton recognized t
ed practicability of the idea at on
he and although her health did Il
Ter permit a public avowal at II
as time, she Immediately became o
OF the new organizations mt
vii powerful members. She reco
on, nized that "tle arms of char
in were about to be opposed to t
arms of violence and a kind
)se war made upon war itself for
lth establishment of the information
IN Red Cross Society meant I
~