Western Carolina Democrat and French Broad hustler. [volume] (Hendersonville, N.C.) 1913-1915, 1915-12-09
RED CROSS SEALS ON SALE
IN HENDERS0NVuLE STORES.
Interesting History of the Movement
That Has Done Much for Charity
in This County.

-
The Red Cross Seal campaign is on
over all the United States. The stick
ers may be found at several Hender-
sonville stores.
Mrs. C. r. Whitaker is chairman of
the local board and a member of the
state board Of directors. A thorough
campaign is being prepared for in this
city and the personnel of the organiza
ton will be announced later.
About 500 worth of seals were sold
in Hendersonville last year as a result
of which considerable work of u
! charitable nature was done here.
Se~venty-f1ve per CEN of the proceeds
from the sales may be applied to local
use
An educational show on the subject
OF Red Cross Seal work will be given
a the Vista theatre soon, date to be
ANNOUNCED later.
The following history of the seals
is interesting:
Nearly $4,000, 900 has been raised By
Red Cross Christmas Seals in the last
seven years, and yet many people who
will buy these holiday stickers at this
eighth annual sale do not know how
the charity stamp idea originated.
1t was war that brought forth the
charity stamp-our Civil War of 81 to
'65. Some of your grandmothers first
1,Iayed ''post office" with the stickers
similar to Red Cross Seals way back
III 1862, when they conceived the idea
of selling stamps at fairs for the ben
eft of the relief funds for the soldiers
hospitals in Brooklyn, Boston and
elsewhere. Nearly S1,000,000 was
raised in this way before 1865. After
the war this method of raising money
was discontinued in this country for d
generation, although it found vogue
in Portugal, Switzerland, Austria,
France, Spain, Denmark, Norway.
! Russia, Sweden and other European
countries. There are now several
thousands of different types of charity
stamps used in all parts of the world,
as many as forty being used in Aus
tria for children's hospitals alone.
Stamps or seals were first used TO
get money for the anti-tuberculosis
crusade in Norway and Sweden in
1904. To Jacob Riis, the well known
social worker of New York, and to
Miss Emily P. Bissell, the energetic
secretary of the Delaware Red Cross,
JOLLIIg OCAChS In 1tO1AOl u OAAS1hANAAS
ouI American Red Cross Christmas
seal. In 1907 Mr.. Riis's interest was
aroused by the receipt Of a Christmas
tuberculosis stamp on a letter from
Norway. He published an article
about this queer looking stamp in the
Outlook and suggested some possible
uses for it in this country. Miss Bis
sell at once saw an opportunity here
and prepared a stamp, from the sale
of which her society realized $4,000
for tuberculosis work. So impressed
was she with this success that she in
duced the American Red Cross to take
up the sale in 1908 on a national basis.
With very little organization and with
hardly any attempt at careful adver-
Using the sale that ear brought in
over $135,000 for anti-tuberculosis
work in various partsNo the United
States. In 1909, with more thorough
organization, the sale was increased to
$3.50, 900, in 1910 to nearly $4,000, in
1911 to over $330,000 and in 1912 to
over $500, 900. In 1913 the sale vas
increased to nearly $450,000s and last
year, in spite of war and hard times,
% per cent more, or 55,000,000 seals
we're sold, totaling $550,000 for the
aDti-tuberculosis war.
It is fitting to note that war, inhu-
MAJ and cruel, was the mother of the
Red Cross seal, and that now wal for
humanity against disease brings il
back to it's fullest usefulness.