The Meeker herald. [volume] (Meeker, Colo.) 1885-current, 1916-07-15
WARTIME NURSES
The Great Battle Of Mercy Won by
Florence Nightingale.
WORK OF THE GREAT PIONEER.

She Changed the Military hespttsi
From q shamblss Into . Life cav
ina station and Became the Mother
Of Modern Nursing Methods.
Florence Nightingale, whose death
occurred In 1911 at the advanced age
Of ninety. was revolutionist In the
most splendid sense Of that term. She
1t was who revolutionixed nursing to
shut extent that she may be considered
as the mother Of that profession.
Previous to her entrance into the
tieid the sick were the victims OF
cullous ignorance and grasping In.
difference. but Florence Nightingale In.
troduced the trained. skilled aud gentle
hospital nurse, district nurse and null
tary nurse of today.
Certainly to few wonderland to few
men-has 1t been given to serve their
fellows so splendidly and 30 elective
iy. Florence Nightingale found chaos
In military hospitals; she created or
der and all that order implies
After the battle of Alma. In the
Crimean war, the military hospital at
scutari was like dirty shambles
wounded men died In hundreds In the
midst Of squalor and vermin. Crowds
Of poisonous dies buxxed ceaselessly
above the sick; medical supplies were
inadequate: proper food could not be
had: there were no arrangements for
washing or sanitation.
The plight Of the wounded soldiers,
bertled together in this hotbed Of pesti-
lence, was worse than II they had been
left upon the battlefield. Are there
no devoted women among you." wrote
Russell. the famous war correspondent
of the London Times, liable and VIII
ing to go forth and administer to the
sick md suffering soldiers in the east
In the hospitals at Scutari? Are none
Of the daughters of England at this
hour of need ready for such work OF
mercy r.
This appeal was answered almost In
stantIy. Sidney Herbert was then ut
the head of the war ONCE. and when
the authorities began to be inundated
by letters from women OF all classes
anxious to respond to the call Mr.. Her.
bert's thoughts at once turned to the
lady who was in His opinion the one
woman capable OF organizing and TAX
ing out to the Crimea a stan Of nurses
The woman was Florence Nightingale.
Miss Nightingale was thirty-four at
the time. and from her childhood she
had devoted herself to- the study OF
hospital nursing and hospital manage
ment. In ls49 she had enrolled hersslf
as volunteer nurse at the nrst train
ing school for sick nurses established
In modern times-the Deaconess insti-
tuition at Kaiserw0rth. on the Rhine.
When the war broke out there was mo
woman In all England better fitted
than Florence Nightingale to give to
England's soldiers comfort and relief
Mr. Herbert wrote to Miss Nightin.
and supervise the whole thing. His
letter crossed, zone from her. for on the
same day Florence Nightingale had
written to the war office offering her
services In the hospital at Scutari The
offer showed splendid courage.
Within a week Of making her resolve,
Miss Nightingale had her first contin.
gent of nurses In marching order. She
had selected thirty eight nurses to &C
company her. and they arrived at
Scutari on the day before the battle Of
lnkerman. And without q moments
loss of time that lady In chief and her
stnfY set to work to cleanse the Augean
stable which they found waiting for
them at the great barrack hospital
In short time the place was entire-
~ renovated Everything was scrubbed,
old clothes were burned. kftchen and
laundry were established. and the place
becnme a comfortable. well organised
hospital Florence Nightingale super
intended everything. She worked ~
hard at the routine and organizing a.
at the nursing itself. At all hours Of
the day and night she would walk
silently. lamp in hand. through the
wurtls. giving a word Of comfort here
or instruction there. She saved the
lives literally of hundreds.
Wounded men. 30 horribly mangled
thnt doctors gave them no hope. and
other nurses could not bring them
death by the tireless care Of this one
wonderful woman. The men worshiped
the very shadow Of this LADY with the
lamp"
The supreme womnnliness Of the
work of Miss Nightingale made her the
idol of the English people. Three mon.
archs paid their tribute to her: Re
membered by royalty she was not foe.
gotten by the people. On her return.
shattered in health. from scutari.
$4,000 was presented to her by q
yrateful nation. She used It all for
the founding of the Nightingale Train
ing Home For Nurses at St Thomas'
hospital. England, which is practically
the parent Of modern training homes
throughout the world, Just as Florence