The weekly times-record. (Valley City, N.D.) 1912-1922, 1917-08-09
Red Cross Information
for the General Public

Henry p Davidson, chairman of the
Red Cross War Council, announces to-
day the dispatch of special Red
Cross commission to Italy. The pur-
pose of the commission is to advise
how American Red Cross activity can
best be exerted to meet needs of the
ulation of Italy.
This is the fourth Red Cross COM
mission to go to Europe. The first,
headed by Major Grayson, M. P. Muir
ply, vice president of the Guaranty
Trust company, New York, was sent
to France. The seconded, headed by
DR.. Frank S. Billings, of Chicago, went
to Russia. The third, headed by H. w.
Anderson, of Richmond, Va, is now on
it's way to Roumania.
This, the fourth such commission,
will be headed by George F. Baker, Jr.,
vice president of the First National
Bank Of New York City With Mr.
Baker go John RI Moron, president,
Atlas Portland Cement company; DR..
Thomas w. Huntington, president of
the American Surgical association;
DR.. Victor G. Heiser, of the United
States Public Health service; and
Nicholas F. Brady, Central Trust COM
pany, New York.
Accompanying the commission also,
is Chandler r. Post, professor Of
Greek and fine arts at Harvard univer-
sity, and one of the leading authori-
ties in this country on Italy.
Through the American Academy in
Rome, it has been arranged that the
commission to Italy will have detailed
to assist it, Gorham Phillips Stevens,
director of the School of Fine Arts,
and Charles Epson Clark, of Yale uni
versity, director of the School of
Classical Studies, both of whom are
now residents in Rome.
To enable this commission to meet
| the more urgent needs which NAV be
found to exist, an emergency appropri-
alton of 100000 has been made by
the Red Cross War Council. Other
work in Italy will depend upon the re-
port OF this commission as to how such
efforts can best be made.
In announcing the dispatch of the
Italian commission, Mr.. Davidson au-
thorizes the following statement:
When the Red Cross War Coun-
Gil asked the country to contribute
$1OO,O0O,000 to war fund, we, of
course, could not know how much
would be given and, therefore, what
area Red Cross activities would cover.
We knew that there was such great
! need In all the countries which are
suffering from this war, that 500, OOO,.
900, or ten times that much, would not
! cover them. There was work of
| overwhelming magnitude to do.
If the American people had con-
! tributed only small sum to the war
fund, of course, the money would have
! had to be devoted almost exclusively
TO the care OF our own troops, for that
cause must continue to be the subject
| OF first supreme attention by the
American Red Cross. We shall spare
nothing to be in position to cooper.
ate in every possible way with our
| army and navy in caring for our own
,, men,
But the response of the American
people has been so generous that we
hope in addition to taking care of
| our own soldiers and sailors, to be
able to carry message of practical
aid and encouragement to all of our
allies who are fighting our battle in
/! Europe.
ut will be impossible to do any
thing more than to extend aid of SUI
perior urgency in these countries. But
every cent that is spent must go in
telligently and efficiently in directions
where it will do the maximum of good.
I'VE are sending these commissions,
| composed of the ablest men that we
could enlist (and no one, as yet, has
| refused an appointment to these COM
missions, except for compelling rea-
sons), in order that we may act on
! first-hand information gathered by
American experts.
Most of the members of these
! commissions go as volunteers, in a
| majority of cases paying their own
expenses. In the case of the French
and Russian commissions, til ex-
penses have been paid by private sub