New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1917-05-22
Frances Urgent Need of Help
Blu !. Hampden Dougheriy

-: ii,sos in interest the hospitals Tor
,,an,dcd soldiers They abound IN fars
al i,s onv;rons and are distributed all over
France. I'm Nice. for example, where inc gay
life Of former days has been somewhat re-
strictod. hotels have been transformed into
hospitals. some facing the sea along tne
boulevard des Anylais. with us cons1sn'
stream Of interesting sights; some upon inc
crests of Cimez; others stretching 'o"s'a
Monte Carlo There are assembled the s'cA
and wounded from Verdun, the Somme' from
Salonica and Monastir. One OF the iarges.
hotels in Hycres | found full OF victims OF
war. chiefly from the Orient In inc nos
initial wards are not only Frcnchmen ana
Americans. but also RUSSIANS hige''a"''
Serbians, Sencgalesc.
TRANSPORTED Peasants
The possible mutilaton which the human
being can sustain from shot and shell WIN
out extinction Of life is almost incredioic.
All kinds of sufferers fill these hospitals ana
tax TO the utmost the general supphes, puoi'c
and private-victims of German gases, OF
paludism an intermittent fever that has done
as much injury to the Allied armies AT ga
lonica as shot and shell; of frostbite, which
can be treated only by amputation OF the
affected limb. shot may traverse the bro"
to lcaNe almost no nldiN bpVh Wv
face vet destroy the sight. 1t is remarkable
what work the blind can be taught to per-
form. even when to blindness there is added
the loss of hand or an arm. All seem
grateful for the least consideration. What
marvellous fortitude they exhbit-even those
who know that their condition is incurable
or that they are so rreparably damaged as
to be facing penury They are TRANSPORTED
apd ~ nv the
sense that they have given Themselves
others have laid down their lives-in behalf
of France. =.
Nor are the men alone sufferers. There
are the children and the women, many doing
mems work The fields were full OF these
toilers at the first premonition Of spring. In
the hospitals their devotion has been superb.
have met French women who have been
serving in the hospitals since the outbreak
of the war, without pay for long hours and
with never a days vacation. If one would
know something of the awful burden of the
war upon the people of France let him talk
with these nurses and their patients; he may
hear trShs which newspapers would hesitate
to publish or orators to mention. Convinc-
ing proof that France is dropping under the
protracted strain and, however magnificent
her spirit, may soon be incapable of effort,
unless assisted. The presence even of a
slight American force upon her soil would
revive and inspire her.
We Must Help Quickly
left Paris radiant in color. Gracefully
festooned flags were displayed everywhere,
the French intermingling its folds with the
British, the Italian, Russian, Serbian and
that of the United States. The front Of
the Chamber of Deputies for example, was
covered with these emblems. At the Opera
Comique the orchestra thrilled its auditors
by playing "The Star-Spangled Banner" and
after it the "Marseillaise." French enthus-
asm over the accession of our government to
the Allied cause was almost at fever heat.
NJ Niviani eloquently voiced it at the Ameri-
can Club about a month ago. A magical
orator, the most famous that has visited our
shores since Kossuth came to plead the cause
of Hungary. May his wishes for the most
generous aid we can give be speedily real
lied. Unless France is to bleed to death
America must help, and help quickly!