New-York tribune., 1917-12-17
5000 Persons Crowd Hip
podrome to Hear Lead
ers Fire First Gun
Taft Calls Indecisive
Peace Dangerous
Ex President, Presiding,
Outlines Work and APP
peals for Great Effort

the NNtlOnel roll was Hicu las" H'h"' o
q mass meeting held in the Hippo
drome.
Six thousand persons crowded the
great building to the roof and listened
eagerly while Henry p. Dawson, chair
man of the Red Cross National war
Council; Henry j. Allen. newly re-
turned from France; William Howard
Taft and others told of the work of
mercy which the American Red Cross
is doing in France, Russia, Italy, Ru-
mania, Armenia, Poland and IN the
United States.
The stories came from the muddy
trenches. from the soldiers camps,
from the stricken homes OF France.
from the schools where blind and GRIP
pied soldiers are being taught new
trades. and from the hospitals behlnd
the everywhere that the work
of the American Red Cross is bringing
help to the victims Of the war.
Kahn Urges Loyalty
The meeting was opened with an in
vocation by Bisnop David II. Greer,
which was followed by the singing of
THE Star-Spangled Banner" by John
Mccormack, On the stage was hu-
man Red Cross flag. formed BY 400
members of the New York County Red
Gross, dressed in red robes and the
white uniform Of the organization.
Introducing William Howard Taft,
who presided. Otto II. Kahn said, in
part:
Speaking as citizen of foreign
birth-of German BIRTH want to say
to you that the great mass of us
adopted Americans are anxious to de-
fend with our life, our all, the great
cause for which we have entered this
war. We are true to our oath.
"The spirit Of Prussianism and the
spirit of America cannot live in the
same world. One or the other must
conquer. And there is fighting on our
side the force which has ever proved
itself stronger than any other, the
force which has never known defea.,
the force Of freedom"
Mr. Taft. in beginning his address,
called attention to the danger OF an
indecisive peace.
Calls Indecisive Peace Dangerous
"The great danger that we are at
present facing in this war is the possl-
hility of an incOnclusive peace he
said. at must not be that the greatest
and most terrible war in the history of
the world shall be fought for nothing.
II should not be that the 100000 dead,
the 100000 in prison camps and the
100000 in hospitals shall have sut-
fered in vain.
"The danger is that our allies, who
are in an exhausted situation, may not
hold out. And the instrumcntality
which can best stiffen the morale of
those brave nations who for three
years have carried on our war, is the
Red Cross. That is why we are asking
every citizen of the Republic to join
the Red Cross.
"Why should we limit the member
ship to ten million? Why not the
whole one hundred per cent? We arc
merely starting with the ten million"
Saws United States Saved France
One Of the stirring moments of the
meeting occurred when Henry j. Allen,
one Of the Red Cross commissioners to
France. was telling of the all but eX-
h2usted condition Of war-ridden
France.
"If We had not come into the war
when we did" he continued, "it is even
possible that France, like Russia, might
now be making a separate peace with
Germany"
"Never!" cries French soldier in
uniform, who was sitting in seat
near the platform. The speaker stopped
and the crowd, carried away, clappcd
and cheered itself hoarse.
Mr.. Allen told of the work the Red
Cross is doing behind the lines in
France, where this winter the family
of every French soldier at the front will
be visited by American Red Cross
workers, and wherever needed will be
provided with food, clothing and the
necessaries of life. A French general,
said MIR. Allen, had declared that this
work would so build up the morale of
the soldiers that it would be this win
ter the equivalent Of a million and a
half soldiers.
"Will Fight in Germany"
The American armies, according TO
the present plans, are to fight on Ger
man soil, said Mr. Allen. In the spring
they will take over a section of the
French line in Alsace, he said. He told
how England is pouring 10000 fresh.
well trained men into her continental
armies every week. and also called at
tention to thetact that in the Canadian
forces somewhat more than 35 per cent
of the soldiers are Canadians" from
such places at Oshkosh, Kalamazoo and
Yonkers. Every French soldier going
TO the front is given an American Red
Cross kit, sandwiches, socks, tobacco
and an American flag, he said
Henry b. Dawson, senior partner Of
the firm of J. p. Morgan & Co., and now
chairman of the Red Cross War Coun-
Gil, told how the work was organized
in this country since the outbreak Of
the war. and how il was bringing relief
to the soldiers and civilian population
Of all the Allied countries. He also
asked the cooperation OF every citizen
TO put a stop 10 the unfounded criti-
cisms and the insinuations against the
work of the Red Cross, which he char
acterizes as German propaganda" He
explained that for every dollar con-
tributed for relief work more thau a
dollar goes for actual relief, due large
~ TO the volunteer services of the
women workers.
"As for Russia" he went on, sour
commission is in Petrograd. and will
stay there carrying on the relief work.
| think the thing for US TO do is TO
stand by Russia, and that there are
still many chapters 70 be written about
the history of Russia's participation in
this war. In Rumania, too, our work
ers will remain"