Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1917-04-30
HOOVER URGES AMERICA
TO PROFIT BY MISTAKES
Pleads for Contamination OF All Civil
iun Relief Efforts Under Red
Cross Supply Service.
TO AVOID WASTE AND TURMOIL
Only Possible Solution to Prevent
Disintegrated Overlapping Effort
and Multiplication of Committees
and Tons OF Useless Material.


and who since the outbreak OF the
war has been head of the Commission
for Relief in Belgium. urges the Amer
lean people to profit by the mistakes
made abroad in administering war re-
lief
/ In Il letter to Eliot Wndsworth. act
! ing chairman Of the American Red
| Cross. made public to- day, Mr. Hoover
pleads for prompt organization and
Capitalization of 'all volunteer civil
ian effort connected With the comfort
Of those in the service Of the Army
/ and Navy" under Red Cross Supply
Service AS the only possible solu-
J ton TO prevent an enormous lot of
pain. turmoil. and waste
Every country in Europe" declares
Mr. Hoover. has gone through an era
of disintesrated overlapping effort the
multiplication of thousands Of COM
mittees. and tons of useless, inn1ropos
and wrongly destined material.
. In England and France espe.islly.
the erection Of spccia, and independent
or scni-lndependent committees has
been fruitful of the most extreme diff
I hcrlties. until they accept direct con
.
the utmost use and n iroo,e
WOULD PREVENT REPETITION
OF THESE MISTAKES
10 prevent the repetition of these
r,istakeS in the United States 'E.d
Cross Supply Service" with a caain
! q warehouses in tie principal cities,
has been organized by the depart
meat OF military relief OF The Amcri-
can Red Cross. This supply service.
with branch headquarters in Now York,
i'"strn. Chicago. Denver. New Orleans.
ana Sa. Francisco. viii cooperate
with patriotic and relief societies in
tie forwarding of all soldiers COM
forts and hospital supplies
As means % eliminating the waste
described by Mr.. Hoover, agents OF
Led Cross supply Service are to be
stationed in every military training
camp and at every army base These
ulcu will supervise the distribution O:
supplies arriving from Red Cross de-
pots. Call for hospital supplies made
by chapters and organizations aniliat-
cd with the Red Cross as far as nos
sible will he filled AK orders at "A fac
tory are filed.
MIR. lioover's letter explaining tho
. %
ply Service will do. is AS follows:
"As the result OF the past two and
onc-half years experience OF war, all
European countries now know the vital
necessity for total Capitalization un-
der the Red Cross executive of the
whole of the volunteer civilian cfTcc,
connected with the comfort of those in
the service Of tho army and navy.
through an era Of disintccratcd over
tapping effort. the multiplying Of
thousands Of committees aud IONS of
useless, inapropos, and wrongly de-
tined material.
There was long struggle on the
par, of The military and Red Cross Of
ficials to get those matters on TO a
systematic and effective basis
In the end they have come to one
form of organization in every country
IN Europe. by which the Red eros.
executive ccntralizcs executive control
OF all such activities and dcccntralizes
its various phases into local chapters
and these again arc divided into divi-
sions for tn" provision of money, OF
surgical and medical supplies Of
nurses, Of base and convalcsccnt hos
portation, standardization and re-dis-
tribution. etc, Of all sorts Of supplies
The grouping Of these various di-
visions must he varied with national
necessity, depending upon biographies
ana transportation questions The
work OF the women, which is a very
large factor in Red Cross work, must
he co-ordinated through the central
! "A Z
women in that central agency has
proved the only effective method Of Sc
curing this
In England and France cspccially.
The erection of special and independent
or semi independent womeu's commit
tees has been fruitful of the most ex-
IRENE difficulty until they accent di-
rect control, after which they have. be-
come OF he utmost use and purpose.
The already established womens or
CARNATIONS Of various kinds can find
their best purpose in instructing their
!ocal bodies to place themselves en-
tIrely at the disposal of the local chap
tcrs OF the Red Cross.
'ln general. the one fundamental
factor in war organization generally is
Capitalization of executive and such
Capitalization cannot be effected If
there are lot OF national semi-indc-
pendent boards or organizations opcr-
atinE outside or partially outside OF
the direct control OF the Red Cross
executive
In any event the general principle
must he that the Red Cross itself is
The centralizing executive operating by
intense decentralization OF its produc-
tiv" and distributing functions. and
this has been arrived at as the only
possible solution after an enormous lot
! OF pain. turmoil. and waste"
HOLY LAND TO BIZ SPARED