The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1917-01-27
How American Boys Arc Carrying on
Humanttar,an Work In France is
Dsploksd Ia Motion
Ulms. y 4
=. q. BLOOD SPEAKS
Local Attorney Gives interesting 40.
dress on Corps and
Reads From
Letters.

Letters.
The work Of the American field
ambulance corps in France was
shown in motion pictures presented
last evening at the auditorium Of
tba Y. M. G. A.. under the patron
age of Keokuk chapter Daughters Of
the American Revolution. AS pre-
lude to the pictures. w. G. Blood
4 smoke on the work of the American
boys in the ambulance corps, and
read from letters written by mem
hers of the service. A short pro-
gram of patriotic songs was played
Nv Miss Clara Gertrude Fry and DR..
n B. Newcomb called attention to
some hand painted cards made by
students of the Ecole des Beaux Arts
and which were to be sold for the
benefit of the wounded art students.
The pictures were taken by the
Triangle Film company and depicted
the service in the ambulance corps
yery faithfully. The horror of the
humanitarian task-digging mangled
men out Of shell swept trenches.
Transporting them on stretchers and
two wheeled carts to the ambulances.
and then racing through bombarded
towns and shrapnel baptized roads
to the dressing stations and thence
to the base hospitals was shown in
all of its thrills.
Some pictures OF the French army
were included. These were present
ed to the ambulance corps men in
recognition of their work. The life
o. the soldier behind the trenches
was shown and the improvised stage
on which Carmen was presented with
"Poilus and punctuated by shell fire
from the Germans" gave some idea
OF the splendid spirit of the soldiers.
The ambulances used by the men
are built on Ford chassis, and hold
three wounded soldiers, two on the
flor and one suspended from the
Foef Two men usually occupy the
drivers seat and there are plenty of
helpers in bringing the wounded
men to the ambulances. Speed
station. and badly shattered Germans
Frenchmen.
The Debt to France.
In his talk last night Mr.. Blood
pointed out the fact that Washington
wrote into the foreign policy OF the
United States the doctrine Of neu-
trality in European affairs. and that
in spite of the sympathy of the
people for the country which had so
recently helped them, won his fight
In the case OF citizen Genet and
issued his famous neutrality procla-
nation.
Hon. Robert Bacon. in an address
last fall on the occasion of the cele-
bration Of Lafayette, September s,
recounted the incidents in the
struggle with England in which
France became Americas ally, ana
which brought Lafayette and Roch-
ambeau here. In the reply to Bacon
the French ambassador paid the fol-
lowing tribute to men of the ambul-
anoe corps and of the flying corps
who come from America to help
France:
Never in my country will the
American volunteers of the great
war be forgotten. There is not one
form OF suffering among the innumer-
abel kinds of calamities caused by a
merciless enemy that some Am erican
work has not tried to assuage in the
hospitals, in the schools for the
manned and blind, on the battle
nelds, In the trenches. nay, in the
air. with your plucky aviators. The
American name is blessed In the
trenches, where those kits named
after the hero OF today, Lafayette.
have brought comfort to SO many
soldiers.
Serving in the ambulances. serv-
Ing in the Legion, serving in the air,
serving liberty, obeying the same i'm
pulses as those which brought Lafay-
cite to these shores. many young
Americans. leaving family and home.
Lave offered to France their lives.
those lives many have lost. and
never was there shown such abnega-
cation and generosity as that of men
who, like Victor Chapman, died to
rescue their American and French
eo-ayitaors."
Organizing Hospital.
AT the beginning of the war" said
MT Blood. many Americans in
france. artists, writer's, travellers.
and many also at home who cherish
eo this love Of France, suggested an
american hospital to the French
government, and they turned over to
.nem a large new school in one of
-he suburbs Of Paris, which has be-
come one Of the best hospitals in
europe. Robert Bacon became presi-
oent, and two smaller hospitals and
tent hospital have been added with
a. total capacity Of about 500; and
MRS. Whitney has completely equip
Rs11c0 THAN On AMHlA0