The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1917-12-21

- the sun sets on Christmas gay.
They are to be known as Christmas members,
these 100000 new ones, and it is in the Christ
mas spirit that they to be recruited-the spirit
of unselfishness, of caring for the afflicted, OF
alternating suffering
While it is getting these new members the
100000 who now wear the Red Cross emblem
are giving all the Christmas cheer they to the
boys in khaki They need it. Tens of thousands
of them, and it may be hundreds of thousands, are
now in France with Pershing facing the terrible
Germans across the desolate waste of No Mans
Land Millions to 60 after them, and
other and still other millions until the foe which
claims the world for Germany is willing to go
home and behave civilized nation.
They will have a CHEEKY Christmas this year.
Every man in France will have little packet
from ''home" with the love and good wishes of the
American people-and that means lot to the
young fellow who perhaps never before spent
Christmas away from his home folks. 1t will put
moo shirt into him for the task ahead
The men on this side, waiting in the training
camps for their turn to go across will also have
as merry Christmas as the Red Cross can pro-
vide. Christmas trees, with gifts of some kind,
bearing world Of cheer and hope from the great
heart of the American people, will greet every
man in uniform, wherever he may be.
This Christmas will be merry one for the
whole of the army and navy. The boys have
not been long away from home, they have had
almost of the hardships of war, and they
come to the feast with light hearts.
War has taken almost toll from them thus
far. Belgium and France, Serbia and Roumania,
Great Britain and her colonies, Russia and ITALY,
have borne the brunt Of frightfulness and
boys have been spared. So it will be merry
Christmas for them.
Next year 1t will be different. The pinch Of
privation will be felt in the land-voluntary, to
great extent but 1t will be felt There will be less
to eat and less to wear, and millions to be fed
and clothed who no longer produce, and all the
nation will all 1t to give to those who
are fighting, and to those defenseless ones the
other side who have nothing.
And there will be gaps in the ranks, and there
will be full hospitals. There Is where the Red
Cross comes in-wherever there is disaster The
hospital buildings, the equipment the surgical sup
plies the surgeons and nurses and Orderlies, the
ambulances and the drivers and the stretcler
shoulders of the Red Cross. 1t will carry it, be-
it has the backing Of the American people;
and in the meantime 1T must carry the load Of
the nations which have already suffered more
than three years of frightfulness.
Here are some Of the things the American Red
Cross is right now doing In France where it has
spent $10O0O,O00. These extracts were taken from
a report by the Paris headquarters to Henry P
Dawson, chairman of the Red Cross war council
which raised fund of $1OOOOO,OOO for it's work:
1--WE have just given $1,OOO,OO0 for needy sick
and wounded French soldiers and their families.
"Our hospital distributing service sends supplies
TO 1923 French military hospitals, and is laying
in large stock for future needs
''Our surgical dressings service supplies 1000
French hospitals, and is preparing Immense sup
plies for our own armies
''We operating at the front line in co-opera-
ton with the French Red Cross ten canteens
and preparing for 20 more; and at six cam
teens for French soldiers at railway stations we
serving about 10000 men day.
"We have opened children's refuge and hos
ptal at point where several hundred children
have been gathered to keep them from danger Of
gas and shell fire. At another point we have
established medical center and travelling dis
pensary to accommodate 1000 children.
''We are making arrangements large scale
to help refugee families through the winter with
clothing, BEDS shelter, and for this work the en-
tire devastated portion of France has been divided
nto six districts with q resident Red Cross dele
gate in each. Warehouses have been established
at four points to which shipped food clothing
bedding, beds, household utensils and agricultural
implements.
"We have a large central warehouse in Paris
and distribution warehouses at important points
from the Swiss border to the sea. Two hundred
tons Of supplies are arriving in Paris daily, and
125 tons are shipped to branch warehouses"
From other authorities word has come that the
Germans are driving back into France. through
Switzerland, the ragged sick, hungry and home
less and children Of the conquered districts
of France at the rate Of 10000 month. Held In
captivity for more than three years, they are
now driven forth even from the ruins In which