The Daily Missoulian. [volume] (Missoula, Mont.) 1904-1961, 1918-04-21

fering from the dreadful carnage.
And this leads TO the questions, 20
Do you know how il came TO be organ
whom belongs tho credit for the idea?
ng now?"
Florence Nightingale born almost u
hundred years ago in England, re-
nounced position and wealth for pur-
pose. AS a child she tried to protect
helpless and injured things. Years
only served to emphasize that trait of
mercy. Soon after her debut she had
occasion to visit hospital in London.
The dirty. unsantitary conditions she
found there decided her to become a
nurse. Just to make such places clean
and wholesome for the sick In the
face of bitter protests she gave up her
society life and for IL years Travelled
over Europe, visiting and studying the
hospitals.
Following closely on her return to
England. the Crimean war started.
France, England and Turkey were
fighting against Russia.
Mismanagement In the military hos
pitals and lack of supplies made I'M
told misery for the sick and wounded
1000 of whom lay for days at Scutari
in mud and filth just as they We're
brought from the battlefield; rats and
Nermin infested the building where
they lay on the hard floors. But one
kind of food, Irish stew. was available
for the men who were so i'll they should
have had most careful nursing. There
was no soap and towels were lack
ing.
Eera II G1nraupa oh IL
was called by the British government
as the first nurse to enter a British
military hospital. With her came a
few nurses from her hospital in Lon
don. The dirt was washed away,
wound were dressed, clean clothing
supplied, new buildings erected, proper
food supplied. When the war was
over the soldiers of Crimea raised a
large sum OF money in Florence
Nightingalc's name to show their graf
itude. This was accepted on the con-
dition that 1t be used TO found the first
hospital training school for girls.
But the work did not end with the
Crimean war. Others became en-
Unused with the idea. One of these
was Henri Dunant a. young Swiss,
, who published q book called "A Soft
venir of solferino." containing a mar
rative of the horrors he had witnessed
at Solferino's battlefield. Inspired by
the work Of Florence Nightingale
there came to Dunant the idea OF an In
terna.ional organization to perpetuate
what she had started.
Red Gross 10 Organized.
Tho result was tho calling together
OF council of IA nations at Geneva,
Switzerland. followed in 1864 by the
adoption Of an international treaty
which gave to the world the organ
ization of the Red Cross. Under the
terms each nation pledged itself to
work with other nations in caring for
the sick and wounded Of all countries
alike and never TO fire on nurse or
doctor or ambulance that bore the sign
of the Red Cross The convention
adopted the emblem OF the Swiss BAN
ner with the colors reversed, as a
tribute to the nation which called
them together. Thus, the Swiss ma
tional banner is a white cross on a
red field and the emblem of the Red
Cross Is a red cross on II white field
Humanity" and neutrality are the
NdlIIi"oius-
When our own great Civi! war broke
out, few in this country knew of the
work Of Florence Nightingale or o.
the Red Cross idea. The care Of this
sick and wounded was in the hand.
OF a sanitary commission. composed
Of many men and women, beside.
many individual women who devoted
their time to the amelioration of suf
fering. Clara Barton was one o
these. When the war was over sh'
went to Europe for n rest and Their
for the first time she heard OF the Re-
Gross society. In 1879. in the Wa
between France and Germany. sh
saw for the first time the medica
staffs of two opposing armies. work
ing together in the care Of wounds
soldiers
1t was largely through her effort
on her return after five years OF wor
the Geneva treaty was signed by tn
United States and in 1852 the Amer
lean Red Cross WAS established. Sh
was It's first president.
Since then. I'D to the present Xrs5