Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1918-02-08

... ooGOV4k IL E -. L
Meanwhile the work in the prov
porary headquarters staff had gone
forward. Under a deputy commits
stoner, who had helped shape tho de.
velopment Of Red Cross work in
France. its three main divisions were
rapidly duplicated here-military at
fairs, civil affairs and administration.
The military department a put in
the hands OF an American who. since
the FIRST year of the war, has been
supply service reaching between three
and four Thousand French hospitals
and entering into every sphere of
army activity from the advanced
dressing stations to %sanateria In the
south Of France. The civil depart-
ment was put in the hands Of a for
mer member Of Mir. Hoover's staff In
Belgium, now chief Of tho bureau in
the French organization Of the Red
Cross which deals with relief and re-
habilitation in the war zone. Stores
and transportation were put in the
hands Of the organizer OF the Red
Cross warehouse system in France;
purchase in those of the Italian buyer
for a large American house doing
business throughout Europe; account
ing and finance in the hands of the
OS00NISS W LIc ISS0 SFUaS SdNlzA
ton IN France. controller of a New
York Trust company: and general ad-
m~inistration in those of a Detroit
buAness man whose years of cxperi-
ence In h management of chemical
industries has latterly been translat-
ed into building up for the Rcd Cross
a supply and furniture-makinE center
in the heart OF devastated area recQv.
cred by the French last spring. Pass
nnRt Nnh1A rai1oAAA >~N>,nA al
ing n other services were rapidly
set in motion in onices in the Palazzo
DORA turned over to the Red Cross by
the Banca Commercials, through an
American member Of its Board of Di-
rectors.
American Volunteers.
Other Americans in Rome were
quick to volunteer their services and
English speaking Italians were equal
~ cooperative. Certain members of
the Clearing House committee proved
invaluable as travelling inspectors.
Within a month a temporary staff Of
sixty five people were at work. This
included the delegates in the field.
quarters they could be obtained and
sent out Is rapidly as they could be
Observation-Disclosures and students Of the
American academy. the secretary Of a
sugar company, a Pennsylvania who
has been farming it in Umbria. artists.
architects, men of leisure from Flor
ence and Sicily, a doctor Of letters
from the Sorbonne, a physician. a
teacher Of philosophy and one Of So
GEOLOGY from the Civil Affairs Depart
ment at Paris, a social: worker and a
clergyman resident in Rome, a sani-
tary engineer back from Red Cross
work in the Balkans, and SO on.
knowledge OF Italy and Italian, ex-
ecutive experience, and acquaintance
with civil or military relief work they
had, in combination. this scratch or
~ganization. but scarcely one Of them
possessed all three qualifications; few
and were quick to respond to the
promptings Of the picked men sent
out to organize the work. "
Early in the first week. W Arnert-
can business men from the industrial
district in Northern Italy, met with
the Red Cross representative in Rome
and together drafted a scheme for a
citizens committee in Milan. That
night they left tor Genoa. where they
morning. met with their Milan group
in the afternoon, and on "Wednesday,
or two days after-the Red Cross open
ed work in Rome. f~ull-hedged Ameri-
can Red Cross committees were at
work in these two important northern
ccntcrs.
The Civilian Development.
Meanwhile reports were coming in
by wire and letter from the consuls,
asking for money: saying how they
could use it, showing the need for
personnel. On the civilian relief with
a. staff to be created out Of thin air,
with the railroads conEested and with
no man knowing how long the stream
of refugees would keep up. the admin
~istrattve problem was one OF limiting
effort.
The director Of civilian relief got
down a railroad mar and built his
carly program on the transportation
centers in that belt through which
the stream was flowing south and west
Genoa, Milan, Florence, Bologna.
and after them, Rome. .Ancona and
~vWY~ -,,- -..---