The Bridgeport times and evening farmer. (Bridgeport, Conn.) 1918-1924, 1918-05-23
STORY OF HEROIC
RED CROSS WORK
IN GREAT DRIVE
Workers Fell Back With
Armies Administering
Aid and Comfort.


met the crisis thrust upon it by the
recent great German offensive, when
its lines were driven back together
with those of the French and Brit
ish armies, is one of the inspiring
stories of that greatest of worlds
battles. Caught suddenly on the edge
of the vast conflict and in danger of
being overwhelmed by the great num-
Der of refugees and wounded soldiers
fleeing before the German onrush.
the Red Cross Relief army, too, was
compelled to fall back and, while
maintaining it's organization and pre-
serving it's supplies, had to give every
possible aid to the refugees and sold
iers
A narrative of how this was achiev-
ed and how new the Red Cross lines
in the rear were organized even while
the relief work was in progress has
ben received from Paris at the Red
Cross headquarters here.
LAS soon as the, drive started" reads
the story, Major Perkins, head of
the American Red Cross, called some
aides together and made his plans.
assure the safety of all the workers
in the field and that incidentally has
been assured. But i was not just a
question of rushing back to safety.
No such simple ignominious plan oc-
cupied for an instant the thoughts of
any relief worker. They were to re-
tire Tin good order and work every
second for the refugees and soldiers.
Other workers and a great mass of
material were to be rushed forward
from Paris.
Just. as the German drive tested
the resources of the Allies, SO, indi-
rectly, it tested every relief organiza-
ton. 1t was necessary to connect the
relief work under a field general, to
keep the transportation lines between
all the various stations of the Red
Cross in the field connected, to work
on a big plan so that the work in
stead of decreasing would grow.
eff you will take map showing
the present territory affected by the
great battle you can follow the plan
of withdrawal which Major Perkins
and his staff worked out. The Red
Cross workers who were nearest the
battle when it broke were those in
Ham and at CrioX Molignaux, north
east of Ham. From Ham, .Croix-
MolignauX, Nesle and Grecourt, where
there were construction warehouses
and stats and medical relief workers,
including a small hospital for babies,
they drew back on Roye. And on
Sunday an organized Red Cross line
4 ;o1, 1%r
Amiens to Montdidier, Lassigny, Noy-
ons and scissors.
The next withdrawal was to the
present line where a perfected chain
of stations to help refugees has been
developed. From Beauvais on the
west it passes through Clermont, Com
piegne and scissors.
Compiegne is where field headquar-
tiers have been established. AS the
most advanced Red Cross workers
withdrew from their posts, reinforce
ments were sent from the rear. When
the first accommodating party arrived
there, they found that there was
work to do helping the refugees with
whom the roads were crowded. Back
they dashed to Paris to give the word
orders and supplies But the refugees
were no longer alone in the roads.
There were soldiers also. Though the
first plan had been to help the refu-
gees at this point, the assistance was
also turned over to the soldiers.
1.-The Red Cross men arrived for
their second visit to Compiegne on a
moonlight night. Uncouth German
aviators were flying low and their
machine guns were beating tattoo
on the town while from time to time
a bomb dropped. AS one man said
while his car sped through the moon
light, There was just piece of can
vas between men and hell
"a bomb had dropped on three ar
my trucks standing close together.
Their gasolene tanks exploded and a
fame shot up through the clear night
light. Compiegne was not a pleasant
place that night. But the relief work
ers were stuck there in spite of ma
chine guns and bombs. Finally they
found the hotel which had been aban-
doned and taken over as an Emer-
gency Red Cross headquarters.
"a Red Cross hospital at Annel fif-
teen miles north of Compiegne had
been evacuated, but the American
doctors stuck to their posts which
was most fortunate for there the Red
Cross had a fine supply of material
which was transported back to Com
piegne not only for the soldiers pas
sing through but also for the emer-
gency canteen at the station which
the DAILY unit, a unit of hospital aides
affiliated with the Red Cross, had es-
tablished at that point.
so the line drew back from Beau
vais to scissors and with the field or
CARNATIONS establishing itself solidly
and calmly. Fine work is being done
at Beauvais and the movement of
supplies is now fully organizea.~ The
refugees problem has only begun for
the Red Cross, because that organi-
zation has the intention of following
the great body of refugees to their
final destinations further south and
continuing to help them
THE Red Cross kept its field or
ganization intact but some warehouses
and construction work was destroyed.
The stores were partly saved and
partly given over to the soldiers to
take, the rest being burned so that
the barbarians should not benefit by
them. Every one worked his hard
est and the drivers especially deserve
the highest praise. The spirit of the
armies caught hold of all the other
workers. The refugees were resigned
but accomplishing and throughout
those twelve days of crisis a spirit