The sun., 1918-12-18
RED CROSS DRIVE
REACHES FULL TILT
Membership in Organization
Is Gaining Faster Than
Can Be Counted.
TONIGHT Is THE CLIMAX
Fifth Avenue to Be Great
Block Party From Gath to
59th Street.

The Red Cross Christmas Roll Call
continued yesterday to swell the total
of membership in the organization be-
yond count at headquarters, so that
the most authentic statement which
could be secured was that the cam
paign was "going great"
Tonight is the big night, the climax
Of the whole drive. Fifth avenue is to
be one block party from Twenty
fourth street north to Fifty-ninth
Bands will blare, thousands will dance,
hundreds Of entertainers will spring
their stunts and each block, given
over to some nationality or big or
ganization, will strive to put all others
in the dark.
Boy Scouts, Camp Fire Girls, SOL
diers, sailors, actors and actresses.
artists and illustrators, police, Motor
Corps girls, Red Men, Marines, Friars,
Lambs and Elks are some Of the peo-
pie who will be present to whoop
things up for the Red Cross.
Nationalities represented. each on its
own block. will be Norwegians, Ar
menians, Portuguese. Jugo-Slavs, col
ored Americans, Chinese. Italians, Rus
slams, Czecho- Slovaks, Britons. Syrians.
Greeks. Swedes. Ukrainians. Latin
Americans, Belgians. Frenchmen and
Poles. According to the schedule
there is no American block, but the
Red Cross itself has reserved hve
blocks, including the two in front or
the library, and the United States
Army and Navy have blocks, so Ameri-
cans may also safely come to the SHOW.
Big Array of Bands.
In addition to their own block, on
which the Police Band will blare de-
fiance to rival bands, the policemen
will be scattered along the whole
party. fifteen to a block. TO keep auto
mobiles and pickpockets off the ave-
nue.. To attempt to describe in detail
the various stunts would be hopeless.
Besides the bands furnished by the
various nationalities there will be
some forty naval and military bands
to prevent things from getting dull.
accommodated swarms of people who
strolled up and down the avenue I'M
der the yellow fringed banners and
evergreen decorations. Admission was
by tag-a big red tag given every one
enrolling at one OF the shops. AT each
visit TO one OF the shows the tag Is
punched until all the shows have been
seen.
Those directing the shows are Mrs.
Harry Payne Whitney, Miss Marion
Scott Key. Miss Dawson. Mrs. Alonzo
Porter, Mrs. Stephen Clarke. Mrs.
John Jay Chapman. Mrs. Chester
Beach, Mrs. Walter James. Mrs. Fran
els Newton Miss Lizzie p. Bliss, Mrs.
Paul Dougherty, Mrs. Payne Whitney,
Mrs. Frederick o. Beach, Mrs. Ed
ward Smith, Mrs. Edward Robinson,
Mrs. Paul Manship. Mrs. Egerton L.
Winthrop and Mrs. Philip NJ. Lydig.
More than $4,000 in one week is the
record of the Red Cross shop at 5s7
Fifth avenue. where all sorts OF goods
donated to the organiza ion are sold
by prominent women. Miss Helen c.
Frick. chairman, said yesterday that
the shop needed donors rather than
buyers. All the money raised goes for
comforts for soldiers, as there are no
expenses connected with the shop.
Message From PershinE.
A message received yesterday from
Gen. Pershing at the headquarters Of
the membership drive characterized
the service of the Red Cross as es-
sential. Gen. Pershing's message said:
ITO the millions of women whose
hearts and hands are consecrated to
the service: to the millions of the men,
rich and poor alike. throughout the
country. who have contributed and sac
rificed, and even to the millions of
children of our schools who are doing
their part, II should be made clear
that the relief and comfort contributed
by them through the American Red
Cross to the men in service is essen
tial"
Hundreds OF new members were en-
rolled yesterday at noontime at a meet
ing conducted by the Stage Women's
War Relief Society in front OF the Ii
hrary. Nine Santley sang the Red
Cross song THE Greatest Mother on
Earth" and Miss Julia Arthur Iieclted
The Battle Hymn of the Republic"
Other speakers were Jean Pariquin.
Frances Starr, Jack Hazard, Donald
Brian and May Naudain.
Mrs. John Purroy Mitchell is working
for the rollcall among the doctors and
nurses in the various war hospitals.
Thomas Hildt, vice president of the
Bankers Trust Company and chair
man OF the bank and trust companies