New-York tribune., 1918-07-15
Civilian Relief Directors to
Extend Work Among
Home Folks
10 Foster Good Will
Conference Plans Work
Among Every Community
in United States
By Ralph Block

ASHlNGTON, July 13.-Further
plans to back up the American soldier
abroad, by backing up the American
soldiers family Mt home, have been
comprehensively drawn in Washington
at conference lasting several days
here Of the Red Cross civilian relief
directors. Fourteen divisions in the
United States and its possessions were
represented at the conference.
Home service in the Red Cross is
not new thing. 1t has been in opera,
tion almost year, but the growing
disturbance in the normal community
life that has resulted from the
stresses of war, has called the Red
Cross to take more extensive part
in uph holding civilian morale, and the
Washington conference was called with
that end in view.
The association of the Red Cross
with the battlefield has conspired to
hide a part of its function from the
public view AS matter of fact, the
civilian relief section of the Red
Cross now has the largest staff among
all the Red Cross stats in Washing
ton, and the development of its ser
vice across the country will make its
work more and more important in the
progress of the war.
not only given the nation kind of
moral pledge that American soldiers
will be as we'll cared for and directed
as lies within the scope of wealth and
human effort, it also has assumed
the responsibility Of seeing that the
soldiers family remains living and
functioning part of society, and that
the war doesn't bring disaster to ~.
Much of this job, which is as vast as
it is significant, the government has
delegated to the Red Cross.
At the present time the biggest JOB
being undertaken is that of standing
sentinel over the soldiers allotment
to his family. There are conflicting
reports just now as to how we'll the
war risk insurance bureau has been
operating. Getting the soldiers pay
to the soldiers family hasn't been an
easy task and in the confusion of or
ganization of great project, there
have been mistakes and difficulties
The Red Cross, however, has helped
to remedy this situation wherever it
has appeared. 1t has maintained
bureaus Of information for no other
purpose than to trace lost checks,
even cabling to France for informa
ton and identification where neces
sary.
But the programme ahead includes
much more than this. The Federal
Board of Industrial Education, carry
ing the responsibility of educating the
disabled soldier, will lean heavily upon
the Red Cross, because mere education
of the soldier himself is less than half
the job. What the problem amounts
to is that the soldier must not only
be made self-supporting, able to
cleanly make his way in q competitive
society, but his family must be con-
vinced that it can be done and the
public must be kept from hurting his
spirit of self-dependance by its spirit
Of good will. If the programme isn't
carried out in those respects it is a
failure. Both the government and the
Red Cross are committed to these ends.
So, much of what the department of
civilian relief hopes to accomplish
depends on intangible community quail
tiles, like neighborlincss and commu
nifty generosity. And out of these
needs has come kind Of organization
which already has 5000 separate chap
ters and is still growing. Each of the
directors attending the Washington
conference this week represents g geo
graphical division of the United States.