The Cordova daily times. [volume] (Cordova, Alaska) 1914-1947, 1918-02-26
WHY DOESN'T THE
GOVERNMENT DO IT?
lBy William Allen White

Wy w IlIIdIn Alien NlltGD
Over and over again the Red Cross
solicitor in a drive for Red Cross funds
meets this question: "Why doesn't
the government do it?" or "Why are
we asked to pay for something the gov
eminent itself should pay for?"
Considering Red Cross work in
terms of socks and sweaters and
chIorotorm and sweet-faced nurses
bending over wounded young men. or
surgical bandages, the question is per
tinent. But the medical aid or the
surgical dressings or the hospital work
or the sweaters, socks and wristlets of
the Red Cross form altogether but d
small part of its activities. And. OF
course, the government could do that
part of the Red Cross work easily
enough, merely by adding another ex-
pehstve bureau to the national admin
lstratiOn, and paying men and women
by the thousands for the work that
they are now doing for nothing. Nat
urally, it would increase taxes greatly:
and it would put into politics some
thing that is now kept high and beau
tiful in life-almost in the field of re-
ligion; but the government doubtless
could do it.
But could the government look after
the families of soldiers who need help
look after them quietly, without pub
licity, giving them the benefit of ad-
vice, encouragement, sympathy and
fellowship as we'll as the financial aid
suited to their needs?
Could the government spend half
million dollars building canteens at
the railroad functions all over France.
| where French soldiers coming back
from the trenches on furlough might
have lodging food, baths and a rest
place, all but free, and thus return
home clean and rested and happy and
ready to go back, instead of returning
home wet and hungry, and lousy, ami
/ sullen-could the American govern
ment do that?
| Could the American government get
from the cOmmander-in-chief of the
French army the names of all the
French soldiers whose families are i'll
want, suffering this winter from cold,
and hunger, and disease, and look eat i
family up all over France and see thai
the family is supplied with fuel and
food and shelter in plenty, so that the
soldier fighting in the trenches will
feel that his family is cared for and
will stick-stick-stick to the end, full
of courage and ginger-could the
American government do that work
which the American Red Cross Is do
ing, and spending American money
by the millions in doing? Well, hardly.
Before that work was six weeks old
some pro-German pacifist would have
an injunction In the federal court to
stop it, claiming 1t is unconstitutional
and with some show of righteous
ness In his contention.
Less than a week after the Italian
breakdown the American Red Cross
was in Italy with long lines of freight
cars loaded with surgical supplies,
food and clothing for civilians, and
distributing this aid to the hospitals,
and to the hundreds of thousands of
refugees, men, women and children,
| fleeing before the German invaders.
and making America felt for brother
hood in northern Italy as no other
country ever was able to make itself
| felt in the world before. Could the
government have done that with paid
workers and salaried politicians for
the job?
Within ten days after the Germans
were on Italian soil three unpaid work
ers of the American Red Cross were
going through Italy with thousands of
dollars in cash-not in checks, but in
cash-on their persons, distributing
emergency aid to the stricken popu-
lations of Genoa, Milan, Bologna, Ra-
VIENNA and a dozen smaller italian
towns