The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1919-01-21

the subsidiary OISdAL0iiOAo ~ oSoAos
financially in the war work OF the or.
| der, including relief work and support
of the Salvation Army. William Almon
Wolff. in an article in Golfers Week
| ly, which is reproduced. describes
fully the work of the order:
When America declared war on Ger
many. in April. 1917. all sorts OF or
CARNATIONS were seized with the de-
sire to do their part. Your club was
one of them, wasn't It? And your
church-and about every organization
that helped to keep you in touch with
your fellow men and women. There
has probably never been such mani.
festation of eagerness to serve and be
of use as America made in the first
weeks of the war The sum of the eff
fort that grew out of that impulse OF
service was Observation-Disclosures
Much of it was finely and usefully di-
rected; much of it was not. This IL
the brief and unadorned tale of one
collective effort that got results.
Surprise in Store.
If you happen to be an Elk, men,
Der of the Benevolent and Protective
Order of Elks, you will know gooo
deal Of what is to be told. II you are
not, you may be as surprised as l was
when l learned what the Elks had
done
To begin with. to be an Elk you
must be an American. The Elks elimi-
mated the hyphen long before the war
made that symbol unpopular in these
United States. The Elks aren't ex-
elusive. They don't care whether a
man Is Jew or Gentle. Catholic or Pro-
testant. They are not particular about
his tailor and they're not interested in
his ideas about politics. But if he isn't
one hundred per cent American he
doesn't belong. So, when we got into
the war, the Elks, with their member
ship of half million, didn't have to
worry about divided loyalty. They
knew their members; they could
count on them. Elks began enlisting
Immediately; before Germany gave up
more than fifty thousand Of them were
in the service-a remarkable record,
when you consider that good many
Elks, naturally, are well beyond mill
tary age.
Help Where Needed.
The first step the Elks took toward
organizing their war work was the ap-
pointment of the Elks War Relief
Commission, on June 2, 1917. John X.
Tener, who is about equally proud OF
having been Governor of Pennsylvania
and president of the National League,
headed the commission. and has been
giving up nearly all his time to its
work ever since his appointment. His
fellow workers-and their names
ought to be known! were Joseph T.
Tanning, Jerome B. Fisher, James r
Nicholson, Edward Rightor, and Fred
Harper.
Tener's commission began by con-
sulting with the Red Cross and the
War Department In July 1t reported
to the Grand Lodge that the first
thing to be done was the establish
ment of base hospital units, to be
equipped by the Elks and operated by
the War Department. Immediately
the Grand Lodge voted million dol
lars and authorized Tener and his as
sociates to 60 ahead. No strings were
tied to the commission; the Elks want
ed to give help where 1t was needed,
and give it at once. And 1t was we'll
understood that If million dollars
didn't prove to be enough another mil
lion could be had for the asking. AS a
matter Of fact, the first million has not
all been spent yet. but if the work of
reconstruction requires it any part OF
another million can be had at once.
Equipment Cost $4,000.
The University of Virginia and the
University Of Oregon had both or.
ganized base hospital units. Fred
Harper, who was, in 1917, Grand Elk.
allied Ruler of the Elks, was Virginia
man. and knew about his university s
work. So the Elks and the old uni.
versity got together. The Elks pro.
vided the equipment, at a cost of
sec. 900, for base hospital unit of a
thousand beds, and, little later. at
the suggestion Of Senator Chamber.
lain Of Oregon, who is an Elk, did
the same thing for the Oregon unit
Both hospitals have done splendid
work in France.
At the same time Tener and the
others were looking ahead. The Elks
have always worried about men
whom life has more or less knocked
out. Elks have given many a poor
devil helping hand, as individuals
and as on organization. And good
many of the big men in the organiza-
ton were preoccupied with the prob
lem Of the men who were coming back
from France blind and crippled. They
were among the first people who de-
termined that, SO far as it lay in their
power to prevent it, no man blinded
or crippled in this war should ever
need charity.
Hospital in Boston.
On Parker Hill, in Boston, there
stands today the Elks U. S. A. Recon.
struction Hospital-the first recon
strnction hospital planned after Ameri-
ca went to war. 1t has three hundred
and fifty beds, and no more perfect
institution of it's type can be found
anywhere in the world. The Elks
have nothing to do with its operation.
They simply built and equipped the
hospital. They worked, themselves,
and they worked with the medical de-
partment of the army, in finding out
just what was needed And they fur.
nished every cent of the cost-nearly
100000.
These were the big. centralized con-
tributions Of the Elks to the winning
Of the war. There were others, of
somewhat similar character At Camp
Sherman, near Chillicothe. Ohio, for
example, bad situation developed
because the little town couldn't take
care of the relatives and friends who
came to visit men and officers in the
camp. The local lodge OF the Elks
did tic host and finally ocLod tbo