River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1919-12-11
EGWOU can win. did. I've been
all through the fight and know
1T from start to finish -

Ill all through the fight and know
it from start to finish"
He doesn't often put it in so many
words but that is the spirit which
Frank A. Reich, superintendent of the
State Camp for Convalescents at
Tomahawk Lake, takes into his daily
work with the men who come to him
from Wisconsin tuberculosis sanatoria
for the hardening process" by which
they are returned to the ranks of the
self-supporting and the physically fit
1t is the spirit which makes him such
quietly compelling constructive force
In the lives of these men, the spirit
that had its share in making it pos
sible for twelve of the camps gradu-
ates to serve their state and nation in
army or navy.
When Frank Reich was told by his
family physician in the fall of 1912
that he had tuberculosis he thought he
had received his death warrant. His
father and two sisters had died of the
disease. The states educational cam
paign for the enlightenment of people
concerning tuberculosis was yet in it's
infancy and Mr.. Reich did not know
that tuberculosis was durable. He had
never heard of a sanatorium in spite
of the fact that the state sanatorium
near Wales, Blue Mound in Milwau-
kee, and River Pines at Stevens Point
had been in operation five years.
Advised to Go West.
Even his physician advised him to
go west into the fruit country and live
in the open. Not having money
enough to pull up stakes" and settle
In the west, Mr.. Reich sought the adj
vice of Gustave Pabst, of Milwaukee.
in whose office he was employed as as
sistant purchasing agent. Mr.. Pabst
Immediately entered into negotiations
to place him in charge of a mine in
Idaho but before arrangements were
completed Mr. Reich suffered a severe
hemorrhage which frightened both
him and his wife so thoroughly that
there was another conference with Mr.
Pabst and the physician, the result be
ing that Mr.. Reich was sent imme-
diately to the state sanatorium, where
ne was received as moderately adj
yanced case.
After fourteen months of treatment
Mr.. Reich was discharged in the spring
of 1914 as an arrested case. His health
was restored but in spite of the fact
that he had been under salary during
the entire period, thus making it pos
Sible to pay for his maintenance at the
sanatorium and meet other heavy ex-
penses incident to his illness, he was,
rs he himself puts it, financially fiat.
1t was necessary for him to have i'm
mediate employment but when he
sought to return to his old position he
ran up against the old unreasonine
fear of the disease which was one of
the unfortunate results of the early
campaigns insistence on its contag-
iousneSs.
Friends Afraid of Him.
His former associates in the office
were afraid of him and Mr. Pabst re-
gretfully suggested that it would be
unwise for him to return to office work.
For entirely different reasons, Mr..
Reich had felt the same way about it.
Out ne mad also Ielt that Mr.. PabSt had
first claim on his services.
1t was then that Mr.. Reich learned
by hard experience what the man just
out of sanatorium, unfit to do full
days work yet facing the responsible
ity of earning a living for himself and
perhaps for family, is up against. /
was period of financial depression.
His wife bravely did what she could
by working during the millinery sea-
son, but business was dull and after
the spring months were over there
was no work Tor her.
For two months Mr.. Reich walked
the streets in search of job, going
from one employment office to another