Evening star., 1919-05-12
BAHAMAS NATIONAL COSTUME IN
!; SYRIA, THANKS TOD. C. WOMAN
Mrs. Cabot Stevens Turns Red Gross Gar
!; ments Into Good Use to Aid Sufferers
!: In the Near East.

! How a Washington woman initiated
s5amas. convalescent suits, bed Jackets
sand similar garments, usually seen only
lin hospitals. the national costume in
Syria. Asia Minor and the Caucasus is
.fold in a recent bulletin of the Ameri-
soan committee for Armenian and Syrian
.telief, with headquarters in New York
:city.
!. Mrs. Cabot Stevens. 1914 Kenyon
street, Is the Washington woman re-
.sponsible for this interesting trans
formation in the costuming of whole
.pations of people whose mode of
Idressing is as much a fixed habit, al
,nost, as breathing. eating or sleep
Eng. 1t came about in the course of
.the work of the relief committee, of
(which Mrs. Stevens is an earnest
working member.
., When the Newport News, now
snearing Constantinople with big
.Sargo of supplies for the American
.commission for Armenian and Syrian
:Eelief. was - ling at New YORK CITY
scan Red Cross had left in its ware
houses thousands of suits of paJamas,
bed jackets, convaleScent suits ana
the like, all cut ready for sewing and
tiled up in bundles These were left
Unused when the signing OF the arms
',tice last November ended hostilities in
Europe.
-, message from Mrs. Stevens
brought a representative of the relief
Organization to this city to try to OBJ
tain the garments for use OF the
thousands of Armentans, Syrlans,
Greeks and other inhabitants of Asia
.iRed Cross officials heard the plea
for the garments, but raised the
sduestion as to whether persecuteo
armenian or Syrian would be very
.particular about having pajamas for
,sleeping garments. To this the rep
.pesentative of the relief organization
.replied that the need for clothing was
$50 great that the sufferers to be re-
.Iieved would rejoice at an opportunity
Ito obtain such garments for general
swear
i''There are many thousands of these
.people," the representative of the re-
lief committee told the Red Cross Of
sficials who in several years nave
slot had, altogether. as much clothing
sas one whole suit of paJamas. ihe
.tew rags these people wear are IN
qdescribably tattered and filthy. The
Ultimate in much of the country there
ais hot. If you will give them to US
lwe'l take the pajamas and be glad
TO get them
NOW on Way to Constantinople.
Accordingly. the pajamas bed jack
.ets and suits, etc, were turned over
and the bundles, all cut ready to be
sewed, are now a part of the cargo
sof the Newport News, which is soon
due to reach Constantinople. Within
"a very short time after the vessel
arrives a large part of the homeless
sand destitute population of the near
eastern countries to be relieved will
,6e wearing as everyday garb the pa
.jamas, etc, that, had the armistice
dot intervened, would have gone to
the hospitals in France, England.
Belgium and this country for the use
sof wounded soldiers.
2. That the pajamas. as well as their
Z Wearers, may be kept clean and pre-
sientable, the Newport News also is
rcarrying thousands of cases of soap,
z for laundry as well as toilet use. To
.nake the task Of sewing the ready
saut garments easier. the ships cargo
salso includes several hundred hand
ssewing machines. Against the time
.fhe converted sleeping garments bed
Jackets and other things wear out,
thousands of yards of cloth go to