Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1919-01-14
GIRLS TO CALL
AT EVERY HOME
FOR RED CROSS
Conduct HOuse-t0-HOuse Canvass
to Make Up for Poor Record
Established Recently.
MEMBERSHIP CUT ONE-HALF
Less Than 80 Per Cent of 1917
Residents Answer Appeal
During Campaign.

Rock Islanders are to be give.
a chance to maintain their war
record Of being 100 per cent loyal
in responding to war charity de-
naands Less than so per cent OF
the residents responded when the
annual roll call of the Rock Island
Red Cross chapter was made IL
December. Community service
girls, formerly known as Patriotic
league girls, will conduct a house
toulouse campaign Sunday in an
attempt to enroll every Rock Is
land resident as a member of the
Red Cross.
In announcing the canvass. the
war camp community service offic-
ials in Rock Island issued the fol
lowing statement:
I'm the Christmas roll call OF
the Red Cross the city of Rock Is
land and Rock Island county fail6d
by over 80 per cent Of reaching
their last years numbers in mem
bership. This Is a fact of which
no one can be proud, and looking
over the city and county records of
other war time drives. which have
always been a matter of Ioca!
pride on account Of their unusua?
success, it is evident rat there
must be a reason for this extreme
~ poor showing in this commun-
ity for so meritOrious a cause.
'The influenza epidemic and the
bad weather at the time of the
roll call did interfere with the
work OF enrolling members, but
TzT1 ID tn oil
low a record of less than 50 per
cent efficiency stand against her
when there is a greater need for
Red Cross activities row than
there was before the arm stice was
signed. Not One-half of our boys
have been returned from overseas
and any one of them that has re
turned will say that tbs greatest
mother in the world is the only
fitting name for the American Red
Cross, and that the feeling of one
ness with this organization that
the men on the other side have
had during the war was not merely
Il great, but the greatest factor in
enabling the Red Cross to give the
efficient help that it did. This
spirit of oneness is based on their
belief that the folks back home are
all members of this organization
and it is felt that a lapsed Rel
Cross membership is an order to
the Red Cross to desert our boys.
Now that the flu epidemic is
passed, it is planned to give every
man, woman and child in the city
of Rock Island and Rock island
county another opportunity to put
this community over the top not
only by renewing the memberships
of last year. but by adding new
names to the roll of the most I'M |
selfish and humane organization |
that one may have the privilege 10 !
belong.
THE community service girls, /
formerly known as the Patriotic !
league of Rock Island, of which |
Miss Marian Clark is secretary, (
will make a house to house cali
vass of every home in the city, |
Sunday afternoon, Jan. 10. and /
those who have failed or neglected. /
to send in their application for /
membership will be given an op |
portunity to show their spirit OF /
oneness with the organization ,
which not only is the greatest |
mother in the world to our fight |
ing men, but is also the first ami |
greatest service of mercy in our |
own land when disaster, floods, |
earthquakes or epidemics produce
emergencies, which must be /
handled by a great. unselfsh or !
ganizatiOn. All that is needed is /
a heart and a dollar from each |
man, woman and child. and most |
of all heart, to make Rock Island /
a hundred per cent community
''The city has been divided into /
districts and the community ser
vice girls will work in pairs, each /
pair covering a limited territory
so that the work may be quickly
done and at the same time no one
may be missed. These girls have
been unselfish and untiring in
their efforts during the war, bu-
now feel that this is one of tn
greatest opportunities they have
had to be of service to the com
munity and to a worthy cause |
They know that a million Amer
lean soldiers are still N France
and Germany who are in need Of
the services of the Red Cross: that
thousands of soldiers in the home
land and overseas are in base hos
pitfalls where the Red Cross must 1
continue its achievements nf Ii
mercy; that it costs a million dol /,
lars a month for home service. II
which the Red Cross is rendering |;
that there are over 12.O00. 900
homeless, ill-fed and slckly chill
dren in Europe who are crying for
aid from the Red Cross; that de-
spoiled Belgium and France witt, /
the robbed and depOpuIated areas
Of Serbia and Ruman1a are III
dreadful need which can be Cared
Tor Immediately only by the Rel ;