Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1919-01-17

unit Both hospitals have done splendid
work in France
At the same time Tcner and the Others
were looking ahead. The Elks have al
WAYS worried about men whom HE has
more or less knocked out. Elks have gwen
! many poor devil a helping hand, as
/ individuals and as an organization. And
! a good ma of II big men the rgan-
/ lzation were prcocccuped with the prob
! lem of the men who were coming back
/ from France blind and crippled. They
we're among the first people who detcrmn-
4 cd that SO far as IL lay in their power to
/ prevent it, no man blinded or crippled IN
! this war should ever need charity.
| On Parker Hill, in Boston, there stands
/ today the tlks L. 5. A. Reconstruction
| Hospital-thc first reconstruction hospital
| planncd after America went To war. 1t
has $50 beds. and no more perfect insti-
tuition of It's type can he found anywhere
in the world The Elks have nothing to do
with Us operation. They simply built and
! equipped the hospital They worked
themselves, and they worked with the
medical department of the army, in find
ing out Just what was needed. And they
furnished every cent of the cost-nearly
$500 900.
These were the big, centralized con-
trhutIons of the Flks To the winning of
the war There were Others of somewhat
similar character At Camp Sherman,
near Chllhcothc Ohio, for example, bad
situation developed because the little
town couidn take care of the relatives
and friends who came to visit men and
oi3ccrs IN the camp. The local lodge Of
the llks did ITS best, and finally asked the
Grand Lodge he central governing body
81 the Ordcr-lo for help. The answer was
tho erection ot a building where comfort
able rooms and good food were at the
disposal oi visitors at cost price
CINDERELLA, rnE SALVATION ARMY.
l{ut this sort &c activity didn't satisfy
tho l.lhs the half million or more in
diyi,iual Elk~ scattered all over the coun-
TN Ia thor local lodges They knew the
part thcir order MAS PLAYING. They were
proud " that. But the two base hospitals,
thc blc reconstruction hospital III Boston.
aii the other things the Grand Lodge had
dome and WAS doing. didn't give the
individual l.lk much chance 10 feel that
hc hunScli was helping Altcr all, what did
9Th assessment q; "A dollar or 50 amount to-
II amounted to 4 lot N the aggregate, If
umr~, and thc Iik> knew that. and were
giad ltu thcv wanted 10 do more
nc, did ~ one knows Just how the
s-~n.iatlnu between The Elk~ and the
salvation Amy began But il grew into
one nf tho hig things of the war.
Ihg SALVATION Army went to work.
quctly and without amy talk, rs soon as
~ began mobiilzIng our new armies
Itc salvation Amy iSn rich. 1t hasn
aAS ma, ,hncry tnr collecting money. And
-til i succeeded IN carrying on its work
fyr i Year without making an appeal to
t.c country for money. Haven't YOU
wondered sometimes how that was ac-
,amph>hrd' How II Was that the Saliva
'.,s Army alone ot aN the big war-rchcf
i.llr> taat we're working with the troops
III France didn come dunnlng you?
Nell the 4 ik- are responsible, in great
measure Hrs seemed u hear more
,lru' tho salvation Army and its work
tl5m th 'r-' Than the general public did
ou. r,4~.n Va~ | imagine that the war
.r.Nu,a tnc lik~ uut al house and homo
-t thoroughly, Incl gave up their club
h.us,, ana thcir ioGgc rooms to the Red
Cry~~ all over the country. YOU know
Sometimes thcy kept one room in a big
building for their meetings; sometimes
'l,v just borrowed a room when they
ia.l 'u havr h. Thr Elks arc a convIvlal