The St. Charles herald. [volume] (Hahnville, La.) 1873-1993, 1919-03-29


the French themselves raturaiiy pre-
fer as far as possible - provide for
their own. 1t has accorc ngly been de-
termined that the guidlng principle Of
Red Cross policy in En-; e henceforth
shall be to have punct.Gus regard to
Its every responsibility, but to direct
Its efforts primarily 10 assisting
French relief societies 1he liberated
and devastated region II France have
been divided by the p eminent into
small districts, each ,iiiialiy assigned
to a designated Fren h relief organi-
xation.
THE American Red Cross work in
France was initiated B.; a commission
OF eighteen men who |. aided on French
shores June IL. 1)l.. Since then
some 5000 persons have been upon the
, rolls In France, of whom 1000 were
actively engaged wen the arInistice
was signed. An indication of the pres
ent scale Of the wor. Will be obtained
from the fact that tie services Of 5000
persons are still reC'iired.
"Our American E1peditionary Force
having largely eva. uated England, the
activities OF the Fed Cross Commits
| sion there are naturally ICON dimn-
| ishing scale period Active operations
are still in progress IN Archangel and
, Siberia.
1.-THE work in Italy has been almost
entirely on behalf Of the civilian pop
ulation Of that country. In the critical
hours Of Ilaly's Struggle the American
| people, through their Red Cross sent
q practical message Of sympathy and
relief, for which tue government and
people Of Italy have never ceased to
express their gratitude.
Supplies and Personnel to Near East
1.-The occasion for such concentra-
ton Of effort IL Italy, England, Bel
! GUM and even In France having natur-
ally and normally diminished. 1t has
been possible to divert supplies az
personnel in large measure 10 the aid
Of those people in the Near East who
have hitherto been inaccessible TO out
side assistance but whose suferings
have been upon an appalling scale.
The needs Of these peoples are so vast
that government alone can meet them,
but the American Red Cross Is making
IN effort to relieve Immediately the
more acute distress
IAN extensive group Of American
workers has been dispatched to carry
vitally needed supplies, ind to work
this winter in ne various Balkan coun-
tries In order to coordinate their ac-
tivities, q Balkan commission has been
Rome, Italy, rom which point alone
all the Balkan centers can be reached
promptly.
"A commission has just reached Pc
land with dc ctors and nurses, medical
supplies, ami food FOR sick children
aud inyalids An American Red Cross
Commission has also been appointed
to aid in relieving the suffering of Rus
sian prison ,rs still confined in German
prison camps.
IAN important commission Is still
working in Palestine. Through the
war SPECIAL cooperation has been
given to the Armenian and Syrian Re
lief Commission, which was the only
agency allie to carry relief in the in.
, terror Of Turkish dominiOns.
Red Cross Will Continue.
"Red Cross effort is thus far flung
It will continue to be 80. But the
movement represented by this work
has likev se assumed an intimate place
in the de .ly life Of our people at home
The army Of workers which has been
recruited and trained during the wal
must not be deMobiized. All our e1'
perience In the war shows clearly tina,
there is an unlimited field for service
Of the kind which can be performed
with peculiar effectiveness by the Red
! Cross. What us future tasks may 81
it Is yet impossible to forecast. We
know that so long rs there Is an Amer
lean army in the field the Red Cross
will have q special function to perform
Nothing could be Of greater impor
lance to the American Red Cross thar
the plans just set In motion by the fvt
great Red Cross societies Ut the worit
to develop q program OF extended ac
tiyities in the interest of humanity
The conception involves not alone Ell
forts to relieve human suffering, bu
to prevent it; not alone a mOvemen
| by the people Of an Individual nation
J but an attempt to arouse all people Il
a sense Of their responsibility for tn
welfare Of their fellow beings through
out the world. 1t Is program botl
ideal and practical Ideal III that 1t
supreme aim Is nothing less than Yer
table Peace on earth good VIII t
: men," and practical in that 1t seeks t
take means and measures which ar
J actually available and make them ei
fective in meeting without delay tn
: crisis which is daily recurrent In tn
D lives Of all peoples.
. "For accomplishing its mission II
3 the years OF peace which must II
8 ahead Of us the Red Cross will requir
! the ablest possible leadership, an
e must enjoy the continued support, sym
: path!. and participation in Its wor
q Of the whole American people. 1t !
' particularly fortunate that such MAJ
. as DR.. Livingston Farrand should hav