Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1919-04-15
CHICAGO RED
CROSS SHOWS
EFFICIENCY
For Trainload at.
Troops Prepared on
Short Notice.

Chicago. April 15.-'"Troop train
arrives in one hour" was the terse
message received by the Chicago Red
Cross c%anteen, and in AZ minutes a
thousand sandwiches and IS gallons
Of coffee had been prepared and were
awaiting distribution in the railroad
yards. -
Similar messages are being received
daily, and as many as 1000 soldiers
have been given food, drink, cigar
cites. and.magazines in q single day IN
the railroad yards by the ,%canteenis
700 or more volunteer workers. The
canteen was started with a team Of
twelve workers.
Since the homeward movement Of
troops has increased in recent weeks
the Chicago canteen or the lakefront.
the largest of the 700 canteens in
America, has been taxed to capacity.
Kitchen cars loaded with steaming
coffee, doughnuts and the now famous
jam sandwiches tread their way
through the yards Of 81 railroads to
fulfill the canteen's motto that no SOL
der shall cav Chicago hungry.
The kitchen cars follow in the wake
of ambulances which rush the sick
and wounded to the canteen's first aid
station and. thence to hospitals, after.
which reports on their condition are
submitted to the war department.
But u work doesn't stop there"
said Mrs. George A. McKinlock. com
mandant of the canteen. There is
the discharged soldier who must not
knews there is food for him here and
he also knows that the service depart
ment will give him every aid in find
ing work.
"Of course, the wounded men get
first attention. We have made it a
point to see that no wounded man
passes through Chicago without a hot
After wounds are dressed here at the
canteen hospital rooms the patient is
given a hot meal, a satisfying meal,
and then returned to his train. We
have fed as many as $4,000 soldiers in
one month.
And the boys appreciate it. Only
a few days age a train, unavoidably
time without water. The men were
downhearted and sullen as the train
rolled into the yards. The mental
change was amazing after hot coffee,
sandwiches, cigarettes and chocolate
had been distributed. When that
train started west from Chicago, God
Bless the Red Cross had been
with chalk. The men were singing
and waving"
In the kitchen a number Of wom-
en-. most of them social leaders in
Chicago, were scraping pans, stirring
steaming pots and hopping up a floor
already scrubbed pale. One mi
paused. the mop suspended. and said:
I'm the vernacular of the professional
scrub woman, we are right up and at
'em."
"Of course, we are all very tired"
said Mrs. McKinlock. surveying the
group of perspiring women. but the
work must go on until all our boys
are safely home. Every worker
knows her task m performs it with
out question. Only today. General
Leonard Wood visited here and paid
US a grand compliment by saying he
had never fAncied UGH discipline as is.
observed here could obtain in a camp
Of women.
.I'm sailing for France on Friday.
I'm going to tell them over there
what we've done ove here; then I'm
coming back and tell the workers in
America what has been done in
France.
II wonder II they are as tired over
there as we are ver here. I hope
they are as determined"