New Britain herald., 1920-01-10

M culosis making great headway among the children, and one of the great tasks of the clinic was to begin the fight against the White Plague.
 But after her four months of serv ice the word came to evacuate the Macedonian district. The Red Cross at this time Wue taking it's nurses out of Poland, which was III d very dis ruptcd state. But the ;trmy had beg ged that ten American nurses should form d unit to do work under the Pc fish government and Miss Emma Will son of Washington, q notable figure in the nursing world. had promised 10 secure these ten women.
 Miss Porter Enlist-.
 Among the first to enlist was the former Bridgeport girl. In the unit were women from the north. east, south and west of the United States no two from the same State-but all experienced owcrs, ,as workers under standing public health and organiza- ton work.
 In August of l91S Miss Porte- left Warsaw for d fifteen hour raj road trip to Sundomicrz, a quaint old | oliSh town whose huge stonc-towered gate way and the city hall date back to
 
 early seat of the Polish kings, this little town oI four or five thousand in habitants. and still in spite of the hardShipS of war and the poverty of it's inha hitant:;. many of whom have moved in from little farms outside. retains some traces of it's former splendor. There are eleven churches in Snndomierz. for the Poles are noted for their religious spirit. And the home of the Bishop is one of the few fine residences which remain in the town. The city hall with its round stone tower is d remarkably fine eN- umple of media eVal architecture.
 Only English Speaker.
 In lh& strange town. with it's at- mospherc of three centuries gone by Miss Porter found herself not only the only American but the only Eng fish speaking inhabitant. For four weeks she struggled with an interprc- ter. and then gave it up and decided that it was easier to do her talking wit Il her hands
 The hospital to (which she was sent proved to be the former home of Polish family of wealth and po- sitlcn. It was large and picturesque, set on q hill overlooking the beauti- rul Vistul but tu the eyes of q woman trained iu the modern system of nursing in this country, if was primitive beyond words.
 Water in Barrels.
 lma2Inr Il hospital with no water "iipplN---not even a well. Each day the water carrier With his horse and add little cart, brought barrels of water from the banks or the Nistula to the hospital courtyard.
 Nnd through the cobhled streets of the town. past the low matched roofed houses. went the peasant women swinging their wooden pailS of water, as their great great at-Srandmothers had done in the proud days before Poland had passed under the Russian yoke.
 The Polish people instantly en- dearcd themselves to the Bridgeport nurse by their cleanliness, their intel ligerce and their eager helpfulness in her efforts to improve conditions.
 Tyrhus Epidemic Rages.
 The hospital, which was turned over to the typhus patients. as a tyr- phus epidemic was raging. was pre- sided over by Il young Polish doctor. graduatc of one of the old medical schools et Europe. in Cracow. He was eager to advance in his chosen profession. and had hoped that during the war he might have an opportunity to work shoulder to shoulder with European and American doctors and surgeons of note and learn Of the uodCrn progress in medicine. Instead, for four years he had been shut up M the little hospital in SandomicrH. lighting the tNphuS plague. But he was just as cheerful. just as efficient |nd as untirinG in his efforts to have the emaci0ted peasant folk. the sick soldiers returning home from the ranks. as he would have been had he had his chance ;,t onH of the famous hospitals established at the front in France.
 owing to his determination to keep abreast of the times and to give his patients the benefit of all possible available knowledge, the little hospital at Sandomierz was remarkably well organized. His only staff consisted of three Polish girls, called nurses, but with a training which was negligible compared to that of an American hos pital nurse. But they had caught tn" spirit of the young doctor. and worked CagerlN. sometimes twenty hours out of the twenty-four. to care for the poor patients who crowded in faster than they could be acCommo odated.
 No Hospital Supplies.
 They welcomed the American girl with the greatest enthusiasm. and anXiously set themselves to pattern their methods after hers. But it was hard to teach modern scientific handacing .whcn the same old band ilgcS must be used time after time for different patients, with just a washing out between. Here were none of the ConvenienCeS ot even the poorest Am rican hospital. There were not even beds enough and in many cases the