Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1921-09-04

| social worker. Americas latest pro-
! iession. is one of the most important
| factors I'm the American effort to
| hcip Europe in ;hc first stages of her
| recovery from war.
In February. 1918, an American
coming for Red Cross Service. when
2sked to state his profession at Bor-
| ueauN, wrote social worker. lie
barely escaped instant return to
| America. The French official insisted
| there was no such thing. and tina,
| clearly he was attempting to come i'm
| under false prct,Scrs. That how
ever. was three years ago. ana France
| fas long since become well acQuaint-
ell with the American Social Worker
| for there was worker in every dc
partmcnt OF the devastated area. help
| Ing the refugees OF this stricken ter
| ritory.
As ! rode through this devastated
orca saw that the first form Of dcv-
astation is being overcome with sur
prising speed. Where were trenches
and she'll holes now are smiling fields
with grow ing wheat. To be sure
there Zig-zag across the fields here
ana there stretches of which. which
show whcrctrcnchcs have been, and
other fields are dotted with curious
white spots which show where the
shell cratcrS have been filed in with
the chalky undcrSoil. Great heaps of
ruStin@ barbwirc look like enormous
chcstnuttu~rS. Iut these are de-
| tails. 1t looks like real country
Gods country.
Repairing Wars Rayngcs
Spring and summer. the sun and
| rain. with some help from man. are
rapidly repairing this part of the
ravaGcs of war
The TillD. aud cities nro
back more slowly-somc OF them not
At all. One sees every conceivable
type of temporary provisional houS-
ins some OF them are mirth- pro-
v"kins in their ingenuity and weird
ness ii YOU did not stop To pity the
people who have To live in them. TO
provide. even professionally. for the
great population of the villages and
the cities OF the devastated area is
the work Of several years. ana to
provide for them permanently in
we'll constructed houses is Il question
% decades.
The rate OF recovery OF the human
resources is less obvious. Many Of
the people are h>ck. The pull Of
the old associations is almost ire
sistiblc but they live under ,rc-
mendous disadvantages and almost
unbelievable discomforts. The ncccs-
stiles. not To say the convcnicnccs. OF
civilized ways OF living arc much
harder To restore than devastated
fields: more iif,icul, even than houses
and churches. 1t is just here. in the
repair Of this fabric Of human life.
that tho social worker comes in.
Fight Against Poverty.
In an ordinary community. in ordin-
AIRY times. there is poverty and sick
ness. The sympathctic and forward
.
care OF sickness and little by little
/ the removal Of the conditions which
produce poverty and sickness. can he
accomplished only by interesting the
serious minded people in the COM
munity in their obligations. and by
arousinE their enthusiasm for their
opportunities both to help their
ncichbors and TO improve conditions.
This is exactly what a social worker
does. -" finds out who needs help.
and H.. = K help To him. lie observes
I what conditions are creating trouble.
and gets these conditions improved.
and he does all this-not only by his
! own efforts. for no individual could
| do il alone. but by interesting and
| organizing tho community for it's own
/ bcttcrmCnt.
The condition of millions OF the
people Of Europe after the war is
like the condition of the small num-
Der OF people who are poor or sick i'm
every locality in peace time. After
war the number OF the sick and poor
is tremendously greater. The condi-
tionS creating sickness and poverty
are vastly more widespread and III :
tcnsivc; but the job differs from peace
Tina social work in degree, not in
kind.
Europr'S First Necessities.
Europe is suffering surely enough.
for what they call first necessities"
/ food. clothing, shoes and shelter.
! II is also suffering. more probably
| than il realizes. for lack OF Il state
/ OF mind which tclicvcs that things
/ car be done. The social work or
I brings not only skill in securing and