Pueblo chieftain., 1921-10-16

Ellis. of ordway. ordway is a town
in the Arkansas Valley about fifty
miles below Pueblo. Mrs. ElAs, feel
ing that she might be needed, jump
boy to drive and started for the
scehe of trouble. She found the road
difficult to navigate Il use the word
advisedly) for the flood and the rain
had affected the entire valley. At
last they reached bridge with the
ly gone. The boy stopped the ma
chino and jumped out, declining to
go further. Not so with Mrs. Ellis,
who, feeling her responsibility as a
Red Cross worker resolved to go for
ward She took the steering gear in
her own hands, speeded up her ma
chine. jumped the chasm. landed with
all four wheels squarely on the bridge.
arrived in Pueblo and reported for
duty.
CAPTAIN PUTNEY
Captain Putney of the Red Cross
unit. Fitzsimmon's Military Hospital
Denver, was called in by the com
manding officer and told that Pueblo
needed help. He started promptly.
reached Colorado Springs, forty miles
north of Pueblo and there learned
that bridges were gone between the
springs and Pueblo, and that his train
could go no further. He detrained,
Communicated about forty trucks.
two Of them with bridge timbers, and
proceeded on hfs way. He built and
repaired bridges and roadways, ar
rlVlng in Pueblo in an incredibly short
| time.
By Monday morning his kitchen was
installed and he was feeding the mul-
titude. He fed all comers, men and
women and children. including SOL
dlers, deputy sheriffs. policemen and
the city's laborers
|
Red Cross Unit of Captain Putney did
invaluable service for the city,
Another worker from Colorado
Springs loaded trucks with food and
clothing, shovels and axes, and hur-
ried them to Pueblo.
/ The local chapters of Walsenburc
and Trinidad sent forward needed sup
pies or food. ice and clothing in great
abundance. Too much cannot be said
IN praise OF the promptness and ef-
lnclency or the service of these chap
ters' Quickly following these were the
other local chapters throughout the
state with their money contributions.
NATIONAL RED CROSS OFFICIALS
ARRIVE
UP to the time OF the arrival of the
National Red Cross official representa-
tVes the people of Pueblo and proba-
py OF most communities throughout
inc nation, thought of the Red Cross
emergency force. war institution. OF
the details. methods and scope of it's
work. little was known. Upon the
coming of Mr.. Fieser and of A. w.
Jones as directors of disaster relief.
together with a CORPS of assistants
heo cross assumed n new and larger
meaning in the minds of tho people.
GRADUALLY the new order took over
me great burden and began systcma-
ua,ne; nvestisating and preparing the
way i1r tho work of rcha abilitation.
In the meantime. Mr.. Persone. of
Washington. ID. c., vice chairman of
the National Red Cross. visited Pu-
eolo and surveyed the situation. He
FOUND that not only had Pueblos losses
not been exaggerated. but that little
more than the half had been told. He
appointed a citizens committee to Coz
operate with the Red Cross in carrying
/ on the work. He realized that more
FUNDS were needed and assured us that
ne would do all in his power to make
them more nearly adequate His prom
ise has been made good.
The good effect of the work OF re-
hAoiltation upon the people and busI-
ness OF the community has been most
pronounced. a brief statistical state
ment OF what the Red Cross found in
Pueblo seems apropos at this point.
Eighty-three per cent of the business
district had been flooded: hundreds OF
business concerns had suffered severe
losses. In many instances entire
buildings. stocks and equipment had
been washed away.
80 homes were washed away.
15a other homes were entirely de-
stroyed.
ts.o other homes we're badly dam
aged.
i3Sl persons were made homeless
Only two firms had any food insur-
ancc.
U. s. government engineers. after
careful survey OF tho flooded area, es-
timated the total los1 at sla.OsO. .OOo. 90,
of which over s1O. .O1J, 900. 90 was in the
city of Pueblo. This is nearly ono
third of the entire assessed value on
all property, personal and real. in the
flooded district and this does not in
clude the heavy losses due to long sus-
pended business. In short. business
was found ruined, homes swept away,
clothing and household goods gone and
the very means and tools of self help
lost or destroyed.
In the face OF all this the National
Red Cross began its work of rchabilI-
tation limited in it's scope only by the
available funds.
A small but typical example will
serve to show how rehabilitation
works. A man had lost everything
but his family and his horses-there
was work in abundance for man
and team. II tho Red Cross would
furnish the harness, he said. he would