The New York herald., 1922-07-09
70. sir! This is NOT a hos
pital or veterans GONZALES

~
IN Dital or veterans GONZALES
cent camp, nor home for
the crippled Let me put you right on
the matter. It's the Bluefields Coun-
try Club. at present operated and oc-
cupied by some 500 university men.
Yes, OF course, we're more or less
hanged up from our service in France,
but we're not cripples by any means
If you want to see a lively bout or
good baseball game can direct you to
either part of the club grounds"
Club for Ex-Service Men.
But Not a Hospital
& The above statement, made with
more or less emphasis, was directed by
the bronzed chap with the army shirt
and breeches, to the rather elderly but
lavishly gowned visitor who had just
discovered that she had arrived at
"the wonderful crippled soldiers
camp at Bluefelds, near Nyack on
the Hudson. The man in question took
particular pains to correct her i'm
preston and to let her know that she
was at the country club run by the
Federal board students of the Come
Back Club of Columbia University.
While. political gentlemen wrangle
In Washington over the methods they
shall employ in a proposed raid on the
nations Treasury, while hundreds OF
"ex-service men" peddle wares Of lit
tie intrinsic value along the curbs OF
the cities. and million or so more
cry to the heavens for some one to
give them something because they
went into the service when the ma
tons life and we'll being was threat
ened. the work of the several hundred
disabled men who are operating the
Bluef1elds club stands out as shining
example to prove that men can be
men. and not beggars or gratuity
seekers.
Two years ago, just at this time OF
the year, New York city was placarded
with posters announcing that THE
Comeback Review Of 1920" would be
presented by the disabled students OF
Columbia University Subsequent
press accounts went on to tell Of the
purpose Of this postwar performance;
namely, that hese men who then re-
ceived $50 a month from the Govern
ment, from which they had to pay
their room rent, board. buy their
clothing and pay all the incidental ex-
penses coincident to studying at CO.
lumbia University, had decided to take
matters into their own hands and to
raise through their own efforts fund
to be used in providing clubhouse.
At this clubhouse, to be leased some
where in the vicinity of the uni
versity, the men were to obtain rooms
and board at greatly reduced rates.
The boys were very particular to point
out that the undertaking was not in
any sense charitable one; that they
were running a performance on
business basis, and wanted 1t to be
considered as such. incidentally. 1t
was the first and only soldier show
written, staged and played entirely by
disabled men that has ever been pro-
duced in this country. British TOM
mics did the same thing in London
and raised thousands Of pounds.
Club Is Outgrowth
OF a Students Revue
For the first time in the history of
stately old Columbia President Nicho-
las Murray Butler gave permission to
the men in charge of the show to re-
cruit a chorus of co-eds from the
three colleges-Columbia Teachers and
Barnard. A beauty chorus Of fifty"
was the result, and as climax to that
part of the story, more than dozen
of those who took part in the revue
are now with legitimate Broadway
productions.
Every one worked with a will to
help the men who were helping them
selves. A list Of patronesses, the ma
1ority of whom personally attended
several of the performances, included
such names as Mesdames Vincent
Astor, George F. Baker, August Bel
mont, Joseph II. Choate, Jr, w. Bay
ard Cutting, Henry p. Dawson. e. n.
Hartman, Oliver Hartman, William
Church Osborn, Harry Payne Whit
ney, McLane Van Ingen, John d.
Rockefeller, Jr., Whitelaw Reid, George
B. Post, Philip Ashton Rollins, Will
lam Douglas Sloane. Payne Whitney,
Stephen H. Olin, Miss Ruth Morgan,
Miss Geraldine Farrar, Miss Emily
Trevor, Miss Ruth Draper and many
more. High ranking officers Of the
army, navy and Marine Corps at
tended the main performances at the
Astor and the Waldorf and addressed
the men and the audience between the
two acts Theatrical critics, basing
their writings on professional per-
formances, praised the production
highly. The result was the raising Of
more than $4,000 net and the putting
on the map of the organization.
Some Were Gas Husky,
But Still They Could Dance
The surprising thing about the pro-
duction to those who attended expect
ing to see stage full of wheeled
chairs, with chorus OF veterans on
crutches, was the fact that with but
a single exception there was no evil
dence that these men had ever been
injured in any way. though the voices
of many were huskied by the gas
which had filtered into their lungs on
many drear dawns In the trenches.
The men sang, danced and performed
like regulars, and the Soldier stuff"
was virtually totally eliminated from
the show. The assistance rendered by
prominent theatrical managers showed
to advantage and the show was a