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About The North Platte semi-weekly tribune. (North Platte, Neb.) 1895-1922 | View Entire Issue (June 19, 1917)
.1 THE 8EMI-WEEKLY TRIBUNE, NORTH PLATTE, NEBRASKA. HOSPITAL UNITS ARE ADVANCE GUARD OF EXPEDITIONARY FORCE TO FRANCE Two Have Already Gone to Europe and More Are to Follow For Two Years Preparations Have Been Going Forward In Hospitals All Over the Country Under the Di rection of the Red Cross. By MARY DEWHURST. (In tho Nw York Trllmno.) New York. Long before the fighting icn of the United States reach the battlefields of Europe, the letters U. S. M. It. 0. will be known to wounded soldiers in ninny n llttlo town In Frnnce. In baso hospitals, close be hind the armies, will bo found doc tore, nurses and orderlies frosh from Amcrlcn, advance guards of the first expeditionary forces which this coun try over sent abroad. Already two base hospital units nro on tho other side, five others nro to follow within a few weeks, and all through the summer, nlong with muni tions and food, ships from America will carry men and woijicn of tho Unit ed States Medical Itcservo corps. Twcnty-Slx Units Organized. During tho last two years tho nrmy has foreseen tho present emergency and prepared for It. NUndcr tho direc tion of Col. Jefferson 11. Kcan, medical director of tho American Red Cross, 20 baso hospital units have been or ganized In connection with medical centers all over tho country. Begin ning with tho Massachusetts General hospital on tho Eastern seaboard, and cxtondlng to San Francisco on tho Western, different hospitals hnve vol unteered staff nnd equipment for war service. Colonel Kcan co-ordinated each hospital's doctors, nurses, Instru ments and physical properties Into units, registered them under tho Red Cross nnd arranged for their Immedi ate transfer Into the Medical Reserve corps at tho outbreak of war. This transfer has taken place, and each unit has been notified to hold Itself In readiness for foreign duty, to replace British organizations In France, which will move on to other positions. They nro America's response to tho situation created by tho torpedoing of hospital ships. Ilcnceforffi hospitals muut bo taken to the wounded, since sick and helpless men nro no longer exempt from frlghtfulncss. Besides 70 nurses nnd 25 doctors, each unit Includes an administrative personnel of about ICO civilians. A base hospital's equipment provides for r00 beds, which allows about three nurses nnd a doctor to each 20 wounded. Theso physicians nnd nurses are only tho first-aid givers, tho ex ports, who, with their patients, must bo fed, laundered, transported, In dexed and amused, nnd It taxes all of the ICO willing workers to boo to it. First to Mobilize. With overy unit goes a quartermas ter from tho regular army, In com mand pf the ndmlntstrntlvo forces, All civilians nro enlisted under him as privates, at $1(5 n month, and later ap pointed to special duties according to whether they nro cooks or laboratory experts. At tho outset the collego man with n string of letters after his name goes in on u par with tho husky Irish man who can drlvo a mule, and of tho two tho Irishman gets tho warmer welcome. Tho first unit from Now York to get its mobilization orders was tho ono organized by tho Presbyterian hospital. It has been In existence 'over a year rind prides Itself on Its equipment, bought and stowed away ngaltvtt Just such n call. Last year orders camo for a practice mobilization In Philadelphia, but tho hospital trustees demurred at giving Its doctors and nurses leave of absence, so tho equipment was sent without them. It took 18 freight cars to carry It. Out in Cleveland directors AIDS IN RECRUITING Tho most profitable recruit to enlist In tho First Reserve- Engineer regiment is Private Thomas J. Whnlen of Ho boken. Ho enlisted last Wednesday, brought In another recruit Thursday, nnd repented tho performance on Fri day and Snturday. On Tuesday his wlfo and soven-ycar-old daughter camo over, the llttlo girl clad In khaki with n red, white and bluo ribbon tied around her hair, marched up nnd down in front of tho recruiting office car rying a standard on -which was paint ed Don't Be n Slacker. See What My P . tdy Is Doing for Ills Country. Join ' KngineerH." mMM I of the Lakeside hospital unit, of which Dr. George W. Crllo Is chief, Jumped at the chance to train Its staff in prac tice work and proceeded to Philadel phia to spend two nights undor can vas with the Presbyterian equipment. The personnol and tho physical proper tics dovetailed In n manner eminently satisfactory to tho nrmy officers In charge; this In splto of minor changes In specifications forced by such awk ward facts as tho pole In tho center of the garage tent, which mado It Im practicable for ambulances, or the no cetwlty of building a hut for the steril izing plant to protect It from drafts. 1 When tho Presbyterian unit received Its war orders Inst month trustees' ob jections no longer counted. Tho doc tors were nil ofilcers in the United Stntes Medlcul Reserve corps and sub ject to duty. Tho nurses were regis tered with tho Red Cross, to be called when needed. Tho unit stnyed only to recruit to full strength, a mnttcr of some detail, slnco Its civilian require ments are varied. Sla.no for Third Time. "You'vo everything hero but a bnnd," said one applicant, looking over tho list of places still open to him. "Well," ho went on, "I guess I'll sign up for tho third time. I've been with tho saw bones In tho Philippines and again on tho Mexican border; here are my pa pers to provo it. I might as well go with 'em once more. It's flno for tho health, boys ; better como in," ho called to Homo students who seemed to hesi tate about enlisting. Barring accidents, men who enlist with a unit will never know tho fore front of bnttlc. Baso hospitals nro planted miles bejitnd tho armies, gen erally In some deserted hotel or empty opera house. They recelvo only chronic cases and those of slow recovery, nnd nro fed by tho field hospitals, which In turn nro fed from tho dressing or first-aid stations. The former requlro a high degrco of physical fitness In their workers, but at a baso men who couldn't do trench or nmbulnnco duty may servo their turn ns hospital order lies. It's nil a question of grit nnd endurnnce. Physlcnl examinations aro simple, directed to heart and lungs, and 80 per cent of the applicants get through. In the rush to enroll with tho Pres byterian unit were men of nil 'ulllngs und every age. "Wo've had everything hero from picture hnngers to- plumbers," said Dr. Sydney Burnap, who enrolled tho force. "We needed mechanics, pharmacists, electricians, carpenters and cooks, and wo got them all." When the hospital units were planned two years ago provision wus made for CO volunteer nurses' aids, to servo without pay, but with subsis tence and transportation furnished by the government. Doctor's Wives Go. All over the country women qualified for this duty by taking Red Cross training In "Homo Cure of tho Sick." In tho Presbyterian unit some of tho doctors' wlvea planned to accompany tlletr husbands as' nurses' nlds. Mrs. George E. Brewer, wlfo of tho unit's director, wns ono who had worked hardest to fit herself to go along. Re corders, Indexers, stenpgraphers and typists ncniiy mobbed tho unit's offices after tho mobilization orders appeared, seeking a chnnco to serve In tho first forco to go to France. With all of theso It was another case of Mr. Brltllug looking for war work and looking In vain. Orders hud come from Washington that no nurses' aids were to bo taken. If necessary enlist ed men would bo used to fill their places. Instead of 20 female clerical workers, ns originally planned, the number wns cut to four, who must be women with training In medical nomenclature. Theso woman clerical workers aro an anomaly uuclnssltlcd In nrmy regu lations. They aro a branch of service sure to develop with tho need, and those who go over now are pioneers In much the same way as were tho women Clara Barton organized Into Red Cross nurses In the days of the Civil war. Keeping the records of COO patients la a Job In Itself. When the COO change every fow weeks the Job l grows with the card Indexes, to suy nothing of their diagnoses ami his 1 tork's. There aro requisitions to be ' made out, letters to be answered and 1 anxious relatives lo be communicated with. Ah the units follow each othur throughout the year, more women will probably bo taken to relenso the doe- tors from routine clerlcnl work, Just as women will finally go as nurses' aids In order to release men for the front. Would Scrub Floors. But with the first Installments the war olllco Is "from Missouri," and must bo shown. So that at tho Prosbytcrlun unit's enrollment offices bitter disap pointment spread among tho rejected, No one knows what Mrs. Brewer said when she found that oven tho doctor could not secure an exception In her favor, but some of tho others wero outspoken. "Why did you want to go?" ono llt tlo typist was asked, as she turned de- RETURNING DESERTERS LENIENTLY TREATED X Boston, Mass. Soldiers who deserted prior to the declaration of war have surrendered in large numbers to the military authori ties, it was said at tho headquar ters of tho department of the Northwest. MaJ. Gen. Clarence R. Edwards announced thnt in such cases men would bo shown every leniency, nnd If no civil crime wns Involved In the de sertion, they would bo tried by n court without power to ad judge dishonorable discharge. "The local commanders who convene such courts will bo ad vised to extend clemency In ov ery case where the soldier has shown by his conduct n sincere dcslro to make amends for the past," ho said. A. Jectcdly away after being told she had no .chance. "Becnuso I want to do something quick for my country," she answered. "I'd have gone to scrub floors. Do you know If they pay a stenographer any thing? Yes, well, I'd have gone for nothing." The nurses feel tho same way about It. Thore's heart-burning nnd disap pointment among those left behind In tho hospltnls of the city. One nurse, n Cnnadlan, registered ns a French army nurse as well as with the Ameri can Red Cross, Insisted that she be al lowed to go, since she had served n year In the small hosplluls of Franco and knew the game. "That's Just why you nlust stay here," nnswered tho head nurse to whom she applied. "You hnvo had your chance and now you'll have to let someone else hnvo a try at it. It wouldn't bo fair to give It twice to you." Tho Canndlan gave up with n bad grnce, but finally consoled herself with the thought that theso early units would soon bo followed by others, and that If tho war lasts as long as now seems probable those who went Into would be less near the breaking point when pence enmc. When mobilization orders went out of Washington last month for seven hospital units to proceed as soon as possible to France, the first to get away was tho ono from Cleveland. "Thnt's because we did that mobili zation stunt In Phllndclphln last year," said one of tho young khnki-clad doc tors before he sailed. "Wo thought at the time tho practice lden was all flub dub, but wo'ro tickled to death now. We wero told that If wo could mobilize In ten days we could get the first ship. Wo did It in seven." Somo of Cleveland's most, eminent doctors throw up practices worth scores of thousands to go with their unit on n major's pay of three thou sand n year. Dr. George W, Crlle, its, director, will follow later; but his part ner, Doctor Lower, went along, as well ns Doctor Hoover, bend of the mcdlcnl staff of Lakeside hospital. Out of the unit's hundred nnd fifty clvillnns, 70 nro college boys, some of them within a month of their diplomas. Just bc fqro tho ship sailed news camo that tho organization was to bo received with celebrations on the other side. "Wo can't march without music," suld the director, and the civilian forco was hastily canvassed for musical tal ent. Ten minutes beforo the gang plank wns rnlsed three snare drums nnd n bundle of fifes wero hurried aboard, and tho first division of tho American army In Europe expects to parado to tho tune of "Yankee Doodlo" past Buckingham palace or down the Champs Elysces or wherever a grate ful populaco turns out to cheer them ns n fur-Hung promise of troops to come. SUITS "TURNED" IN HUNGARY Tailor's Trick Now Saves the Labor and Expense of n New Garment. Budapest, Hungary. It Is i badgo of patriotism In Hungary nowadays to wear a coat with tho sldo pocket on tho right-hand side, roveallng that tho garment has been turned so ns to mnko It presentable, thus saving the labor and expense of a new suit. In fash ionable restaurants and hotels ono sees many prominent people thus at tired. Nobody, not even n war millionaire, can afford mnny new suits nowadays, and the tailors aro reluctant to make clothes even at their own price, which Is now about $00, cash In ndvancc, for n suit which would cost about $20 In pence time. The tailor generally tries to dissuade n would-be customor from ordering a new suit, at the same tlnje offering to turn his old suit nnd mnko It look llko new for $10 or $15. RIVER NAVIGATION. TO BOOM Immense Tonnage May Be Moved on Mississippi From New Orleans to St. Paul. Memphis, Tonn. Ono company Is be ing orgunlzed with a capital stock of $2,C00.000 for tho purpose of develop ing navigation on the Mississippi river, and there are indications that other corporations with tho same object will bo organized within tho next few months. River men bellevo that be cnuso of tho congested condition of railroads river navigation will como Into Its own. Thero Is Immenso ton nago that might be moved by water all tho way from New Orleans to St. Paul and along the tributaries of tho Mis sissippi, Including the Oh'.o river and tho Missouri river. DAIRY FACTS CARING FOR CREAM ON FARM Expert of University of Illinois Gives Ten Excellent Rules for Farmer to Follow. (By II. A. ItUEHE. Associate In Dairy, Manufacturers, University ot Illinois.) 1. Keep tho cows elenn. 2. Use covered milk palls. JJ. Milk with dry hands. 4. Rcmovo milk from the barn lm-. mediately and separate It ut once. C. Set tho scpnrutor so that It will, skim crenm that will test from 35 to '10 per cent In the winter nnd from 40 to 45 per cent In the summer. 0. Wash, scald, nnd dry the separa tor and all utensils immediately after using. Tho separator bowl may bo dried in u warm oven, thongh tho oven should not bo so warm that lt will melt tho tin on the bowl farts. Setting utensils In the sun Is a good practice, ns tho sunshine acts ns n germicide. 7. Keep nil utensils nnd separator parts dry when not In use. 8. Cool tho crenm immediately nfter skimming by setting tho can In cold running water. Construct a cooling Properly-Constructed Tank. 1. Inlet, usually lVirlnch pipe. 2. Wood en trough, conducting wntor to within 3 Inches of bottom. 3. Sticks, holding cans In plnce as shown by cut. 4. Shows posi tion of half filled can; run stick through handlo In covbr to prevent It from sliding out from undor tho stick. 5. Shows posi tion of can when filled. 6. Shows position of wlro which provents tho cans from tipping. 7. Outlet, usually 2-inch threaded nipple. tank so that tho cream will bo cooled with tho water that Is used to fill the stock tank. 0. Never mix warm cream with cold cream. Cool tho cream beforo mixing It with previous skimmings. 10. Do not allow tho cream to freeze In cold Weather. 11. Stir tho cream at least twice a day ; this will keep It smooth' nnd free from lumps. Do not uso n wooden paddle for a stirrer, as It Is unsanitary. 12. Deliver cream frequently, at least twice a week in winter and three times a week In vvnrm weather. PLANT ROUGHAGES FOR COWS Every Farmer Is Advised to Grow Abundance of Alfalfa or Clover Concentrates High. Grow an abundanco of feed for the cow this season, advises A. S. Nealc, specialist In dairy husbandry, division of extension, Kansas State Agricultural college. "Already tho price of concentrates 13 'out of sight. Prices will contlnuo high unless theso concentrates nrc re placed by tho cheaper roughages," said Mr. Nealo. "Every farmer should plan to grow plenty of alfalfa or clover, and silage. If alfalfa or clover cannot, bo grown In your section substitute an other leguminous crop, such as cow peas. "During the next 12 months tho pro duction of dairy products will bo duo largely to tho feeding ot roughages In stead of concentrates, as has formerly been tho case. "Dairy cows of quality receiving nothing but roughugc can produce 200 to 250 pounds of butterfat annually, provided tho roughugo Is fed in abund ance and Is composed of a combination of silage and n leguminous buy. Of course poor cows will not do so well on this ration." ROUGHNESS FOR DAIRY COW Animal Is Not Content Unless Stomach Is Full Feed Grain According to Milk Yield. Roughness Is the first important con sideration. A cow is not contented unless her stomach Is full. She should always have all tho roughness that she will clean up and then the amount ot grain sho receives should be regu lated by the amount of milk pro duced. A dry cow In good condition should he fed roughness only, and does not need nny grain. In feeding grain to milk producing cows, tho following rule may be used, nnd Is found to work fair ly well : Feed ono pound of grain for each threo pounds or pints of milk pro duced. GIVE CALF GOOD ATTENTION Pen Must Be Kept Clean Use Plenty of Straw Furnish Milk, Hay, Bran and Other Feeds. The calf pen must bo kept clean. Uso. tots of nlco stmvv, not putting it upon n lot of fermented filth, but dig out all monuro very .frequently and add fresh straw utmost dally. Calves aro so frisky that they tramp tho straw Into tho manure. Separator milk, tender clover or al falfa hay, bran, ollmeal, silage, corn, Buch feeds aro tho stuff good calves aro made of. MnOJSAL OPITAL All Business Has Boom at National Capital WASHINGTON. The capital of tho nation today Is facing an era of unprece dented prosperity, both from the standpoint of the business mnn, the government employee, and the average citizen, ami has greater opportunities for commercial expansion than ever s7' N -S? HuTi MfWlRftik' iJtfPir1- hnrdshlps to the individual, all Indlcn- rt'hJSfe4aa' j!5:V tlons today arc that such gloomy out ' .p&a'w,S ' look u entirely unwarranted. ries than over before, and there are more people spending monoy here from other cities than ever before. For tho world war is doing for Washington what history has shown all wars do for the capitals of the nation nt wnr It has attracted thousands of people to tho capital and put mnny more thousands at work to carry on the vast busi ness which war hns brought to tho various governmental departments. Railroad officials report that since April 1 passenger traffic to Washington has Increased at least CO per cent over the usual normal at this time of the year. Every hotel In Washington Is doing record-breaking business nnd reap ing almost undreamed-of profits. Instead of an average of from 20 to CO per cent of their rooms being empty, hotel men In Washington today are finding their buildings wholly inadequate to meet the demands upon them. Rooms are ot a premium and nt present there Is no Indication of a let-up. Office buildings In Washington are filled to capacity, every nvallable foot of space being occupied and on n paying basis. Several of the larger office buildings report thnt they are dally forced to turn prospective tenants nway because of inability to provide spacp. Even old buildings which until quite recently have been nlmost entirely unoccupied, today are procuring all the tenants they can handle. Youths of Capital Showing Eagerness to Enlist ARMY and nnvy recruiting officers on duty at the various stations in Wash ington declared that the number of applicants and enlistments hnd picked up considerably. A rush of recruits Is expected by those who prefer to enlist rather than wait and be drafted. More than n score of applicants were accept ed for tho different branches of service one day recently. Thnt thero will bo a material In crease In Interest, officers state, Is in dicated by the fact that a great mnny clvillnns nre dropping In to talk over the matter and are incidentally stating that they much prefer enlisting to be ing conscripted Into the service. "Just as well do it now as hnve to do It later," was the way one of the newly accepted recruits expressed tho philosophy of those who are too proud and have too much self-respect to wait to be drafted when the country Is calling for men to fight Germany. "The man who wnlts to be conscripted," he ndded, "ought to have a pet ticoat put over his uniform. As for me, I am Joining the engineer corps nnd I hope we'll bo the first troops sent across the pond." Another recruit for tho aviation corps was enlisted at the navy recruit ing stntlon, which fills vacancies in this branch of tho service for the present. Lleutennnt Morgan, in charge of the station, stated that vacancies exist for machinist. mates. Troop B of tho District National Guard, having reached war strength, Is now encamped for a week's stay at the rifle range nt Congress Heights. Their office was turned over to a recruiting detail from Troop A, of the District Guard, which is badly In need of additional recruits because 40 men from this organization alone havo been designated for training at the Fort Myer Officers' Reserve camp. LeRoy Herron made a practice march to the rifle range nnd pitched camp. Tho cavalrymen will be put through an arduous course of training. , Washington Has No Fear of Zeppelin Attacks ALTHOUGH It would bo n daring aviator who would attempt to cross the Atlantic for n night nlr nttack on Washington, If some Intrepid German Zeppelin commnnder should attempt Uie feat ho will not find the capital unprepared. At least there nre cer vcnlcd, but It Is nssumed that the pro tective measures are complete. It Is regarded as significant thnt the search lights made their nppenrauce soon nfter the nrrlval of British nnd French officers fnmlllnr with tho methods employed In London nnd Pnrls to keep off the "Zeps." Mnjor Rees, one of the most efficient of British airmen, who Is a member of the Balfour commission, is authority for the stntcment that It Is no longer healthy for Zeppelins to attempt raids on either the English or French capitals. Apparently American nrmy nnd nnvy oftlclnls have little fenr of .a Gorman nlr attack on' American coast cities. They are confident of their ability to give any would-be Invaders such a warm reception that an attempted attack would not be repeated. Just Retribution That Overtook Arrogant Female HE WASN'T a raggedy man, but he sure was shabby. And ho had a stiff leg A passing woman had dropped a small package, and the mnn, with some effort, picked It up nnd pegged on until he overtook her. Before he could get In a word, sho snipped out that she had nothing for him. And thnt was all the thanks ho got. The man stood stock still. The humiliation hnd stunned him. No womnn on enrth or man should needlessly hurt another nnd get nwny with It. Retribution, of course, evens up sooner or Inter, but sho ap parently doesn't own nn automobile, as by tho time sho shows up It is general ly too lnte to fit the punishment to the crime. Which Is why a plain soul, who had heard the woman, hutted In. First, she snld a word or two to tho man. Then she rook tho package from him nnd flung It Into a. grassy place that sits back from tho street. Then sho trailed fair lady a pudgy, duck-legged mortal In fine clothes as far as their road lay together a matter of nearly five squares. Then sho took a turn nt conversation: "You dropped a package, didn't you?" The pudgy ono received news of the disaster with gasps and ejoculatlons, lightened by the hope that the plain soul had picked It up. "No, the man picked it up, but you Insulted him beforo ho had a chanco to hand It over." "Oh, my morcyl It's tho lace and clastic 1 I didn't Insult him; I Just thought he was a beggar. Whore Is he? I wouldn't lose that lace for " "I don't know where the man Is, but If you will hurry buck to where you left htm you will find your package on tho grass If It Isn't gone." It Is hard lines to have to walk back five squares behind a duck-legged lady doing u marathon, Just to get a yarn for your pad, but ono must buy nsollne. AFFAIDS before. Despite the preachings of the pessimist that the entry of the United States Into tho war would bring ruin to business In general, and untold More money Is being spent In Washington todny than ever before In the history of the country; more money Is being paid out here lu sala TO (?ECRUITH(T STWOti tain indications that precautions have been taken against a surprise visit Searchlights capable of penetrating high Into the skies hnvo recently been Insthlled on tall buildings here and nightly they sweep the heavens as well as Illuminate at intervals certain Places that 'might be targets for at tack. Whether anti-aircraft guns also have been placed In position to drive off possible raiders hns not been re- ( I WON'T BE 1 DRAFTED IF I Itfmjf HELP IT J r i mm issg m - ( M