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The Clinton News Record, 1943-03-04, Page 6II on Cross �nvassers are Clinton and District Residents are ll.sy,.Sacrificing Their Tithe and Energy Asked to Donate Their Money Canadian Red Cross Head quarters, Berkeley' Square As Seen By Canadian. Editors (By Walter at, Legge) There is a large building in the heartof, London in which a'band of busy workers, many of ahem volun- • teer, do their utmost to help alleviate the miseries caused by war: ' It is Canadian Red Cross'Headquar- ' tars. Last August the' Canadian edi- tors went there and were shown some of the work in progress. "''These headquarters occupy five stories of a building loaned to the Red Cross by Lord Grichley. The offices overlook Berkeley Square a -spot made famous in song and drama, which would scarcely be recognized by those who knew it in peace time. The iron raining around the square has been made into -munitions, This railing was a famous Georgian relic over three hundredyears old. The grass has all been trampled down and trenches have added to the scene of desolation. t Several buildings in the immediate vicinity have been struck. Lady Wil- lingdon's house on one corner of the square has suffered a direct hit. Inside the Red` -Gross Building, how ever, everything is clean and well or- dered and the work goes on with quiet. efficiency. Grates of supplies are being ilnload- ed, sorted, listed, and stored away in their proper places, or made into ship- ments to fill requisitions. Few peopie realize the amount of 1 -work accomplished by the Red Gross, not only iri quantity, but in variety. We saw' them making up special Tar- cels.for •prisoners of war, supplies for hospitals and for sick and wounded articles for babies of•men on active service, replacements of articles lost by men who had been shot down, tor- pedoed or bombed, and many other ur- gent needs. It is possible in some cases, that the very 11ves of prisoners of 'War in enemy'hands has depended', upon the parcels supplied by the Red Cross. Each prisoner is allowed one parcel of food weekly. These parcels sup- • plied' by the Red Cross- weigh . ap- proximately eleven pourpds. In addi- tion; the prisoners are allowed 'a quarterly parcel from the next -of- kin. They told us that parcels to prison- ers in Germany are getting through to them fairly well and that they are now getting through to prisoners in Italy much better than they were previously. The Red Cross received many re- quests for 'special articles: Every ef- fort is made . to supply them if pos- sible and if they are allowed to be sent. We were shown one . letter re- ceived from Flying Officer Brude` Dawson Campbell, son of Mr. and Mrs,, Ii. D. Campbell, of Pointe Claire Que-ry bee., asking for eleineitaand ad- vaned textbooks. on 'Algebra and Trigonometry. This shows that many prisoners are, anxious to put their enforced idleness to as good use as.; possible. Those at. work in the Rad. Cross Headquarters went to great pains to show us around' and answer our goes-" tions. One of them was La^'y;.L'"llison Who is doing work in the prisoners' department. She didsimilar work dur- ing tha last war While looking at the boxes of goods •, sent over from local Reci Gross groups in Canada, we were told that soldiers. have 'an aversion to .mitts, and us- ually• will n .ot wear- therm, As a result those sent over from Canada have. to ! be made over into gloves. - The great .need was stresesdfor tur- tle neck sweaters,; `gloves, 'ani' sea- men's socks. Last minedare also used by. airmen. On some shelves were more and usual items, such as maple sugar and other supplies made in Canada, Some 'supplies .were being' assembled to re- , place e-.place kits lest by soldiers at Dieppe. A constant iUplr of comforts to all sert+ices of the Canadian Forces ' is being delivered. Every week, on a regular delivery basis by Red Cr•css• Transport, and thence through the usual channels of supply,'thousands of woollen comforts are being issued to the troops..Every week, invalid deli- • caries, hos.Rital supplies, cigarettes, chewinggum, games, pipes, etc:, are beingsent to General Ho§pitals; Cas - natty Clearing Stations Field Ambu- lances, and to R.A.P. and civilian hos- pitals where Canadian patients' may be. A huge visitors' service is main- tained throughout England and Scot- land. Canadian Red Cross visitors' (all voluntary) maintain daily contact with patients in Canadian Army, and British and Scottish hospitals, see that they get needed supplies, shop for them, and sometimes even write. letters for them. Visitors' -reports detail, are sent weekly to Berkeley , Square, where information is collected and, when necessary, letters are writ- ten to next-of-kin in Canada,: Handicrafts at all Canadian Gener- al Hospitals are supervised entirely by the Canadian Red Cross. Staffs at all the hosptials furnish ,materials for rug -making and leather work, and teach • patients hew to make the ar- ticles. The patients pay for the cost of the materials, and are allowed to make a small profit out of their han- diwork. The Relief Department of Berkeley Square ships out on an average fifty thousand • civilian relief articles of clothing per week. The Canadian Junior Red Cross supports and has adopted eight resi- dential War Nurseries in England, and supplies clothing for the youth- ful'inmates. Three more such nurser- ies are shortly to be adopted.` Less than one hundred years ago, the sufferings of wounded soldiers and prisoners were intensified by THOMAS O'CONNELL PRISONER OF WAR It is not .difficult' now, after nearly three and a half years of war, for the average citizen tdi conjure up a men- tal picture of, .say, a Canadian sold- ier behind the barbed-wire of a Ger- man prison camp, or. lying heart- broken and wounded in some German hospital. Such is the case of Sapper Thomas &Connell, of the Royal Can- adian Engineers, an-adian.Engineers, who took part in the Dieppe raid and was wounded in both legs before being oaptured. He is now in a German hospital. Tom is well known in Clinton where he was born and lived with his grand- father, William Sago, • and attended the Clinton Public School. Later he worked for the Canada Packers Com- pany, but at the time of , enlisting, spring of 1941, he was emglpyed on a farm. near Guelph. He arrived over- seas 5 weeks before Christmas 1941. It is not difficult to mentally bring into focus the relief and joy of this wounded soldier as he received a Can- adian Red Cross food parcel— and then think of 80,000 or more of these parcels leaving the Red Cross Packing Depots each week. We, the citizens of Clinton, can not turnour backs on something so personal, and refuse to give the money needed to sustain the lack of care and utter neglect. Today. Thanks to the Red Cross, there is -a tremendous change. One cannot help but be impressed by the strides taken since the International Red Cross was organized' by rules drafted at a con- ference in Geneva in I868. The ,Canadian Red Cross Head- quarters in, London is a reservoir into which pours supplies produced by small groups all across Canada. Thence in turn they are spread over a vast territory to fill a wide range of needs. No wonder it is a busy spot. Thearticles, along with the advertisement found. on this page should help any fair minded Canadian citizen to see why they should donate their time and money to aid the Canadian Red Cross. To meet the objective to send, the weekly parcels of food, clothing, etc., to the boys who have so .willingly of- fered their time and, yes, even their life's blood, if necessary, as some of the boys from our community. have already done. We must give generously, that our town may remain a .peaceful :place in which to dwell -not overrun by the Nazis hoards as some small towns on the 'Euro e - pan Continent at present. The Canadian Red Cross are always an aid to suffering humanity in war or peace, but with a war of such velocity, with world wide human suffering the' Red Cross has, been called on do such things a even the most imaginative mind could not have con- ceived a few short years ago. • The - Army, The Airforce, The Navy are con- stantly losing their equipment, their clothing, as well' as first aid supplies, when their tank, their bane, their ship. is literally blown from under thein, y escape with only a bruised and bleeding body. - This is when the Red Cross are called on to come to.. the aid of a human body in pain. Space and time does not • permit us to innumerate the number of aids, and the places where the Red Cross steps in and saves the lives of our men. --You say they have done it for your son Yes and they will do it for anybodys' son, rich of poor, regardless of race or creed. So again we urge the citizens • of Clinton and district to give until you are sacrificing—because the boys on the firing line are sacrificing, time -money --- and LIFE, for you. life of one of our own boys, while we, gently required, we are confident, in view of the mounting crisis ahead, that, when the smoke of the campaign blows over, we will once again be able to translate Clinton's generosity and patriotism into one fine word, "Oversubscribed." live in a country, so far, free from the menace of war. But we do not need to tell you that this is a fine and most needed contribution. You know it. When we say, therefore, that the funds which will be asked are ur- � � �y� ' 3 Only the , y oss ILan ✓^TVA f I1/A5oIa,rn'1mfo,k Dam RiZsiotos of !ga! BARBED WIRE and enemy guards "do not a prison make" for Canadian soldiers captured by the 'enemy. Their thoughts, wing. ing across the sea, meet Red Cross parcels on their way to them. Last year, the enemy said "plass" to 2,000,000 such parcels. They were packed with 22,000,000 pounds of food and comforts welcomed by men to whom the barest necessities havebecome luxuries. But, most of all, to each prisoner every Red Cross Marcel is a message from home—a definite assurance that he is not for- gotten, a reminder that no captured Canadian soldier is ever marked "off strength" by the Red Cross. Thirty percent of the money you gave to the Red Cross last year was used to provide parcels for prisoners of war. The money you give now will help to keep up and increase this flow of good cheer and hope to these lonely men. . Consult your heart ... Obey its dictates Give liberally CLINTON, ONT.PHONE 159 NAD 0/4.- Aumew goomingobk ED CR S erg..' #(0e Calling All Mothers' Attention to the Meanings of War Stamp.. (By Grace C'ainpbetl) ; Stamps' and. Certificates. •As ,simply • War Saving's Stamps' and Certifi- i as that. cates mean for women who buy them l We can help win the war, so the t, things. They mean purchasing these boys can get :back to their in., power for 'us after the war. 'limy • terrupted careers, to college and work-. �' erl�- mean financial security abainst the shop and desk and plough. So that. days of 'readjustment. And they mean' they can get rested, get the 'dark infinitely more than that. circles from under their eyes, he: They mean -warm clothing for our young and carefree and safe on boys in khaki or in blue.. They mean, more. once medical supplies. They mean ships, I think the mothers of Canada will and tanks, and planes. They mean -- continue to do just that. What else and praise the Lord they do!—they are mothers for but to care for tlieir�• mean ammunition.' children? It is their biological de Every time we do without a small tiny. duly, now the care for them, nab. luxury or an accustomed indulgence by binding up bruises and tucking everytime we serve a good plain meal them inat night .but by providing fon instead of a good elaborate one, and them the wherewithal of victory. And, spend the money so saved in War -Say- in that we shall not falter or fail. Net Ings, we feed and clothe and aim in this year of our Lord, 1948. Nor in those who are placing their bodies be- any other year. tween us and the enemy. Every time we buy Stamps and Certificates, we See to it that air -gunners do not run short of ammunition, that tanks go out with the best of equipment, that comforts are available for our men on the high seas. 'Recently I saw a soldier and a sail- or. meet on a crowded Christmas train. "Well, look who's here!" and hard hands shot out and, were firmly gripp- ed. A private in the Army with his Canada badge on his shoulder, and a tall seaman in the dark blue of the Navy, they sat down opposite, their eyes exploring each other's features. "A long day since Calgary!" ven- tured the soldier. "When have you seen Sandy or Bill?" "Not.for over a year," with a little sigh. A strong young fellew he was sturdy and rangy of biyild. But his RED CROSS AIDS CAMP HOSPITALS. Tile worst winter Ontario has . ex peripneed in years has placed many new problems before the Transport. Section of- the Canadian Red Cross. All gredih ipust be given to the emir, ageous and hard-working girls who - drive the big Red Cross transport trucks. They are liable to ,be called out. at any hour of the day or night, and it is their proud boast that thifey have always delivered the goods. Last week an emergency arose at the Barriefield Camps near Kingston, where a mild epidemic of influenza• had filled the• eamprhospital' and are, ated a shortage of hospital supplies, eyes were dark -circled, and his face ,A, phone call was put in to the. Orr., was lean and pale. Mario Headquarters of the Red Crosa late on Saturday afternoon, Immed-. lately a truck was loaded with almost 890. articles of hospital equipment, in. eluding dressing gowns, pneumonia jackets,. hot-water bottles, wash.. cloths, surgeon's jackets, etc. Then hours later, after a hazard- ous journey over snow -blocked icy roads, the truck arrived at Barrie - field and unloaded the urgently need- ed supplies. The return trip to Toron- to took the two girl drivers twa days over highways that would have daunt-. ed ninny professional drivers. They arrived back in the city exhausted, but. proud of the fact that they had as us-. ual, delivered' the goods." "Pin on leave," he explained, "be- cause"—and his voice went grriet— "we lost our ship." And again their eyes met and the rest of us were shut out. These two who were going'out to face death gazed calmly at each other, and in their level Iook was acknowledgment of clanger and acceptance of it, and brotherhood, and affection. A little hush encrosec them. We were near watcher and were humble. And wanted passionately, somehow, to help those grave, tired young fel- lows who were saving our lives for us, and risking their own, Well„ we can help. By buying Canadian Officer Praises Red Cross For Saving 900 Lives at Casablanca. A young Canadian warrant officer in the R•C.A.F,, has just come home from Casablanca, Outwardly, there is little to set him apart from the thou- sands of - other clear-eyed, stalwart, young Canadians wearing Air Force blue on the streets today, ,but there the similarity ceases. This lad is suffering from malnutrition. T•Iis impressions of -Casablanca wei° gained long before that historic con- ference which made the name a by- word the world aver, but that town will always stand out in his memory for two other reasons. It was at Casa- blanca that he was shot down by anti- aircraft fire and it was there that he got liis first real meal after five months in a •German prison carnp, 201 miles deep into French Africa. Soon after the landing of American troops at Oran, this young Canadian flyer was released, along with other Canadian and British servicemen, and made his away back to Canada via' Gibraltar, England and New York. One of the first things this laddid on :his return was to visit the Toronto packing centre of the •Canadian Red. Cross so that he could personally ex- 'prtss his thanks for the prisoner of i war food parcels which, he claims, 'saved the lives of the 900 prisoners at (that particular camp, To use his own words'; "Our daily diet of lentil soup and black, bread wasn't very nourishing, Without the Canadian Red Gross food parcels, we would certainly have starved to death." Providing food parcels for prison- ers of war has become the greatest and most appreciated function of the, Canadian Red Gloss today and, at the same time, the most expensive. Al- ready, over 2,000,000 Of these parcela have been shipped from Canada and: it will be necessary for .every Cana- dian to give generously to the Red Cross Campaign if the present pro-, duction of 100,000 &deli week le to be rnaintaiped. '' Red Cross Questions and Answers Q.— Who are included under the name "BRITISH" prisoners of War'? A.—The term "BRITISH" prisoners of war includes: all captured person- nel of Army, Navy or Air Force; civil- ian passengers (men and women) and crews of merchant ships sunk or cap- tured aptured at sea; and hien, women and•, children civilian internees—'who be .people from the Dominions, India and the ''Colonies. All Canadian prison- ers and internees are therefore includ- ed under the term "British" prisoners of war, Q.—Why is this important to Cana- dians ? A.—Because' the British Red Crops Society has assumed the respbnsibii, ity of supplying (a) food; (b) cloth- ing (e) medical comforts aiid drugs to. all British prisoners of war, this in - long to the British Empire. It includes eludes our Canadian prisoners.