EMERGENCY RELIEF IN GREAT DISASTERS 8i 



The failure to publish similar reports, or, indeed, anythinfz; 

 that can be properly called a report or a financial statement, is 

 one of the just criticisms made against the American National 

 Red Cross. This society has taken part in the relief of the 

 sufferers from the forest fires in Michigan in 1881, from the 

 overflow of the Mississippi river in 1882 and of the Ohio in 

 1883, from the Mississippi cyclone in the same year, from the 

 overflow of the Ohio and Mississippi in 1884, from the drouth 

 in Texas in 1886, from the Charleston earthquake in the same 

 year, from the Mount Vernon (Illinois) cyclone in 1888, from 

 the yellow fever epidemic in Florida in the same year, from the 

 Johnstowm disaster in 1889, from the inundation, hurricane, 

 and tidal wave of the South Carolina coast in 1893 and 1894, 

 and from the Galveston flood. 



In connection with these various enterprises, and others 

 in which the Red Cross has been interested, large sums of 

 money have been contributed to the Red Cross society, but 

 for their disbursement no suitable public accounting appears 

 to have been made in any instance. In the pamphlets and 

 addresses issued by the society such paragraphs as the follow- 

 ing take the place of definite statements concerning what was 

 actually done and what relation such action bore to the relief 

 work of other and often more important agencies: 



"The secretary brought together the women of Johns- 

 town, bowed to the earth with sorrow and bereavement, and 

 the most responsible were formed into conmiittees charged 

 with definite duties towards the homeless and distraught of 

 the community. Through them the wants of over three thou- 

 sand families — more than twenty thousand persons — were 

 made known in writing to the Red Cross, and by it supplied; 

 the white wagons with the red symbol fetching and carrying 

 for the stricken people." 



It is principally considerations of this kind that have led to 

 the recent remonstrance from some of the most prominent 

 members of the Red Cross society, and to an attempt, thus far 

 unsuccessful, to bring about a reorganization of its manage- 

 ment, especially on the financial side. 



In times of great calamity, such as we have been consider- 

 ing, there are many who are ordinarily self supporting who 



Vol. 10-6 



