JOHN AMBULANCE BRIGADE.

Sun (Christchurch), Volume I, Issue 177, 1 September 1914, Page 4

JOHN AMBULANCE BRIGADE.

To the Editor of THE SUN. • Sir, —In your issue of to-day you - publish a cablegram from Lord Ranfurly. .« asking for financial - " tion of this I would be glad of space to explain the probable support required. The St. John Ambulance Association and ' Brigade in. England are, as here, entirely a civilian body doing in peace time civilian ambulance duties. Birt their organisation and personnel trained in thosa duties are easily capable in time of war to expanding to eover war duty and thin they do in conjunction with ,the .British - Red Gross; Briefly such war duty lies in two directions. First, the trained personnel of the brigade enlist ,in the . different ambulance services of the Navy and Army. .In the Navy they provide the trained sick-berth attendants. of the hospital ships; and on meri-of:war. In •» the they' provide personnel for (a) home military hospitals, thus setting free the men of the Royal Army Mdtlieal Corps; (b) they provide eight fully, equipped field ambulances for service with the Expeditionary Foree; (c) also the' personnel for stationary and base hos- " pita Is. In addition t6 -that; they provide both male and female voluntary aid 1 de- ' tachments, whose duties are numerous,. 1 ranging from rest and refreshment stations to the nursing of convalescent soldiers in their own homes and from providing ambulance train personnel ta the forming of improvised hospitals and the manning of same. Those services are provided by the; younger, members of our organisation. The older members not able to bear the active brunt of war - undertake equally useful wort. They provide the necessary equipment and materials wanted in the forming of mili-"". tary hospitals, and these at a time like this are many. They also, provide and arrange for the nursing of convalescent soldiers in private homes. The brigade in England has at present some 4000 men at the front. °%s these are enlisted in the and Navy and are drawing their pay as such, the financial aid asked

for will not be for themj but will be , to provide- the equipment tliey require ; to carry out their duties properly. ThesS are medical comforts, bed clothing, cloth-"' ing for the sick, dressings, etc. In the South African war tons of'such material were collected at St. John's Gate and . forwarded to the troops, and in the present ivar the demand for these will be enormous. At present in this district the brigade is busy manufacturing such clothing, and this is to be sent forward as soon as possible. We have also a suggestion before us to send through the military authorities the personnel of a fullyequipped' stationary hospital consisting of seven doctors, 17 nurses, and 80 men. If it .is decided this is to go, then we. will require all the aid we can locally to send it fully equipped with all requirements, the brigade providing the trained personnel, and the public, we hope, the clothing and medical requirements for the sick. If the personnel aro * not to go, then we will still be glad of all the material we-can .get to'send with what we ourselves are forwarding. These are Nightingale jackets, bed pyjama ■ trousers, blankets, bandages, dressings, i meat extracts, and the like. Such should be sent to any brigade division or direct to our headquarters, 319 Worcester Street, Christchureh, addressed to the undersigned. —I am, etc., W. W. MeKINXEY, Assistant Commissioner in Charge, Canterbury and Coast District St. John Ambulance Brigade.