RED CROSS WORK

Auckland Star, Volume XLIX, Issue 244, 12 October 1918, Page 16

RED CROSS WORK

One of the most interesting departments of the Red Cross Depot work is that devoted to old linen. Here are made up the pads and clothes which are so much used in dressing wounds and which are needed in the hospitals. At the present time there is a great need for more clean linen for this work, and it would be well if all housewives would go over their linen chests and forward even , bit they can spare to Mrs Benjamin, at the depot, who is in charge of the work. When the linen arrives it is cut up into sizes and made into nurses' packs, (filled with different sized pieces neatly and tightly rolled, labelled, and all ready for packing. All the seams and tiny bits are kept, and, sent to a flock mill, which teases them into fluff and returns them to the depot without any charge being made. The fluff is then taken and made into pads, absorbent nnd splint pads, which are made in groups of five for ease in counting. The larger pieces of old linen or cotton are hemmed into surgical towels, while old white quilts are made, into pan cover* with a large v-6 cross on each. are also ve'y acceptable, for they are made up into fomentation clothes, 'flic amount that is needed is shown by last year's list. During that time fifty-four cases of old linen were rent away to various hospitals. In thenf were "ifM numes' pack*, 128l"> splint pads of all sizes, 44<i absorbent pads, 105 fomentation cloths, and 1205 surgical towels, besides 104 small cushions to be used as arm rests. The only money spent in this work is to provide the butter cloth which covers them, but, failing that, a better supply of old linen nnd cotton garments is'needed. Any old pillow cases or old sheets or bits of sheets, so lone as they are clean, old quilts, or body linen can be used for this work, for which there is always so sad a dcman/1. Many people in the country districts have old stocks of white rags on hand which could be very usefully applied to a purpose that each and all mifst fully appreciate— the comfort of our sorely-wounded soldiers in hospitals behind the battle line in Kngland, in Mesopotamia, and in Egypt.