AMERICAN MONEY

Nelson Evening Mail, 27 May 1916, Page 2

AMERICAN MONEY

WELL "SPENT' IN BRITAIN".

LONDON, March 22.

When an American with some money to spare makes a contribution to virtually any of the various relief funds which Americans have established in England, the money is spent on this side of the water in a manner meeting the two great charity ideals—getting the money to places where it will do the greatest good, and having it distributed with a minimum of administrative expense. In these respects the relief fund situation in England to-day is rather remarkable, according to a- statement made to-day to your correspondent by Mr Gordon Selfridge, the American merchant, who seven years ago invaded! London with American ideas. and established a great department store which has _ met with fine success. Mr Selfridge is a member of a number of committees in London having to do with relief work. "T think that the people of \America ought to know." Mr Selfridge said, "that the money they send) over 1 neveis well spent and does real good. I have had a. good deal of experience; here and in America, with charity committees, and "know how things sometimes co; Freouentlv it will' 'be found .that the administration of a relief fund is most expensive. only too often is made a matter of fimrish.in.sr someone, some relative of whoever is at the head of things, nerhaps, with a. .sinecure. Not so now. There- are several American organisations'- in England, engaged -in looking after Americans in need of as=;stauce and doincr Red Cross work. Some of the monev for these things comes from the United States, the rest is subscribed here . I Jiave been areatly nleased and somewhat surprised bv the extreme intelligence and very great care used- in the administration of these funds. The-o is no waste. Everything is done with economy and it is verv, ,verv seldoirfthat monev i R g'.ven to anyone who doo not deserve it.

"For instance, there is '-one fund whi.h pomes from -, the Christian Her*M in Vew York, rurmhiio- to several thousand pounds. We have a small committee, of which T happen to i)e fbe treasurer. The cost of distributionthat, monev to worthv people is exceed-j,-,0-1v small. We have, a secretary who dno* al] the work herself. T f wp . firu * a child whose parents have been killed in a Zonnel : n raid wo arrangement* for its cave, schooling, and so on. Each case is investigated am' relief i' s : ffivnn with Sri-nod. It is really an exopcrjino-lv fine thine. ".And so it is all thvoucrh. There is no ott-1 to the kinds an fl onalitv of work that :"s hein<r done. There is scaroeK-n-nv way to estimate iust what Americans aro /-loino-. but ihe whole is verv larrre. There are manv Americans who make their homes here in England. Each ir\ one wpv *>nd- another is doing his or \ipt- ladies who live, in n- certain r>ei*T])boriv7-)nod an<-1 have their, friends theve join in the local -patriotic work and do what they can. The Americans in En eland have shown, a splendid spirit and have been. I think, most heroful. "But to those Americans ■who earn helb from afar, and' only "bv money subscriptions, the important thing is for them to realise that 'thev do hot give their' money 'in 'vain, but that what thev give <roes to the olace where it is really, needed, while the administrative cost o*f getting it there is. exceeding- loav —often practically nothing."—Press Correspondent: ■■-.-.-■.