RED CROSS WORK.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 11511, 6 October 1915, Page 5

RED CROSS WORK.

WOMEN'S CONTRIBUTIONS. HUGE SHIPMENTS OF MATERIALS Tho monthly meeting of tho Women's R d Cross Committee was held lhis morning, Mr A- E. G. Rhodes presiding over a largo attendance, held! in premises at the corner of Manchester and Worcester Streets. The chairman stated that friends of the liioifemonfc had provided tho new building I'reo of rent for R-ed Cross work, and while the St John Ambulance Brigade had always been glad to give up its rooms for the ladies, the new arrangement would provide more* room for both organisations. Since'the .previous meeting Mis-s Tabart had. resigned tho scLTotary>;hip to take up other work, and Miss Cole had been: appointed to tho vacancy. *.lr Rhodes went on to say that a sum of £24,000 had already passed through th > hank account, of which £4.000" was a mere book entry, having been sent from Tiimuu and Waimate., but £2500 had been paid in for material, and the committee had sent forward £BOOO worth of material up to date, so chat nearly £30,000 was represented in the committee's work. The ladies' buying department had £779 worth of material, and the men's executive had voted £IOOO to the buying fund to secure prompt payment, and tho best discounts. ■ The Red Crosi depot in Cathedral Square was taking about £IOO a week. The committee's account was in credit £4518, but out of that there was to come £IOOO for Colonel Rhodes's disposal in Egypt and money for material. Mid Blanch reported that tho committee had in hand for the hospital ship enough sheets, pillow slips, quilts, hot-water bottles and covers, nightingales, nightshirts, buttons, boot and slice brushes, deck chairs and towels. The articles still required were feather pillows, draw sheets, pyjamas, bed jackets, flannel day shirts, undervests, bed socks hand-knitted day socTcs, largo handkerchiefs, flannel drawers, face cloths, dressing gowns, flannel waistcoats, balaclavas, scarves and cushions. Mrs Wigram reported that sho had sent awav this morning,thirty-six cases by the troopship and sixteen sacks to Egypt to Dr Acland's hospital (the No. 1 stationary hospital). This brought the total of cases and packages from the whole district to 372. There had boen a splendid response to Dr Acland's appeal, and sho. had sent twenty-two cases of garments almost entirely a* the remit*of it, hot counting a great deal that had gone in the sixteen sacks that went by the P. and O. boat. 1 There were twenty-two cases of garments in the troopship and fourteen. cases of bandages. A f?w small cases had gone forward in addition, including one to Alexandria, one case to Cairo for Sister Wilson, and one case to Nurse Abbott at Port Said. The latest shipment included 249 blankets, for Dr Aeland and fourteen of Mr F. W. Thompson's patent arm and' legslings, which were thought very highly of by doctors who had seen them. M.r> lioyl© said that the money for Dr Acland's appeal had been spent on meat extract, which was going forward to-day. The chairman said that one great need at the front was milk, and a largo sum had been voted and £SO spent already. There were about 120 tins of hare extract of soup., which was to be sent to Dr Aeland for a special report as to its value. Mrs G. Rhodes said that visits were made to the men in hospital to see that they were provided with everything thev required, and a good deal of material had been sent to them already. The nurses' Christmas parcels! were ready to send. The chairman said that some misapprehension existed as to the conditions on which outside committees or guilds could 1 join with the ladies' committee. It was not at all necessary that thev should buy their material at the depot. They could by their material in the cheapest market, and if they could do better than the ladies' committee he hoped that they would let the ladies know where the cheaper lines were to be got. The joint buying was intended merely to secure the best terms. It was also wrong to suppose that the material had to be cut "out at the central depot. Many of the present workers were a long way from Christchurch, and as long as the material was cut out property it did not matter where it was cut out. Another objection he had heard was that every-, thing had to be sent to the Christchurch depot. It was hoped that this would be done, but it' it could not be done the Ladies' Committee only asked , that outside ladies would give, timely i notice of what was being sent, so that otliers would not be asked to do th.3 same work. He did not think that any of the difficulties could not be got over. What vras principally asked by the committee was that money collected for Red Cross purposes would not be spent in other diroctions. Miss Tabart, on behalf of the Bandage Department, reported the prcparai tion of the following articles for the month :—Roller bandages 7P00., flannel bandages B'JB, medicine cloths <il),(;u\i, swabs 93G0, operation cloths 5150, fomentations 45/8, bottle covers 730, tray cloths 3275, toilets 3050, wringer > , 570, triangular bandages 1882, veil? ' 900, mariitails 590, binders 880, dusters j 200, jug covers 84, tea towels 10, kitchen towels 223. Jeyes' fluid' 33, insect powder (tins) 36, draw sheets 15, a total of 86,302 artie'es, of a value of £544 10s, as against last month's total |of £Oll. Th=i total of articles would have fallen below the previous month's total but for the large number of medicine cloths. It was impossible to exaggerate the need of ro lor bandages of all sorts, manitail bandages, triangular bandages and swabs, which were required in thousands. The chairman .stated that a sum of | £llO had been sent to the Bed Cro?s Fund as the result of the garden party at Mr A. Hopkins's residence, and it was to be spent in blankets for Dr Acland's at Port Said'. Mrs Kill reported that in addition to £IOO promised by Ballantvne's employees and £7O by Armstrong's employees, £SO had been promised by employees. Mrs Boyle voiced the thanks of the ladies ior Mr Rhodes's work, and in moving a vote of thinks said that the work would never have increased to Midi an extent but for his unfading help, both in the matter of advice anc] donations. Tii-e motion was carried with applause, and Mr Rhodes acknowledged! the compliment. ° • i A vnte of thanks was accorded to I Mi-v--. Tabart for her services as score-1