Otago Branch

Kai Tiaki : the journal of the nurses of New Zealand, Volume VI, Issue 2, 1 April 1913, Page 44

Otago Branch

A pleasant evening was held by the Nurses' Association to welcome back Miss Sutherland and the president, \>\. Mac donald, with his bride. Mrs. Macdonald was Nurse Warn from Victoria, and was well

known by Dunedin nurses having spent some time 1 here last year.

Miss Sutherland was requested to give an account of her visit to Cologne and her impressions of the Nurses' Congress for which

she was the chief new Zealand Delegate, and spoke as follows : — President, Ladies and Gentlemen —

I must thank you all very heartily for the kind " Welcome Home " given me this evening, and would also like to say how glad I am to be amongst all the familiar faces again. No doubt you will be surprised to hear me say that I am more nervous m speaking to you than m giving my address before a thousand people or more, at the International Congress of Nurses m Cologne.

The London reporter said to me there is no need to care what you say to a lot of foreigners, half of them won't understand you. That was not the reason, there was a feeling that the foreigners would be less critical than those who knew me well. At a gathering such as the Cologne Congress, where one listened to the leading women of the world m our own profession, and heard the dramatic eloquence of Mrs. Bedford Fenwick, the hon. president of the I.C.N. ; the refined and cultured speeches of Miss Nutting, the president of the Columbia University and training school for nurses m New York ; the quaintly expressed humour of Miss Dock, the secretary of the I.C.N. ; and the wonderful intellectual ability of Fraulein Agnes Karl, the beloved German president of the 1.C.N., who could speak the two languages fluently, one felt that to speak m public a nurse must be specially trained.

At the Congress one speaker after another emphasised the point that nurses needed a great deal more than a thorough knowledge of their own professional work if they are to be effective social workers. Indeed, it is evident that if the nurse is to meet the demands now expected from her, the establishment of a special course of training, similar to that now available for nurses at the Teachers' College Columbia University, New York, will be considered necessary m this country of ours too. New Zealand is not going to be behind the other countries of the world, even though she is one of the youngest daughters of the Motherland ; she was first on the wire with the offer of a Dreadnought for use m time of war ; she was first to obtain legal status for her nurses, so she must see that the professional standard of her nurses is equal to that of the other affiliated countries.

Fraulein Shubert, one of the German delegates, claimed that nurses should know everything, not only should they be women of education and refinement, but they should be able to speak well and fluently on the work m hand. This is a side of social service from which the trained nurse often shrinks ; she knows her own work, she is able to deal with patients, but she thinks it asking just a little too much, that she should be expected to give addresses m relation to that work. One fully admits that it is asking a great deal of nurses, and no doubt one reason why nurses feel incompetent for public speaking is that they have not been trained for it. I have come back feeling that we are never too old to learn, and if these women of whom I have spoken can speak well, why not we ? Now is my opportunity of urging our Dunedin nurses to embrace every chance of speaking before others, if not actually m public, speak up at our nurses association meetings, To do this needs courage at first, and to do it well, no small ability. Fraulein Shubert admitted that to speak well and fluently on the subject m hand is the most difficult part of the nurses business, but " when her heart is m her calling, her tongue will be eloquent m its service." I do not mean to give you a long lecture on the duties of nurses, but would like to say something about the Congress, and a little about the spirit of Internationalism. I promised to come back and try to inspire my fellow- workers here with the longing to be present at the next International Congress to be held m San Francisco, m 1915. Here is your invitation : — : " The women of California will be pleased to greet the fine and earnest women of your nursing profession during the Exposition, and do everything possible for their comfort and pleasure." The Panama Canal is to be formally opened by the President of the United States m 1915. In the heart of San Francisco an auditorium will be erected, where the International Congress of nurses will be held. No doubt concessions will be made to nurses travelling to it. So there is your opportunity, do not miss it, but begin and save your dollars " right now ' as the Americans say.

The New Zealand delegates travelled to Cologne from London with a special party arranged by Miss Mollet, the sec-

retary of the Matron's Council of (heat Britain and Ireland, it consisted of members of the Matron's Council and ladies introduced by them. We left London from Charing Cross station at 9 a.m. Saturday, August 3rd, and arrived at Cologne after a tiring, but uneventful journey at midnight. There were 56 of us, but altogether 100 nurses went from Great Britain.

Rooms had been secured for us m three of the best hotels, and we soon found ourselves m very comfortable quarters, and glad to get to rest.

Sunday morning, August Ist, we set out to find our way to the Gurzinich to get our tickets, badges and ribbons. With some difficulty we got along through the crowded streets ; it was like a holiday and everyone m Cologne seemed out to enjoy themselves, and all were interested m our Congress. though surely they had had a surfeit of congresses for ours was the 33rd one m nine months. On reaching tin 1 Gurzinich we found numbers of nurses there of all nationalities, waiting to get their passes, and everything was managed well, and as quickly as possible, though it was amusing to watch these representatives of so many different countries trying to understand one another. One would turn and address some one m English, and get a reply m an unknown tongue, and to make oneself understood at all to depend on gesticulation or visual illustration, tested ones wits to the utmost. Our International Congress will be recommending us to learn foreign languages as well as the art of public speaking. How fortunate the British nurses were who could speak German, as we who only knew one language missed more than we knew. The formal opening of the Congress and the speeches m connection with the affiliation of India and New Zealand have been fully reported m our own Journal, so there is no need for me to repeat them. We m New Zealand ought to feel proud that we now belong to this great body of women. It was most inspiring to be there amongst so many women of all nationalities. Truly it has been said there is no nationality m nursing. It was so marvellous that representative women from so many different countries should meet together for one aim and purpose, and that grand purpose was to convey to their colleagues of different creeds and languages as well as workers

under different conditions the best and latest methods of each nation for caring and tending our sick and suffering, as well as bettering the conditions of the nurses themselves. Differences of race, of speech, of country, all seemed small before the uniting tie of one womanhood, one earnest work for the same object. It was, indeed, a wonderful week, we were so royally welcomed and entertained with such generous and genuine hospitality by our German sisters. 1 was deeply impressed with the number of fine strong resolute women amongst the German nurses. As one looked at these splendid women, one felt that such reforms and advances as they need could not long be denied them. Perhaps the strongest impression was that made m seeing our sisters from Japan m their places day after day, and being able to turn to other sisters from India on the one hand, and South Africa and New Zealand on the other ; and m realising how surely the barriers of race, language, creed and custom are falling down, and to realise what a power m the world the nurses are going to be m a very short time. Year by year all over the world the usefulness of the nurse to the community and their own professional needs grow and grow. It is now 13 years since six women met m London to form a Nurses' International Council, and now' the International Council is composed of the nurses of Great Britain and Ireland, United States of America, Germany, Canada, Holland, Denmark, Finland, India and New Zealand. The recent Congress was also attended by nurses from Australasia, Africa, Japan, France, Italy, Austria, Hungary, Switzerland, Belgium, and Sweden, gathered together m conference upwards of 800 nurses from 23 different countries. To anyone who had the privilege of sharing m those days of the Congress m Cologne, the memory must remain imperishable. Marvellous energy m organisation seemed to prevail. It is impossible for, me to talk at all on the multitude of subjects touched upon. The multitude of speakers and the breadth of the ground covered, and added to all this the energy shown m the entertainments provided for us. The pageant of course, stands out preeminent, the heavenly music from the wonderful organ, and the singing of the men's choir were magnificent, and the wonderful rendering by living human beings

of four episodes m German nursing to illustrate the progress of nursing from the 13th century up to the present day and culminating m the great group of nurses from all lands bearing their banners and offering to Hygeia the laurel wreathes of the victors over disease and death. This picture represented a marble statue of Hygeia, the goddess who claims the allegiance of the modern nurse. She was revealed draped m white against a background of greenery, and holding before her a large evergreen wreath, were two nurses, graduates of the New York City Hospital, both coloured women. Then nurses of past ages, and of the present time bearing ropes of evergreen, started on a pilgrimage from the bottom of the steps each picking up a bunch of red roses on the way which they dropped at the feet of Hygeia, while making a reverent curtesy then passed on up to the background, forming a beautiful tableau. The nurses, as they filed passed with banners and emblems, were a brave array, representing ancient and modern nurses. Amongst the modern nurses were representatives from each affiliated country. Your own delegate took part, and stood beside a nurse from Barbadoes, each helping to support the wreath.

Amongst the many fetes given to us, one excursion above all others will be remembered by the English speaking nurses, and that is the one to Kaiser worth, where Florence Nightingale learnt the science and the discipline, and the art of nursing. We saw there the little room she occupied, the windows were flower-decked and draped with the English colours, and as we looked out of the windows of that simple little room, we saw lovely flower gardens and meadows, and, m the distance, to where the Rhine flows. Just at this very window no doubt Florence Nightingale sat and saw with prophetic vision the modern nurse trained and taught. An account of that trip would take too long to tell of to-night, but it seemed fitting that this Congress should be commemorated and made memorable by establishing an International Memorial of an educational character to Florence Nightingale's memory, to take the form of a nursing scholarship, m which the nurses of all the world would have an opportunity of competing. This proposal, the nurses assembled m Cologne agreed to further,

and I hope you will be faithful to the promise I made for you, that the New Zealand nurses would be sure to give it their hearty support and their financial help.

It is hoped, that as the soldiers of the Crimea after the war gave up a day's pay m order to subscribe to the nations personal gift to Miss Nightingale, so the legions of nurses who owe her homage will be willing to subscribe a small definite sum to found this memorial. In any case the NewZealand nurses will be expected to do their share after my promise.

the banquet.

The banquet held m the splendid gold and white ball-room of the Hotel Disch, on the evening of August 7th, was a brilliant social event. Never before had a banquet organised by women been held m Cologne, but certainly it will not be the last. Over 350 guests assembled, and when Sister Agnes Karl took her seat at the high table supported by officers and delegates of the International Council, she looked upon a bright and joyous scene ; there was a great variety of evening dress, uniforms, and semi evening. The president's table, at which I had a special seat, ran along one end of the room, and to which one end of the other tables were attached, like ribbons. One representative from each country was at the special table, the others were dispersed about various parts of the room. All the Englishwomen who could speak German were placed beside Germans, and somehow we managed to understand most of what was going on. The gold and white decorations of the room and the tables laden with exquisite pink English roses ; the window ledges bright with bouquets, presented to the president from the different countries ; the gay company ; and the enlivening strains of music. In Germany it is the custom to make speeches between the courses, and rising early m the evening Dr. Ruhsack said the opinion had been expressed that the modern woman was not appreciated m Germany, but such was not the fact. Dr. Hecker, the champion of the German nurses, also spoke, and each country responded to their own toast.

To say how much we enjoyed this banquet would be impossible, neither can the speeches made on that never-to-be-forgotten evening

be repeated, but perhaps you would like me to read the one made by our little sister from Japan. Though she spoke very little English, she understood and could speak German, and she was one of the most interesting and popular personalities of the ( Jonference. Miss Take Hagiware, a tiny smiling almond-eyed, black haired lady, dressed m the Japanese national dress, addressing the German president, Fraulein Karl, said : — ;i Our soul and our spirit have been refreshed by the unhymnable source of knowledge which draws us on by a magic bond far to the star, of hope. I hardly know if I can find words or poetry that can suffice to thank our president Sister Agnes Karl. To-day we are striving towards the same goal with united hearts, and may trees with sweet scented blossoms

be covered later with the noblest fruits. I shall share these treasures with my sisters of Japan when I go back, and so further our cause m my own country." I cannot describe m words the gaiety, the good feeling, the friendliness with which this banquet was characterised. As the " hochs " resounded through the hall and glass touched glass, few words were needed to cement friendship and good feeling between those who a short week ago had been strangers to one another. Those who were present can never forget the inspiration of the occasion : — " Our Congress is over, the doors have closed, the voices have ceased, but the spirit remains, and through it each of us has come home feeling stronger for her task."