THE AMERICAN RED CROSS
Junior Membership and School Activities Patriotic Service
[Illustration]
THE JUNIOR RED CROSS
In September, 1917, President Wilson sent out a letter from the White
House in Washington to the school children of the United States. He
called this letter a proclamation. To proclaim anything is to tell it
to everybody.
So in this proclamation, President Wilson told the children that he was
also president of the American Red Cross, and that he would like to
have them all join the Red Cross as Junior Members and help in the work.
[Illustration]
This letter meant that the twenty-two million school children of the
United States would not have to wait to grow up before doing actual Red
Cross work, but would be able to begin right away to take their part as
young citizens. If a story were written telling of the services of the
children during the war, it would fill a book larger than the biggest
dictionary. Two years later, the president sent out a new proclamation,
urging the children to continue the work of the Junior Red Cross.
A PROCLAMATION
_To the School Children of the United States_:
Two years ago, as President of the United States and as President
of the American Red Cross, I addressed to you a letter in which I
advised you to enroll in the newly organized Junior Red Cross, and
I explained to you some of the ways in which the Junior Red Cross
would help you to be useful to your country and to the children
of those countries which were associated with us in a great war
against a powerful enemy. Millions of you did join the Junior Red
Cross and worked hard, and what you did is warmly appreciated by
the whole country.
Now, by the blessings of God and through the faithful performance
of duty by our soldiers and sailors and the soldiers and sailors
of the countries by whose side we fought, a great victory has been
won and the war is over, but I am sure that you wish to continue
to be useful to your country and to children less fortunate than
yourselves. Therefore, I am writing to you at the opening of the
new school year to advise you again to join the Junior Red Cross,
which has planned a work for peace times even larger and more
systematic than the work done during the war.
The Junior Red Cross will instruct you in ideals and habits of
service, will show you how to be useful to your school, how to aid
the older people in your community in their efforts to promote the
health and comfort of the people among whom you live, and how to
help children who are still suffering from the effects of the great
war in foreign lands invaded by the enemy.
The recent war was the greatest of all wars, not only because
more men and nations were engaged in it than in any other war of
history, but also because, as a result of it, people have seen a
vision of a different kind of world from the world of the past,
a world in which nations shall unite for purposes of peace and
good will as they formerly united only for war against an armed
foe. In working for the children of other nations you will come to
understand them better and they will understand and appreciate you
more.
Your education will not be complete unless you learn how to
be good citizens, and the Junior Red Cross plans to teach you
simple lessons of citizenship through its organization and its
activities. It is your generation which must carry on the work of
our generation at home and abroad and you cannot begin too soon to
train your minds and habits for this responsibility. By doing what
you can to make happier the people of your own neighborhood, your
state, your country, and also the people of other lands, you will
make yourselves happier.
(Signed) WOODROW WILSON,
_President_.
September, 1919.
[Illustration]
WHAT THE CHILDREN DID
You know what they did.
They helped in the great work that the Red Cross was doing in the World
War.
They made bandages and splints and clothing for the wounded soldiers
and sailors.
The girls knitted sweaters and mufflers and mittens to keep them warm.
The boys made stretcher poles, knitting needles, packing cases, and
many, many other useful articles in their manual training classes.
All the children stopped wasting food.
Many gave up some foods, of which they were very fond, in order to save
them for the army.
Indeed, one could talk all day about what the children did.
They helped by sending to the Red Cross what they made and what they
saved, to be used in the work of the Red Cross.
THE RED CROSS IN WAR
This work is:
First.--To care for and nurse the wounded among our own soldiers and
sailors, and even the wounded of the enemy who fall into the hands of
the Red Cross.
Second.--To care for the families of the soldiers and sailors who have
given their services to their country.
THE RED CROSS IN PEACE
But happily wars do not last all the time.
Some day we hope wars will be done away with, but we cannot expect wars
to cease while kings and their friends make the laws for the people.
When the people make their own laws, wars will cease because the people
know best what is good for all.
What golden deeds then does Red Cross do in times of peace?
Always, in times of war or in times of peace, the work of the Red Cross
is helping people who are suffering.
How do people suffer in times of peace?
Perhaps from disease. In many cities Red Cross nurses go about from
home to home taking care of sick people, showing mothers how to take
care of babies, and helping in every way they can.
Perhaps floods or fires come, bringing suffering. The Red Cross is the
first to send out help to the sufferers.
[Illustration: THE SAN FRANCISCO EARTHQUAKE AND THE REFUGEES IN TENTS.]
Can you tell about what happens during a flood? What work can the Red
Cross do?
How does the Red Cross help the people whose homes have been destroyed
by fire? Can you tell about the San Francisco earthquake in 1906?
[Illustration: THE EXPLOSION AT HALIFAX IN 1917.]
Who were the first to send doctors and nurses, and medicine and food to
the suffering people of Halifax?
Yes, the Red Cross. I think if the great Red Cross could be made into
one picture it would be a picture of the good neighbor. The good
neighbor takes what is needed to a neighbor who is hurt, or sick, or in
need, and stays to do what can be done for the sufferer. Is that the
kind of a picture you have in your mind of the Red Cross?
THE GOOD NEIGHBOR
Now, just imagine a city made up entirely of people who are good
neighbors. What kind of a place would it be? Wouldn’t you like to live
in such a city?
Such people would show by their deeds that they loved their country,
wouldn’t they? How can we show that we love our country?
When we say we love our country, we do not mean only the land on which
we live. We mean the people who live on the land, and the land on which
the people live. The people and the land make up “our country.”
* * * * *
America! America!
God shed his grace on thee,
And crown thy good with brotherhood
From sea to shining sea!
--_Katherine Lee Bates._
OUR TWO FLAGS
What they stand for--
[Illustration: FOR HUMANITY]
[Illustration: FOR GOD AND COUNTRY]
What does Humanity mean?
Do you have two flags?
Do you wear the Red Cross button?
Do you ask your friends to join the Red Cross?
Has your school an American Red Cross Auxiliary banner?
THE RED CROSS FLAG
When we say we love our American flag, we mean that we love what our
flag stands for. We mean that we love our people and the land on which
we live.
But there is a flag which means that we love all people who need us as
good neighbors, no matter where they live, no matter who they are.
May that flag some day fly in every country of the world to show that
all boys and girls have learned to be Good Neighbors.
The Red Cross flag is the second flag of American citizens. Do you know
how many members the American Red Cross would have, if every American
citizen were a member?
One of the best ways to show how much you love your country’s flag is
to enlist in the services of your country under the Red Cross flag.
Of course you are wondering how we came to have a second flag, and how
our American Red Cross came to be.
Before you can learn about that, you must find out how the Red Cross
first came to be. You must think about two people. One is Florence
Nightingale; the other, Henri Dunant.
FLORENCE NIGHTINGALE
You have heard about the little English girl, named Florence
Nightingale, who loved to play she was a nurse.
You remember that when she grew up she went in a ship all the way to
the Crimean peninsula to nurse the soldiers during the dreadful war
between England and Russia in 1854.
You remember, too, that when she wanted to go, the men in charge of the
army told her that it was a foolish idea.
They said that no one had ever heard of such a thing--that women would
not be able to do any good in such a dreadful place.
But Florence Nightingale was not the kind of person to be discouraged
by such talk.
She managed to go; and she did so much for the wounded and sick
soldiers that they called her the “Angel of Mercy.”
Do you remember that the very men who had discouraged her found out
that the work she and her nurse friends did was the most wonderful help
they ever had?
HENRI DUNANT
When Florence Nightingale was eight years old, a little boy was born in
Geneva, Switzerland.
His name was Henri Du-nant.
Little Henri grew up like other boys; he was full of sport, but he was
always sorry for any creature which suffered.
After he grew to be a man, he was made very sad because of the
sufferings of wounded soldiers. He knew the story of Florence
Nightingale, and often wondered if something could not be done to help
all soldiers.
After seeing a terrible battle in which nearly forty thousand men were
killed and wounded, he wrote a story about it. In the story he asked
the question, “Why couldn’t people of all countries make plans to care
for the sick and wounded during wars?”
And from his thought came the great Red Cross work.
That work began before there was an American Red Cross.
Now we are ready to find out about our own Red Cross.
CLARA BARTON
It makes you glad to think how proud the English people must have been
of Florence Nightingale, doesn’t it?
You will be very happy to know that an American woman did just the same
kind of work for American soldiers as Florence Nightingale did for
English soldiers. Her name was Clara Barton.
I. The Christmas Baby
Clara Barton was a Christmas baby.
The Barton family lived in a farmhouse on a hill near Oxford,
Massachusetts.
There were four other children, two boys and two girls.
On Christmas morning of 1821, the four children woke to find a lovely
Christmas present--a baby sister whom they loved from the minute they
saw her. This was Clara Barton.
Little Clara grew up very happily. In winter she loved to coast on the
snowy hills and to skate on the ice-ponds, and to take the long walk to
and from the country school house.
In summer she played in the green fields and waded in the cool brooks.
[Illustration]
She and her brother David used to do many daring, dangerous things.
They would ride upon the bare backs of unbroken colts. They would climb
high places.
II. The Little Nurse
One day David climbed high into the peak of the roof of the barn.
Suddenly a board gave way and David fell.
He was dreadfully hurt.
Although Clara was only eleven years old when this happened, she would
not let any one but herself nurse David. For two years she took care of
him.
“You will get sick yourself,” her mother told her, but Clara said that
she could not leave her brother.
“I would rather nurse sick people than play,” she said.
It was because of her tender care that David got well.
“Clara is a born nurse,” he would say. “She knows just the right things
to do.”
III. Clara Grows Up
You would think that when she grew up, Clara would have studied to be a
trained nurse, wouldn’t you?
If there had been trained nurses in that day no doubt she would have
done so, but there were none.
Instead, she became a school teacher.
[Illustration: CLARA BARTON]
When she was only sixteen, she began to teach in a little district
school near her home in Oxford, Massachusetts.
Afterward she taught the first public free school in New Jersey.
She worked so hard in her teaching that her strength gave out, and she
decided to do some other kind of work.
You see, she could not bear to be idle.
So she went to Washington.
As you know, Washington is the capital of the United States.
Most of the business of our national government is attended to in this
city.
Soon after Clara Barton went there she was asked to take charge of the
Pension Office of the government.
She was asked to do this because she could be trusted to do her duty.
IV. The Civil War
When she had been in Washington about three years, the terrible Civil
War broke out.
You remember what the quarrel was about, don’t you?
There were fierce battles, after which wounded soldiers lay on the
battlefields without help.
The thought of their sufferings touched Miss Barton’s tender heart.
“Oh, if I could only go nurse them!” she thought. She knew that many
other kind women were having the same thoughts.
“I will go!” she finally decided.
At first the men in charge of the army did not want her to go, and said
that such work was too hard for women.
But Clara Barton, like Florence Nightingale, was not the kind of person
to be discouraged by such talk.
She managed to go.
And the very men who had discouraged her found out that the work she
did was the most wonderful kind of help.
V. The Army Nurse
I wish I could tell you about the noble deeds she did, but this book
would not hold all the stories.
She carried food and medicine to the soldiers.
She bound up their wounds and put on their bandages.
Sometimes as she was dressing the wounds of a soldier in the open field
a bullet would come whizzing by.
Once one passed between her arm and her body.
She wrote letters for the men to their families, that their loved ones
might know where they were.
In the cold winter weather, in the heat of summer, she did everything
she could for the wounded and sick soldiers.
You do not wonder that they called her “The Angel of the Battlefield,”
do you?
After the war was over she was so tired and worn out that the doctors
said she would have to take a long rest. So she went across the ocean
to Switzerland.
VI. Miss Barton Hears of the Red Cross
The story of Miss Barton’s great work had reached Switzerland before
she left home.
While she was there in Geneva some gentlemen who had heard the story
went to call upon her.
They talked with her about Henri Dunant and Florence Nightingale and
about the relief work done in our own Civil War.
They told her that they had formed a society called the Red Cross.
The work of the people of the Red Cross was to care for the wounded
soldiers.
They said that the people of the Red Cross wore a certain badge, a red
cross on a white ground. On the battlefield persons wearing this badge
were allowed to give help to the wounded soldiers.
They said that twenty-two different countries in Europe had joined
in this work, and they asked Miss Barton if she would try to get the
United States to form a Red Cross Society in America.
Miss Barton was very thankful to learn about the Red Cross and promised
to do all that she could, for she could understand better than many
other people how great a good could come from such work.
VII. The American Red Cross
When Miss Barton returned from Europe she kept her promise and tried to
interest the American people in the Red Cross. But many years of weary
waiting and hard trying passed before anything was done.
At last, in 1882, President Arthur signed the Red Cross Treaty and
enrolled the United States with the other nations under the Red Cross
banner.
This is the story of how the American Red Cross came to be.
WHEN THERE WAS NO RED CROSS
In the year 1859 a wounded soldier lay upon a European battlefield. The
battle was over and night was coming on. Only the dead and dying were
left on the field.
“Water! Water!” the soldier moaned, but no one heard him.
His severe wound brought on a high fever and his lips became parched
with thirst.
“Water! Water!” he cried again. “If I only had a drink of water!”
Then he heard a sound as if some one was creeping towards him.
Opening his eyes, he saw in the falling darkness another wounded
soldier lying by his side.
This soldier reached over and held his water bottle to the feverish
lips of his suffering comrade.
Eagerly he drank and then asked, “Have you enough for us both?”
“Yes, yes, drink!” was the answer. “You need it more than I!”
Again he drank and then fell back exhausted.
“I wonder if they will find us?” the second man said, and he too fell
back exhausted with the effort he had made.
All that night they lay there, and all the next day; but no relief
came. As the weary hours dragged by they tried to help each other; but
it was little they could do, except to lie there and suffer.
The second night the severely wounded man died, and the one who had
brought him water was left alone.
In the morning a kind farmer, who had been searching for the wounded,
found him and carried him to his home. The farmer’s wife bound up
his wounds with clean bandages and nursed him until the army surgeon
arrived.
If help had been at hand, the lives of thousands of heroes who lay on
that great battlefield would have been saved. But there were no plans
of rescue and no care for the wounded such as we have to-day; there was
no Red Cross.
WHEN THE RED CROSS CAME
In 1918 an American soldier was wounded in the Great War. As soon as he
was able, he opened his first-aid kit and poured iodine into his wound.
“Oh, how I wish I had a drink of water,” he moaned. He lifted his
canteen to his lips, but it was empty.
He lay back and closed his eyes. Quite soon he was roused by the touch
of something cold and soft against his face.
He knew what it was.
Yes, it was a Red Cross army dog, which had been sent out to search for
the wounded.
To the dog’s neck was tied a canteen full of water, and from his collar
hung a short strap.
While the soldier loosened the bottle the dog stood still. Then he
grasped the end of the strap in his mouth and speeded away.
[Illustration]
Like all Red Cross dogs, he had been taught to seize the strap in his
mouth whenever he found a wounded man, and to return home with the news.
When the Red Cross workers saw him coming with the strap held in this
way, they knew that a man lay out on the battlefield in need of help.
It was not long before the brave dog was again standing by the side of
the wounded soldier, this time with the helpers he had led to the spot.
With gentle hands two Red Cross orderlies lifted the rescued man into
the Red Cross ambulance which was waiting near by.
Very soon he found himself in a clean hospital bed with an army surgeon
using all his knowledge and skill in dressing his wounds.
When his wounds were dressed, he looked up to see a quiet, cheerful Red
Cross nurse standing by his bedside with a bowl of warm broth for him
to drink.
His life had been saved by the Red Cross.
QUESTIONS
Which soldier would you rather have been?
Who was to thank for the comforts of the second soldier?
Do you not think that every child in the United States should
belong to the Red Cross?
What kind of men and women will they grow to be if they try to do
the kind things that the Red Cross does?
What kind of a country will they have? Why?
How can they help do away with wars?
What does this mean--“Boys and girls, you are the hope of the
world”?
THE RED CROSS
Wherever war with its red woes,
Or flood, or fire, or famine goes,
There, too, go I;
If earth in any quarter quakes,
Or pestilence its ravage makes,
Thither I fly.
--_John H. Finley._
[Illustration: SONNY]
HOW MAPLEWOOD WON SONNY
Sonny, a big, gentle, and affectionate dog was offered as a prize
to the members of the Junior Red Cross by one of the large woman’s
magazines of this country. Sonny was to be given to the school children
who sent in the best account of the work they had done during the first
year of the life of the Junior Red Cross.
The prize dog was sent to the children of Maplewood School, Maplewood,
New Jersey, in time to march in their Fourth-of-July parade, and he and
the children were very, very proud of themselves and of each other.
Everybody cheered them and they had a delightful time.
The Maplewood children decided to send the prize dog to serve in the
trenches during the World War. As he was a real police dog, with plenty
of courage, this just suited Sonny.
Here is a part of the prize essay:
“We have had a most interesting year of Red Cross work in the Maplewood
Grammar School, and we believe that the results have been worth while.
“Our work as a Junior Red Cross unit began twenty-four hours after
President Wilson had issued his proclamation.
“In that short time, every child in the school of five hundred and ten
pupils had been enlisted in the Junior Red Cross army, dues of one
hundred and fifty dollars had been paid, and our officers had been
elected.
“We have given our school sewing-periods to the making of games, and
posters for Victory Gardens and War Savings Stamps campaigns. On
Wednesday afternoons, the whole school is dismissed at two-thirty, and
we all do Red Cross work until five o’clock. In addition, we take home
extra work and return it completed. As the result of our efforts, we
have made 14,975 articles. All of the articles have been made since we
became part of the National Junior Red Cross army. We were notified
that many of our first articles had been sent to other units to be used
as models.
“This is a record of what we have done for the Junior Red Cross. It is
only a little compared with what the Junior Red Cross has done for us
in teaching us perseverance, thrift and thoughtfulness, and in giving
us a fine chance to prove ourselves patriotic.”
--_From the Delineator_
THE JUNIOR RED CROSS’ FIRST BIRTHDAY
When the Junior Red Cross was one year old, 8,000,000 children had
become members.
50,000 refugee garments had been made by the members in the first six
months of its existence.
3,004 pieces of furniture had been made by school children for Red
Cross convalescent houses.
A fund of more than $10,000,000 had been raised by the Junior Red Cross
before its first birthday.
Crop harvesting, berry picking, and gardening are some of the ways
in which the 8,000,000 members saved money and made money for their
country--for their United States.
HOW TO MAKE A RED CROSS EMBLEM
[Illustration: RED CROSS EMBLEM]
The cutting of a Red Cross emblem with one stroke of the scissors is
a thing quite easy to master. Fold over a piece of paper six inches
square until the lower left-hand corner meets the upper right-hand
corner, and the paper forms a triangle measuring 8 × 6 × 6 inches. With
the longest side toward you, fold the lower right-hand point until it
rests on the lower left-hand point, making a triangle 6 × 4-1/4 × 4-1/4
inches. Repeat the process, making a triangle 4-1/4 × 3 × 3 inches.
From the point marked A in the illustration measure one inch toward B.
From this point draw a line parallel with the fold marked A--C. Using a
pair of sharp scissors, cut along this line, unfold the paper and you
will have a perfect cross. For emblems varying in size merely increase
or decrease the measurements.
I KNEW YOU’D COME
In a certain company fighting in the World War were two brothers, one a
captain and one a private.
As their company stormed the ragged top of the mountain opposite where
they were stationed, the young captain was mortally wounded. Covered
with blood and terribly hurt he dragged himself to the shelter of a
shell crater where he lay protected under heavy machine gun fire. His
company was forced to retire to a shelter a few hundred yards back
where the lines were re-formed and they were waiting orders.
Saluting his commanding officer, the young private requested the
privilege of going back for the body of his wounded brother. The
officer objected. Would it be wise to risk a life in the face of such a
rain of fire? The captain was mortally wounded and probably dead.
Finally he gave his consent and the lad crawled out to the shell crater
on his hands and knees. Tenderly raising the body of his captain
brother he started to crawl back towards his company lines. As he
reached their shelter the life of his brother passed out and he laid
the body tenderly upon the ground.
The commanding officer came to him and as the private saluted, “Well,”
said the officer, “your brother is dead. Your trip was useless. Was it
worth while for you to run such a risk?”
The young soldier replied as he smiled into the face of the superior
officer, “Yes, sir; it was worth the risk. As I crawled down over the
top of that shell crater and looked into the pale face of my brother,
his eyes were closed and I knew he was going to die. When I touched him
he roused and slowly opened his eyes. He recognized me and said, ‘I
knew you’d come, Tom. Oh, I knew you would come.’ All the risk I ran
was paid for, because he believed in me--and I am glad, sir, that I was
able to prove myself, in that moment, worthy of that belief.”
--_Adapted from “Association Men.”_
QUESTIONS
Aren’t you glad that you can help the Red Cross to help brave men
like these?
How did they show their love for their country’s flag?
THE DEBT
Here are my lands!
They are my country’s, too.
For her fields were won by valiant men,
And all they yield is hers to take again.
Here are my hands!
They are my country’s, too.
Ungrudged, unweighed, their works and gains belong
To her who lent them skill, who made them strong.
Here is my life!
It is my country’s, too--
A life to live for her who made me free,
A life to give for her, if need shall be.
--_Selected._
[Illustration: Motto on the Liberty Bell
Proclaim Liberty Throughout All the Land unto All the Inhabitants
Thereof.]
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE TO OUR FLAG
I pledge allegiance to my Flag, and to the Republic for which it
stands--one Nation indivisible, with Liberty and Justice for all.
TO THE FLAG
Here’s to the flag! How we love every thread of it!
Love every stitch from the foot to the head of it,
Loving the blue and the white and the red of it,
Floating so free!
Well may the traitor and spy have a dread of it,
Guardian of you and of me.
Here’s to the flag! How we thrill at the sight of it!
Thrill at the color, the glory, the might of it,
Thrill at the red and the blue and the white of it,
Flag of the free!
Resting our cause in the justice and right of it,
Flying for you and for me.
Here’s to the flag! How we gaze at the hue of it!
Glowing with pride at the incidents true of it,
Proud of the red and the white and the blue of it,
Floating o’er land and o’er sea!
Let our thoughts ever be worthy and true of it,
Floating for you and for me.
Here’s to the flag! How we reverence the whole of it!
Red stripes and white stripes, stars, field and pole of it,
Liberty, freedom, the ultimate goal of it,
Flag of the free!
Loyal we’ll be to the heart and the soul of it,
Flag dear to you and to me.
--_Edward B. Seymour._
THE AMERICAN FLAG
The American Flag is a symbol of the brotherhood of man; it stands for
courage, for chivalry, for generosity and for honor.
To bear the “Star Spangled Banner” is an honor; to own one is a sacred
trust, for it is the emblem of freedom, equality and justice for all.
The flag should not be hoisted before sunrise, nor allowed to remain up
after sunset. When being raised or lowered, it should not be allowed to
touch the ground.
When the national colors are passing on parade or in review, and when
they are being lowered at sunset, and the “Star Spangled Banner” is
being played, spectators should, if walking, halt, and if sitting, rise
and stand at attention with hats off.
When the flag is used as a banner, that is, suspended across a street,
the union, or field, should fly to the north in streets running east
and west, and to the east in streets running north and south.
When the flag is hung against a wall or in decoration, so it can be
viewed from one side only, the blue field should be at the upper right
corner as one faces it. When hung horizontally, the field should be at
the upper left corner.
When a flag is displayed on a rope, the field should be away from the
residence of the one displaying the flag, in the same position as it
would be if attached to the staff.
The flag at half staff is a sign of mourning. In placing the flag at
half staff, it first should be hoisted to the top of the staff and then
lowered to position; and preliminary to lowering from half staff, it
should be raised to the top. On Memorial Day, May 30, it should fly at
half staff until noon and at top of staff from noon until sunset.
[Illustration]
PLAIN BUTTONS
Edward Everett Hale’s Story, “_The Man Without A Country_,” retold by
Edna S. Knapp.
[Illustration]
I
Once there was a man, an officer in the American army, who said
something dreadful, when he was only a mere boy; he cursed his native
country! He pretended for a while that he did not care when he was
punished, but in the end he was very, very sorry. Because he wore his
uniform without the official buttons, the sailors on the ships where he
spent his life called him “Plain Buttons.”
His name was Philip Nolan. He had been brought up on a southern
plantation where the most welcome guests were Spanish or French
officers. He spent half his time with an older brother hunting horses
in Texas. The “United States” meant almost nothing to him.
Still, when he grew up he became an officer in the army of the “United
States;” he swore, on his faith as a Christian, to be true to the
“United States.” Nolan was a lieutenant in the “Legion of the West,” as
our western army was called in those early days, one hundred years ago.
At that time the Mississippi valley was the “far West” to most people,
and seemed a very distant land indeed. We had a number of forts along
the river bank and Nolan was stationed in one of these. Nolan’s idol
was the brilliant and dashing Aaron Burr, who visited the fort several
times between 1805 and 1807. He paid some attention to Nolan and
obtained a very strong influence over him.
Burr got into trouble and some of his friends were tried for treason,
Nolan among them. It was very plain that Nolan would do anything Burr
told him; that he would obey Burr far quicker than his country, in
spite of his oath.
So when the President of the court asked Nolan, at the close of the
trial, whether he wished to say anything to show that he had always
been faithful to the United States, he cried out in a fit of frenzy,
“Curse the United States! I wish I may never hear of the United States
again!”
Colonel Morgan, who was holding the court, turned white as a sheet.
Half the officers who sat in it had served through the Revolutionary
War and had risked their lives, not to say their necks, cheerfully and
loyally for the country which Nolan so lightly cursed in his madness.
Colonel Morgan, terribly shocked, called the court into his private
room and returned in fifteen minutes to say:
“Prisoner, hear the sentence of the Court! The Court decides, subject
to the approval of the President, that you never hear the name of the
United States again.”
Nolan laughed, but the whole room was hushed dead as night for a
minute. Then Colonel Morgan added, “Mr. Marshal, take the prisoner to
Orleans in an armed boat and deliver him to the naval commander there.
Request him to order that no one shall mention the United States to the
prisoner while he is on board ship.”
II
Colonel Morgan himself went to Washington and President Jefferson
approved the sentence, so a plan was formed to keep Nolan constantly
at sea. Our navy took few long cruises then, but one ship could carry
the prisoner as far away as it was going, then transfer him to another
vessel before it sailed for home.
Nolan wore his uniform, but with plain buttons. He always had a sentry
before his door, but the men were as good to him as his sentence
permitted. No mess wanted to have him with them too steadily because
they could never talk about home matters when he was present,--more
than half the talk men liked to have at sea. They took turns inviting
him to dinner, and the captain always asked him on Mondays. He could
have any books or papers not printed in America. Newspapers having any
mention of America had to be gone over, and the allusions cut out. He
used to join the men as they were reading on deck and take his turn in
reading aloud. Once, when they were cruising around the Cape of Good
Hope, somebody got hold of Scott’s “Lay of the Last Minstrel,” which
was then new and famous. Nolan was reading when he came to this passage:
“Breathes there the man with soul so dead
Who never to himself hath said,
This is my own, my native land?
Whose heart hath ne’er within him burned,
As home his footsteps he hath turned
From wandering on a foreign strand?
If such there breathe, go, mark him well;
For him no minstrel raptures swell;
High though his titles, proud his name,
Boundless his wealth as wish can claim,--
Despite those titles, power and pelf,
The wretch, concentred all in self”--
Here the poor fellow choked, and could not go on, but started up and
flung the book into the sea and fled to his stateroom. It was two
months before he dared join the men again.
There was a change in Nolan after this. He never read aloud from
anything unless he was sure of it, like the Bible or Shakespeare. He
was always shy afterwards, and looked like a heart-wounded man.
Sometimes he tried to trap people into mentioning his country, but he
never succeeded; his sentence was too well known among the men who had
him in charge. I think there was only one day that he was really happy
except when he knew his lonely life was closing. Once, during the war
of 1812, the ship on which he was staying had a fight with an English
frigate. A round shot entered a port and killed the officer of the
gun and many of the gun’s crew. The surgeon’s people carried off the
wounded and then Nolan appeared in his shirt-sleeves with a rammer in
his hand and took command. He finished loading the gun with his own
hands, aimed it and bade the men fire. There he stayed until the enemy
struck, getting that gun loaded and fired twice as often as any other
gun on the ship. The old Commodore thanked Nolan publicly, gave him his
own sword, and mentioned him in the dispatches.
III
At another time Nolan went with a young officer named Vaughan to
overhaul a dirty little schooner which had slaves on board. Nolan
was the only one who could speak Portuguese, the language used by
the slavers. There were but few of the negroes. Vaughan had their
hand-cuffs and ankle-cuffs knocked off and put these on the rascals of
the schooner’s crew. Then Nolan told the blacks that they were free and
that Vaughan would take them to Cape Palmas.
Now, Cape Palmas was a long way from their native land, and they said,
“Not Palmas. Take us home, take us to our own country, take us to our
own pickaninnies and our own women.” One complained that he had not
heard from home for more than six months. It was terribly hard for
Nolan, but he translated these speeches, and told the negroes Vaughan’s
answer in some fashion.
As they were rowing back he said to a young midshipman of whom he was
fond, “Youngster, let that show you what it is to be without a family,
without a home, and without a country. And if you are ever tempted to
say a word or do a thing that shall put a bar between you and your
family, your home and your country, pray God in His mercy to take you
that instant home to His own heaven.
“And for your country, boy, and for that flag, never dream a dream but
of serving her as she bids you, though the service carry you through a
thousand hells. No matter what happens to you, no matter who flatters
you or who abuses you, never look at another flag, never let a night
pass but you pray God to bless that flag. Remember, boy, that behind
all these men you have to do with, behind officers, and government, and
people even, there is the Country Herself, your Country, and that you
belong to Her as you belong to your own mother.”
And then Nolan added, almost in a whisper, “Oh, if anybody had said so
to me when I was of your age!”
Years passed on, and Nolan’s sentence was unrevoked, though his friends
had once asked for a pardon.
The end came when he had been nearly fifty years at sea, and he asked
the ship’s doctor for a visit from another midshipman, Danforth, whom
he liked. Danforth tells us about Nolan’s last hours and calls him
“dear old Nolan,” so we know his love was returned.
The boy saw what a little shrine poor Nolan had made of his stateroom.
Up above were the stars and stripes, and around a portrait of
Washington he had painted a majestic eagle with lightnings blazing from
his beak, and his foot just clasping the whole globe. Nolan said, with
a sad smile, “Here, you see, I have a country.” Over the foot of the
bed was a great map of the United States, drawn from memory. Queer old
names were on it, names such as he had learned, like “Indian Territory”
and “Louisiana Territory.”
“Danforth,” he said, “I know I am dying. I am sure that you know that
there is not in America,--God bless her!--a more loyal man than I.
There cannot be a man who loves the old flag as I do, or hopes for it
as I do. Tell me something,--tell me everything before I die!”
Then the young midshipman redrew the map and tried to tell all that had
happened to our great and growing country in fifty years. Only he could
not wound his friend by mentioning the Civil War.
Nolan drank it all in and enjoyed it more than we can tell. After that
he seemed to grow weary and asked for his Bible, telling Danforth to
look in it after he was gone. This is the text he had marked: “They
desire a country, even a heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be
called their God: for He hath prepared for them a city.”
On a slip of paper he had written, “Bury me in the sea; it has been my
home, and I love it. But will not some one set up a stone for my memory
at Fort Adams or at Orleans, that my disgrace may not be more than I
ought to bear? Say on it:
_In Memory of_
PHILIP NOLAN,
_Lieutenant in the Army of the United States_
“He loved his country as no other man has loved her; but no man
deserved less at her hands.”
AMERICA, MY HOMELAND
There’s no place like my homeland,
Dear land of liberty,
Where all mankind are equal,
And all the people free.
I can see a glorious future
For which my land awaits,
A future filled with triumph
For my own United States.
America, my homeland!
What glorious future thine,
When all the peoples of the earth
For freedom shall combine;
When liberty and justice
Shall rule within their gates,
As here within my homeland,
My own United States.
COLUMBUS[B]
Behind him lay the gray Azores,
Behind, the Gates of Hercules;
Before him not the ghost of shores,
Before him only shoreless seas.
The good mate said: “Now must we pray,
For lo! the very stars are gone;
Brave Admiral, speak; what shall I say?”
“Why, say, ‘Sail on! sail on! and on!’”
“My men grow mutinous day by day:
My men grow ghastly wan and weak.”
The stout mate thought of home; a spray
Of salt wave wash’d his swarthy cheek.
“What shall I say, brave Admiral, say,
If we sight naught but seas at dawn?”
“Why, you shall say, at break of day,
‘Sail on! sail on! sail on! and on!’”
They sailed and sailed, as winds might blow,
Until at last the blanched mate said:
“Why, now not even God would know
Should I and all my men fall dead.
These very winds forget their way,
For God from these dread seas is gone.
Now speak, brave Admiral; speak, and say--”
He said: “Sail on! sail on! and on!”
They sailed. They sailed. Then spake the mate:
“This mad sea shows his teeth to-night.
He curls his lip, he lies in wait,
With lifted teeth, as if to bite!
Brave Admiral, say but one good word:
What shall we do when hope is gone?”
The words leapt as a leaping sword:
“Sail on! sail on! sail on! and on!”
Then, pale and worn, he kept his deck,
And peered through darkness. Ah, that night
Of all dark nights! And then a speck--
A light! A light! A light! A light!
It grew, a starlit flag unfurled!
It grew to be Time’s burst of dawn.
He gained a world! he gave that world
Its grandest lesson: “On! sail on!”
--_Joaquin Miller_.
QUESTIONS
1. Do you know what is meant by the Gates of Hercules?
2. Suppose that Columbus had become discouraged and had allowed the
men to turn the ships toward home, what would have happened?
3. When we celebrate Columbus Day on October 12th, what are you
going to think about?
4. In what way can you be like Columbus?
[Illustration: Democracy means Government of the people, by the people,
for the people.]
QUESTIONS
Why is America the greatest democracy in the world?
Why do the children of a democracy have a better chance than those
of a country governed in any other way?
Why should American children be the best young citizens in the
world?
How can they show that they are good citizens?
How will this help the children who will come after them?
[Illustration: THE FUTURE
THE FUTURE--WHAT WILL IT BRING? JUST WHAT YOU AND AND ALL OF US MAKE
IT BRING. LET US THEN DO OUR BEST TO BE GOOD CITIZENS, AND SO HELP OUR
COUNTRY.]
Ark of freedom! Glory’s dwelling!
Native land, God makes thee free!
When the storms are round thee swelling,
Let thy heart be strong in thee!
OUTLINE OF WORK
FOR THE TEACHER
PART I
CIVIC VIRTUES
I. COURAGE
1. Physical--through stories of heroic acts.
2. Moral--in truthfulness and honesty.
II. SELF-CONTROL--In Act and Speech
1. At home.
2. At school.
3. At play.
NOTE.--In the treatment of this, as of other topics, the teacher’s
example is of great importance.
III. THRIFT
1. Care in the use of school supplies: the economical use of paper,
books, pencils, crayons, pens.
2. Care of clothing: those who provide our clothing for us; how we
should take care of it.
3. The spending of money: what money is for; the wise use of money.
4. The saving of money: the home bank; the school bank; the savings
bank; encourage the children to save for some definite object a
part of the money which is given to them or which they may earn.
5. The saving of time.
NOTE.--Relate this topic to Care of Property, Punctuality.
IV. PERSEVERANCE
1. In work: at home; at school.
2. In well-doing.
NOTE.--Relate this topic to Thoroughness.
A Class-room Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
Extract from a letter from a teacher: “... I work the class-room S. P.
C. A. in this way: after a lesson on Kindness to Animals, I mention
forming a Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
“A part of the blackboard is devoted to the society, and the children
are encouraged to bring in pictures of animals, which I paste on the
board. I start the collection with one picture I have found.
“From day to day the children report any kind act they have done for
animals, and I record them briefly on the board without names.”
Special particulars as to the formation of a S. P. C. A. or Band of
Mercy may be had by addressing the nearest city organization for such
humane work, or by reading the laws which appear on the last few pages
of the book “Black Beauty”; or by addressing the American Humane
Education Society, 170-184 Longwood Avenue, Boston, Mass., from whom
valuable literature on the subject may be obtained.
PART II
I. THE POLICEMAN
1. Stories of police heroism.
2. What the policeman does for us: Protects our homes; sends
in alarm in case of fire; keeps watch while we are away, etc.
Protects us on the streets by reporting cave-ins and putting up
warning signals, etc. Protects us at street crossings from horses,
automobiles, cars, etc.
3. How we may aid the policeman.
NOTE.--Relate this topic to _Obedience_, _Helpfulness_, _Care of
property_, _Respect_, _Self-control_, _Courage_, _Fair Play_,
_Safety_.
II. THE FIREMAN
1. The story of a fire: The alarm; the race to the fire; how the
firemen fight the fire; stories of heroic acts of firemen.
2. A visit to a fire station: The engines; the firemen always ready
to respond to an alarm; the horses; the automobile service; what
takes place when an alarm of fire is sounded.
3. Prevention of fires: Care in the use of matches--the rule of the
United States Forestry Service: Break your match before throwing it
away; the danger of playing with fire; the uses of fire when it is
man’s servant; its dangers when it becomes master; stories of great
fires, loss of life, property, etc.
4. Giving alarms in case of fire: How alarms are sent in; false
alarms.
5. Precautions to insure personal safety: Care in the use of
inflammable or explosive materials; keeping hallways, fire escapes
and other exits clear of obstructions; noting location of exits;
keeping cool in case of fire--how easy it is for every one to get
out if all keep cool--danger from panic--aiding the weak.
NOTE.--Relate this topic to _Safety_, _Self-Control_, _Courage_.
III. THE POSTMAN
1. The story of a letter: How it is posted; the collection; the
sub-postal station or the post-office; how a letter travels; the
letter ready for delivery.
2. The postman: How often he delivers mail in your neighborhood;
some of the things which he has to do; rural free delivery service.
3. A visit to the post-office: What we see; the sorting; stamping,
etc.
4. How we may help the postman: Addressing letters properly;
writing distinctly in addressing letters; placing the stamp
properly; answering the bell promptly for the postman; saving time
by having a letter box.
NOTE.--Relate this topic to _Helpfulness_.
IV. THE STREET CLEANER
1. Our streets-the hallways of the city.
2. The people who use the streets.
3. How the streets become dirty: The dirt caused by carelessness.
4. The story of the men who clean the streets: How the streets are
cleaned.
5. How clean streets make for health.
6. How we may aid in keeping our streets clean.
NOTE.--Relate this topic to _Cleanliness_, _Helpfulness_, _Safety_,
_Respect_.
V. THE GARBAGE COLLECTOR
1. Garbage--waste food: Care not to throw away any food that can be
used.
2. The garbage can covered. Why?
3. The relation of decayed garbage to health--flies.
4. The garbage collector: What he does for us; when and how he
makes his collections--the covered iron wagon; what is done with
the garbage.
5. Importance of observing city regulations.
NOTE.--Relate this topic to _Cleanliness_, _Helpfulness_, _Safety_,
_Respect_, _Thrift_.
VI. THE ASH COLLECTOR AND THE RUBBISH COLLECTOR
1. The ashes in our houses: Keep in metal receptacles if possible
to avoid fire.
2. The rubbish in our houses: Danger of allowing rubbish to
accumulate--fire--health; danger of fire from mixing ashes and
rubbish.
3. The ash collector and the rubbish collector: What they do for
us; when and how they make their collections; the wagons they use;
what is done with the ashes.
4. Importance of observing city regulations.
NOTE.--Relate this topic to _Cleanliness_, _Helpfulness_,
_Safety_, _Respect_.
(Parts I and II of this outline are from the Course of Study in Civics
for the Public Schools of Philadelphia).
PART III
SAFETY FIRST
1. The value of safety first: Accidents from carelessness; sources of
danger.
2. How to protect ourselves from danger: Chance-taking; being on guard.
NOTE.--Relate this topic to _Our Public Servants_.
PART IV
THE JUNIOR RED CROSS
1. Stories about the work of the Red Cross.
2. Stories about Red Cross heroes and heroines.
3. Work of the Junior Red Cross.
HOW TO OBTAIN INFORMATION ABOUT THE JUNIOR RED CROSS
On the Division Organization Map below, find the city indicated as
Headquarters of the Division in which you are situated.
[Illustration: DIVISION ORGANIZATION MAP OF THE AMERICAN RED CROSS]
Address:
The Junior Red Cross
(Name of your Division City)......................................
(Name of State)...................................................
Offices of (Name of your Division)..........................
American Red Cross
For example:
Suppose you live in Montana. The name of the Division in which you
are situated is “Northern.” The offices of the Headquarters of your
Division are in Minneapolis.
You would address your inquiry as follows:
The Junior Red Cross
Minneapolis, Minn.
Offices of Northern Division
American Red Cross.
List of books telling about the Junior Red Cross:
“Story of the Red Cross” (free of charge). Ask for ARC 601.
“Manual of Junior Red Cross Activities” (free).
“Red Cross Stories for Children,” by Georgene Faulkner, with
introduction by Doctor H. N. MacCracken.
This little volume is the property of the American Red Cross.
NOTE.--These books may be obtained from your Division Headquarters.
BOOKS THAT WILL BE USEFUL IN TEACHING RED CROSS ACTIVITIES
The Mary Frances First Aid Book.
The Mary Frances Cook Book.
The Mary Frances Sewing Book.
The Mary Frances Knitting and Crocheting Book.
Published by the John C. Winston Co.
FOOTNOTES:
[A] For further information, see Outline of Work.
[B] ©1917, by C. H. Miller. Courtesy of the Harr-Wagner Publishing Co.
* * * * * *
Transcriber’s note:
Inconsistencies in hyphenation have been preserved.
Obvious typographical errors have been corrected.
This eBook is dedicated to the memory of Emmy Miller.