in sight, or rather would have come in sight but for the crowd of people
gathered about it. The entrance was politely held clear for us. The
little edifice, which would seat with its gallery perhaps two hundred
persons, was packed with a waiting audience. The platform and desk had
been reserved for the "extinguished visitors," and we took our places.
The entire space filled and echoed with the sweet, plaintive melody that
the negro voice alone can give. This was followed by earnest prayer by
the pastor; then a little speech of welcome by the elder, and we were
introduced to our audience. And, who could ask a more attentive or
sympathetic audience than this! The president, who has addressed some
bodies of people, never stood before one that she enjoyed or honored
more. Here was the simplicity of nature, the earnestness of truth, the
innate trust in the love and care of the living God of Heaven that even
its winds and waves could not shake, and the glorious spirit of
resignation that could suffer and be glad, if not strong.
But to business. The situation was fully explained to them, and they
were told that in spite of all we had for them, they alone could
comfortably clothe themselves through the winter. Then the plan of a
well arranged sewing society, with its constitution, laws, officers and
regulations was explained, and their approval and co-operation asked. On
a unanimous assent, they were required to select twenty-five women from
among them, who should retire for twenty minutes and discuss the
subject among themselves, selecting their chief officers, and so far as
possible, give us the points of their organization.
In the body of women that rose and retired for consultation one saw good
ground for hope of success. A part were the strong, matronly women,
whose childhood and youth had been passed in the service of the
hospitable home of the master in the old days of elegant luxury "'fo de
wa'," and who needed no one to teach them courtesy or what belonged to a
family household; others were sewing girls, some of whom had partially
learned trades, and a few were teachers, for the great majority of the
children of ten years and upwards on these islands had been taught to
read. These women needed only the proper instruction, encouragement, the
way opened for them, the suitable material distributed, and the liberty
of action and conscience, with no patronage or politics invading their
premises.
The system formulated for one society became the system for all; each
district which received rations of food had its regularly organized
sewing society for the clothing sent to them on requisition. First some
room was found, with a fire, shelves arranged for garments and tables
for work. Of the twenty-five official women, each should give one week
of her time in every month, but changing regularly in order that at no
time should there be more than one-fourth of the number new to the work
in hand. Four women should visit and inspect applicants for assistance,
and two should attend entirely to the wants of the feeble and old and
the sick, to see that they were in no way neglected.
Of those in the sewing room, a part cut over garments for children, as
there are never enough of these; others repaired and mended. As the
barrels and boxes went in from the committeemen, they were received and
opened on one side of the room; when repaired they were placed on the
shelves on the opposite side and given out from there on the
recommendation of the visiting inspectors. Along with the clothing went
thread, needles, pins, thimbles, wax, shears, knives and pieces for
mending. For the bedding, besides two thousand heavy wool blankets which
were donated, as many more purchased; cotton batting and calico, or
muslin, by the ton were bought, and the societies instructed in tying
"comforts," which in many instances served as both cover and bed.
There was never any complaint with these women about the time given to,
or the labor performed, in this service for the common weal, and seldom
any difficulty arose between them. If so, a few words set it right, and
the offending individual was discovered, pointed out, and put out of the
society, with the usual explanatory remark: "She want too much rule; she
done always do make trouble." But whatever trials the day might bring to
them, they were solaced and forgotten in the nice afternoon lunch, and
the steaming cups of tea and coffee prepared by one of the members from
the rations so wisely planned and faithfully sent by Mrs. Gardner.
Next to the absolute necessity for the distribution of food supplies,
and the great essentials of life itself, I regard the sewing societies
as perhaps the most important feature of the field. From these they
learned not alone the lesson of self-help, but of mutual help, which
they had never known before. It had never occurred to them to look about
and see who was in need, and find a way to help it; and it was a glad
satisfaction to hear their voluntary pledges when we left them, never to
give up the custom of these societies, and the habit of caring for their
poor.
Appended to Mrs. Gardner's report are long, tiresome lists of names of
recipients, which, however necessary and business like in their time and
place, we may well spare the reader in these belated years; but one
little list appeals to me with such loving interest, that I am
constrained to ask the privilege of inserting it. It is a partial roll
of the presidents of the sewing societies, of whose tireless, faithful
work no adequate description could be given. And when we read among them
the name of Mrs. Admiral Beardslee, and that missionary of scholarship
and teaching on St. Helena, Miss Ellen Murray, the lovable and
accomplished late wife of Robert Small, and Mrs. John MacDonald, who
humbly and magnanimously placed themselves side by side with poor,
unlettered, but honest and faithful Patty Frazier, and her kind, the
reader will feel with me that it is indeed a roll of honor:
_Society._ _President._
Coosaw Works Mrs. Mary Chaplain
Beaufort Mrs. General Small
Hilton Head Mrs. John MacDonald
Wadmalaw Mrs. Frank Whaley
Ladies' Island Mrs. Sam Green
St. Helena Miss Ellen Murray
Coosaw Island Maria Rivers
Bennet's Point C.C. Richardson
Musselboro Mrs. Phillips
Hutchinson, Bolders,} W. Rivers
Beef, Warren }
Rockville H.L. Bailey
Edisto Amanda Brown
Tommy Johns Mary Jenkins
Johns Island Mrs. Chas. Wilson
Big State Plantation Jackson Field
Jericho, Rhetts F.C. Garrett
Dixonville General Saunders
Paris Island Mrs. Beardslee
Tommy Rhodes Patty Frazier
Christmas, which two months before had seemed but a veil of future
blackness, opened bright and cheerful. Most of the churches had been in
some way reopened, and Christmas Eve brought again its melody, its
prayer and its praise.
There was in all this a Christian spirit, so sweet, so much to be
commended, that I could not refrain from passing in my little
contribution of a Christmas carol, for which they at once found a tune
and sang it with a will. Light-hearted, happy race.
A CHRISTMAS CAROL.
For my 30,000 Sea Island Friends.
_A Loving Greeting and Merry Christmas._--CLARA BARTON.
Lo! The Christmas morn is breaking,
Bring the angels bright array,
For the Christian world is waking,
And the Lord is born to-day.
Shout then, brothers; shout and pray,
For the blessed Lord is born to-day.
No more tears and pain and sorrow,
Hark! I hear the angels say
Blessed be the bright to-morrow,
For the Lord is born to-day.
Shout then, sisters; shout and pray,
For the blessed Lord is born to-day.
Forget your night of sad disaster,
Cast your burdens all away,
Wait the coming of the Master,
For the Lord is born to-day.
Shout then, children; shout and pray,
For the blessed Lord is born to-day.
In the sunlight, soft and golden,
Round the babe the angels play;
List, their notes so grand and olden,
Lo! The Lord is born to-day.
Shout, all people; shout and pray.
For the blessed Lord is born to-day.
CLOTHING DEPARTMENT--Continued.
As the work dropped from the weary hand of Mrs. Gardner, another,
stronger, more fresh and new in the work, took it up. Mrs. Harriette L.
Reed, of Boston, who, while never permanently with us, seldom allows a
field to escape her. We regard it as a loss to any field where her
genial presence, clear perception and sound judgment take no part. Mrs.
Reed, like our beloved and brilliant countrywoman, Mrs. Logan, went to
the civil war of 1861, a bride. Her gallant young husband, Captain J.
Sewall Reed, took the first detachment of volunteer cavalry from
California, known as the "California One Hundred." He fell in an
ambuscade, in the Army of the Potomac, 1864. His brave young wife was
always with him at the front, and received his dead body when brought
in. Thus early bereft, she took up the march of life alone, and
faithfully and tirelessly has she made it, with a cheering word and an
outstretched hand to every weary comrade in the tedious march of more
than three decades, and still she serves, and still they call her
blessed.
Her graceful report, which has lain in my portfolio since 1893, now
comes to light with its waiting companions:
MRS. REED'S REPORT.
The preceding account of the distribution of clothing, relates to the
early part of the work covering a period of several months, and was
under the charge of Mrs. Dr. Gardner, of Bedford, Ind., who was called
home.
Coming upon the scene about this time, I was more than glad to take up
her work to a small extent, and for three months it was my privilege to
labor in this field of the Red Cross work, bringing so often to my mind
the words of the Master, "for I was naked and ye clothed me."
And what a strange, unusual and extraordinary field of labor it was and
how unlike anything I had ever seen before. Let me briefly picture a few
of the regular types of "sufferers" besieging headquarters, the old,
decrepit uncle of the days "befo' the wah" with white head and bent
shoulders; the little one, toddling along behind the young mother,
hiding in her tattered garments, with great black eyes peering through
the rags; the strong young man, barefoot or with pieces of shoes tied on
with strings, coat and pants that looked like relics of a bygone time
and a conspicuous absence of under garments; the old-time "mammy"
shivering with cold and begging for a little "closen" to keep her warm,
all these and more were our daily, hourly visitors, imploring our aid
and needing it oh, how sorely! And what heartrending tales of loss and
sorrow and fearful destitution were brought to us by these messengers
from a stricken people! Many of them, before the cyclone, had
comfortable little homes and clothing sufficient for their simple needs;
occasionally a sewing machine was owned, and sometimes, in more favored
homes, an organ. Now, there was absolutely nothing of all this. Parents,
children, friends were gone--not a vestige left of the home; horses,
mules, cows, hens swept away, and scarcely clothing enough left to cover
part of the family. It was not an infrequent tale that fell upon our
ears, that the little band that had left the home were all that could
find sufficient clothing to come in and the rest were left nearly naked
in consequence.
Very early in the morning a motley crowd gathered in the street, in the
vicinity of headquarters, and all day long they were coming and going
and it was far into the evening before the last one had departed. And,
what a good-natured, patient, orderly crowd it was! Seldom was there any
loud talking, screaming, quarreling such as is ordinarily heard in a
like gathering, in scenes with which I had been more familiar. The
shadow of the terrible calamity that had befallen them had in no wise
departed from them, and not yet had the dawn of the new day restored the
happy, careless, cheery manner that seems to be natural to them.
When they were admitted to the office, singly or in small groups, as was
necessary, for our quarters were limited, how quietly, respectfully,
they made their entrance! No crowding nor jostling to get the best
places or be served first, but patiently waiting their turn, entering
with a low bow or deep courtesy, they received the slip of paper that
meant so much to them and, with words and tears of gratitude, withdrew
as quietly as they came.
It is simply impossible within the limits of this report, and indeed
words are inadequate, to convey even a faint idea of the immensity of
the labor required in this department. Kind hearts all over our land had
been stirred by the appeals that had been made for those needy ones,
and boxes, barrels, bundles, all sorts and descriptions of these came
pouring in upon us. All of these must be unpacked and sorted and again
repacked before they could reach those for whom they were intended.
Think of this, careful housekeepers, as you sort over and pack away your
family wardrobe and household goods. Think what it would mean to sort
over and pack away clothing for the use of thirty thousand people.
* * * * *
As I think it will not be without interest to our readers, to give a
little closer view of the people among whom we worked; for this purpose
I shall make a few extracts from various letters received at Red Cross
headquarters. The first is a plea for help and is a fair sample of these
papers, I copy words and spelling with no attempt at correction:
MISS CLARA BARTON THE QUEEN OF THE RED CROSS SOCIETY.
we ar now, making a Plead before you mam. we are the suffers of the
Storm. we beg you mam to helph we to som clothing. mam we ar all
naked. mam, there is Som old People is there mam can not helph thom
Self Some motherlis children is there can not helph them Self
Waiting for Som clothing If you Please mam. Thanks you mam for the
Rashon (rations) we get it mam But no clothing we Get We is the
committee of the clothing.
This is signed by the three women of the committee.
As pleas for help came by mail, so also did letters of thanks and a few
of these will tell their own story much better than any description of
mine could possibly hope to do. Here is one:
we the people of this Plantation have sen much thank to you Dear
madam for the closing (clothing) what you have send for ous the very
children sen there thanks to you for the shoes an closing that you
have sent for them an we the people pray Day and night that the god
of heaven will keep you an gard you an when this short life is pass
heaven will be your home nothing more to say at present. Signed by
one member of the committee, a woman.
As an instance of the desire of many of the committees in charge of the
distribution of clothing, to be honest and fair, I copy another letter:
MISS BARTON:
DEAR MADAM: Mrs. Diana Williams president of Sewing Society No. 1
Say she coming over for Clothing on Monday I dont think eny clothing
need not right away I would like to see on my Section how many needy
person are not serve in Clothing yet and plese dont send over no
clothing before for it will take me some time. when clothing are
need to go over I will let you now (know) for further information I
can explain it something I like to say to you before eny more
clothing go over.
I have thus far mentioned the more pleasant features of this work, but
no one will be surprised if I touch lightly upon some of its trials.
Life was not always "one long, bright, sunny day" in the Sea Islands,
any more than it is in the more favored sections of our land. This great
work of relief had its reverse side; the usual trials, disappointments
and discouragements attending most lines of philanthropic work were not
lacking here. Not all were entirely content with the necessary
restrictions and methods; not all were wholly satisfied with such things
as could be found for them just at that time; not all committees worked
in absolute peace and harmony, and the common faults of humanity in
general were not wholly absent.
I well remember one instance which will illustrate these conditions. Two
rival committees presented themselves before our president, both anxious
to establish their rights and claims, and with great earnestness and
vehemence related their grievances. With her usual wisdom and patience,
sitting in their midst like a judge in his court, she pronounced the
sentence which was that no more clothing should be issued to _either_
side for the present. This will explain the following letter:
HON. MISS BARTON:
DEAR MADAM: We the people of this Island give you grate thanks, for
what you are Doing for us. as the cormittee We have put Before us,
are Doing all in their power and knowdge (knowledge) We Believe, and
Dear Madam the committee of the cloth (clothes) Who Went before you
with the corruption We Dont recunize (recognize) them in that for We
the people of this island are very happy for all that you are Doing
for us. Now Dear Madam We ask you, as we lern that the close are
stop on account of the fust (fuss) that the cormittee made among
themselves this we nows nothing about this nether the cormittee We
put before us these don't no anything about it
This is signed by twenty-two men of the Island.
Scenes of this sort were not of frequent occurrence and were the
exception to the rule of general satisfaction which prevailed
everywhere. As the months went by, smiles returned to their faces and
hope to their hearts, and by every method in their power, they evinced a
most sincere desire to do something for their benefactors. Delegations
of men and women came from long distances, sailing in their boats days
and nights, oftentimes to express their gratitude and thanks.
With the coming of spring, they brought us early vegetables from their
gardens, seeds having been furnished them by the Red Cross; they
searched the woods and the fields for the beautiful wild flowers so
abundant there, till our rooms were filled with beauty and fragrance and
our hearts gladdened by their brightness.
I have tried in this very imperfect report to give a little idea of our
life at the Sea Islands and the manner of our work. Its great magnitude,
its far-reaching results must be imagined, for they cannot be told. The
history of philanthropy has few brighter pages to record and its
pleasant memories will gladden our hearts long after its weary hours are
forgotten.
LEAVING THE FIELD.
If it be desirable to understand when to commence a work of relief, to
know if the objects presented are actually such as to be benefited by
the assistance which would be rendered, it is no less desirable and
indispensable that one knows when to end such relief, in order to avoid,
first, the weakening of effort and powers for self-sustenance; second,
the encouragement of a tendency to beggary and pauperism, by dependence
upon others which should be assumed by the persons themselves. It has
always been the practice of the Red Cross to watch this matter closely
and leave a field at the suitable moment when it could do so without
injury or unnecessary suffering, thus leaving a wholesome stimulus on
the part of the beneficiaries to help not only themselves individually,
but each other.
Seldom a field, or any considerable work of relief which may have
attracted public notice, comes to a close that there does not some
person or body of persons arise and propose to continue the work under
some new form, but using the former well established sources of
supplies; to put out new appeals to old patrons, detailing great need,
newly discovered, and thus keep the sympathetic public forever on the
anxious seats of never-ending pity and help. We have been compelled to
guard against this at the close of every long-continued field, notably
Johnstown, where it became necessary for the citizens to organize a
"Home Relief" to keep sensational strangers off the ground, and their
well arranged "Benevolent Union" of to-day is the result.
The Sea Islands were no exception, and at the last moment of our stay a
well-drawn petition was discovered (for it was to be kept concealed
until we were gone), and was checked only by the vigorous aid of the
Charleston _News and Courier_, of June 25, 1894, always our stay and
friend in time of trouble. I append a letter to that journal which
followed a visit from their able correspondent. The last weeks of our
stay in that place were passed in Charleston, hence the letter dates
from there:
_To the Editor of the "News and Courier,"
Charleston, S.C._:
If no other service called for my pen this morning it would be
sufficient motive that it comes to thank you for the graceful, manly
and cordial note of yesterday, which will always hold its place
among my treasures of elegant literature, asking for a personal
audience for your correspondent for some facts concerning the work
which has recently been brought to a close. * * *
It is little to say that, without the strong, honest support given
in notes of no uncertain sound, bearing in every line the courage of
its convictions, of the Charleston _News and Courier_, no work of
relief of this great disaster could have lived and been carried on
to any success. * * *
The rations issued have been as follows: St. Helena, 5,724 persons;
Ladies' Island, including Coosaw, Corn, Morgan and adjoining smaller
islands, 3,500; Hilton Head, including the twelve islands in the
group and adjoining mainland, including Bluffton, 2,875; Paris
Island, 597; Port Royal Island, 2,666; Kean's Neck, situated on the
mainland, including Coosaw and Pacific phosphate districts, 1,437;
Hutchinson Island district, including Bennett's and Musselboro
Points, Fenwick, Seabrook, Baird's, Sampson and other smaller
islands, 3,238; Edisto, Wadmalaw, John's and adjacent islands,
8,000. The above figures do not include the special issue on the
mainland of 34,000 in number nor the regular labor rations of 6,500,
which is a double ration.
I say I was more than willing to leave all this needful detail to
other hands, inasmuch as the subject which I desired to present is
of a different nature, concerning the general points of welfare,
and, may I say, reputation of South Carolina, and addressed to the
people of all this grand and goodly State of old renown. Proud and
chivalrous, all the world knows that it must be hard and distasteful
for her to accept help under any conditions, and it is only in the
fury of an elemental rage, as when the earth crumbles under her, or
the seas roll over her, that anyone essays to attempt it; and it was
for this reason, if no other had been needed, that I came personally
to stand among my workers, and see to it that the Red Cross, at
least, bear in all it did a demeanor of delicacy and respect, where
it must extend its aid. I believe it has done this.
It cannot be necessary to repeat at this late day that I was asked
by your governor to accept the charge of the relief of the sufferers
of the Sea Islands, of whom it was said there were thirty thousand
who would need aid until they could raise something to subsist upon
themselves. This was accepted with great hesitancy, and only in view
of the fact that no other body of persons in all the land appeared
to assume the responsibility, and with the cordial, unselfish and
generous support of the advisory committee of Charleston and
Beaufort, to whom our earnest thanks are due, the work has been
carried on to a successful conclusion. It later developed that an
equal number of persons, both white and colored, residing on the
seagirt coast of the State, now known as the "mainland," were nearly
as destitute as the islanders, and many of them equally storm swept.
Finding these people appealing to us, and well knowing that, in the
depressed financial condition of the entire United States, we could
not safely take on this double charge, we memorialized the South
Carolina Legislature in November; the people, also under our advice,
petitioned for a little aid to get them through the winter. The
governor also recommended the suggestion.