Page:The Czechoslovak Review, vol3, 1919.djvu/94

 which our Local Relief Committee cannot meet, this allowance is usually supplemented by the American Red Cross in a way best suited to the individual case. Friendly visiting is also done. Social gatherings are arranged for the mothers and children, and on such holidays as Thanksgiving and Christmas, gifts for the children and baskets of cheer for the families are provided by our Local Committees. Much is being done, but now that the stress of war is over, we hope to do more, especially for those families where the husband, father or son will return no more, having given their lives on the field of honor.

It was in November of 1917 that the first unit of volunteers consisting of seventy-two men, left this country. Other units followed in quick succession. In every case each volunteer before leaving for France was given reading matter and tobacco for the trip overseas, besides a full set of knitted articles, consisting of sweater, wristlets, helmet, socks; also a well filled comfort kit containing about twenty-five articles. If any of the volunteers could carry more than their personal baggage, they were given parcels with cigarettes for the men “over there.” In this way several hundred thousand cigarettes were sent to our units in France with the least possible delay.

Later on, when an embarkation camp was established at Stamford, Conn., it fell again to the Women’s Relief Organization to equip it with bed linens, quilts, towels, soap, underwear, pajamas, sick room necessities, books, newspapers and tobacco. In special cases we supplied shoes, caps, overcoats, razors and eveiMraveling bags. Whenever a volunteer needed anything, he had but to ask, and if it lay in our power to meet the need, he did not ask in vain. The supplies which we sent to the Camp amounted in all to $22,000. Recently, when the Camp was discontinued, most of the equipment was sent to France. In this connection it should be stated that we received general and cordial cooperation from the American Red Cross, through Atlantic Division and the Stamford and New York Chapters, when our stock happened to be depleted by shipments to France.

During all this time we knew that our Czechoslovak units in France, Italy and Russia were looking to the Czechoslovaks of America for moral, and, if possible, material support. These expectations we were only too anxious to meet, as far as lay in our power, because we knew how vital a factor they were in the hole scheme of our revolution. The hearts of our women were touched, especially by the thought that most of these men had been separated for three and four years from what was dearest to them—their country, their families. We had the greatest incentive to work, and work we did, day and night. The majority of our women do not belong to the leisure class, and hence their work in connection with the Relief Committees was done after their ordinary duties had been attended to, that is at night.

To France and Italy we shipped, through the courtesy of the French High Commission, during a period of ten months, 190 cases valued at $51,741. These cases contained knitted wear, underwear, tobacco, chocolate, books, magazines, newspapers, sheet music, musical instruments, regimental flags, comfort kits, handkerchiefs, socks, towels, foot bandages, soap etc. Many contained hundreds of packages for individuals from relatives and friends, who very often also sent sums of money for volunteers in France, Italy and Russia, which we remitted through our Military Department.

Reports reached us of the glorious deeds of the Czechoslovak troops in Russia. Our officers who arrived in this country from Siberia confirmed these reports, but also informed us of the privations and hardships which these men had been enduring for months. We were anxious to help, but were powerless until recently, when our Military Attache at Washington arranged with the United States Shipping Roard for the loading of a cargo of supplies to Vladivostok. Because our Army in Siberia numbered almost 100,000 men, we know that we could help only in a general way; and after learning from good authority that a button costs 1 ruble, a spool of cotton 4 to 5 rubles, that needles could not be bought at any price, and that our men had not had a piece of soap for six months, we decided that comfort kits would best meet this need. We therefore sent out appeals for kits containing these articles and any other comforts that the donors might choose to add. Besides each comfort kit was to contain a personal note.

To write up the results of our Comfort Kit Campaign would fill pages, and would