Booklet, “Report of the Red Cross Relief Galveston Texas”
Page 6 of 6.
Transcript
Page 4: “and Galveston are implied, are similar, being over one million dollars and less than a million and a half. Here occurs the great dissimilarity in the picture, the entire sum of money from all sources, people at large, or state, for Port Royal, which came to our knowledge, reaching only thirty-one thousand dollars.
I name these as mere points of interest, without prejudice, simply as facts belonging to the people who in each instance, have made the woe in their own and striven to alleviate it; the results largely depending upon the locality, the acquaintance, social interests and class of people comprising the sufferers.
In each of the above disasters the American National Red Cross has held a prominent place and taken an active part, not alone as an organization, but singularly the same individuals have performed its most prominent labor and directed its operations. In every instance the gratitude of the people afflicted, and of those who sought their relief, have been the only, but the sufficient and glad heritage of the Red Cross and its willing servers. With these few facts of history, which I feel belong to the people to whom this report is addressed, I come to the story of the relief of Galveston.
The news of the disaster reached us on the morning of the tenth of September. On the thirteenth, a party of four ladies and five gentlemen left Washington, via Atlanta and New Orleans, for Galveston.
On the eleventh, while our arrangements were being made, a despatch was received from the New York World, offering to the Red Cross the material and contributions coming to that journal, if its president would go personally and distribute them; at the same time courteously proposing to send a messenger to escort us free of all cost to Galveston. The generous offer was accepted. The competent manager, Mr. Robert Adamson, joined us at Washington, and from first to last of that journey the Red Cross knew neither care, cost nor discomfort. In addition to this, the contributions of that journal in”…end page 4
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“money have reached nearly two thousand dollars. This was one of the arrangements which had no dark side. The Red Cross feels that it has, to-day, no better friend than the New York World, and it affords me heartfelt pleasure to make this statement.
In this connection I might add here, as a closing finale of our arrangements with this great newspaper, the following telegram received on the return of Mr. Adamson to New York September 27, 1900:
‘Miss Clara Barton,
Red Cross Society,
Galveston, Texas.
‘Mr. Adamson, returning to-day, makes extremely gratifying reports on distribution of World’s relief supplies under your direction. Governor Sayers telegraphs us to-day that too much praise cannot be accorded to you ant those associated with you. It gives me pleasure to place one thousand dollars cash at your command on account Galveston relief. Please draw upon us for that amount.
J. Angus Shaw, Cashier.
On our arrival, a glance over that aceldama of destruction, ruin and death was sufficient to show that no exaggeration had been possible. It was one of those monstrosities of nature which defied exaggeration and fiendishly laughed at all tame attempts of words to picture the scene it had prepared. The churches, the great business houses, the elegant residences of the cultured and opulent, the modest little homes of laborers of a city of nearly forty thousand people; the center of foreign shipping and railroad traffic lay in splinters and debris piled twenty feet above the surface, and the crushed bodies, dead and dying, of nearly ten thousand of its citizens lay under them.
So suddenly had the storm and sea come upon them, that those left living had scarcely learned its extent as well as we who had only read the reports; but shocked and dazed as they were, the best men of the city had gathered themselves into a”…
End of page 5.
Clara Barton National Historic Site, CLBA 316
