As our party was about to break up, after a pleasant union of seven months, in which we had become like one family, and had conceived a mutual esteem and regard for each other, it seemed fitting that some little expression of good feeling should be manifested in a way that would be lasting and memorable. The following address to Miss Barton was accordingly drawn up, signed by all the members present and read to her:
To Miss Clara Barton.
Now that our work has ceased for a time, and our party which has labored so long and so harmoniously together, is returning home, we, the members of the Cuban relief expedition, desire to express to you, our leader, as delicately and fittingly as may be, our unbounded confidence and admiration, and our sincere and heartfelt gratitude and love. As we look back over the past few months, and recall the many scenes of suffering and death that we have witnessed, and remember how ceaselessly, faithfully and tirelessly you have worked, and how much you have accomplished under the most unpromising circumstances, our wonder grows and we cannot help but reverence and admire your wisdom, patience and industry. No more trying position than you have occupied during the past seven months, could well be imagined, and no one not possessed of nerves of steel and of ripest wisdom and the rarest judgment, combined with a purpose as fixed as the stars could have made the great success that you have made of the work we had in hand. When it is remembered how many thousands of brave soldiers have been saved from suffering and death through your efforts, and how many starving and sick people have been brought back to health and happiness, and all with so little cost of actual money, our warmest admiration is excited, and we cannot withhold that praise which you so justly deserve.
Personally each of us wishes to express his or her acknowledgment of your unfailing kindness and interest in our comfort and general welfare, and we have to thank you for thousands of those little considerations of word and look that go so far to brighten one’s thoughts and make life a pleasure. We all have the greatest satisfaction in knowing that all the work we were permitted to do has been done with thoroughness and economy, and we are vain enough to think that no one could have done more under the conditions that existed. We shall soon separate and go our several ways, and it will be with the deepest sorrow and regret that we shall say good by to our leader; but throughout life it will always be a pleasure to call to mind her image and remember all the happy moments we have passed with her. So in parting, it will no doubt be a satisfaction to you to have the assurance that you hold our warmest love and good will, and that at any time each and all of us will be ready to serve you in any way that lies within our power.
A. Von Schelle,
Membre du Comité Directeur de la Croix Rouge de Belgique, Membre de
l’Association Nationale de la Croix Rouge des Etats Unis l’Amerique.
J.B. Hubbell,
General Field Agent of the American National Red Cross.
E. Winfield Egan,
Surgeon American National Red Cross.
C.H.H. Cottrell,
Financial Secretary.
Lucy M. Graves,
J.A. McDowell,
Chas. R. Gill, M.D.,
C.D. Cottrell,
Annie M. Fowler,
J.K. Elwell,
Geo. J. Hassett.
At the conclusion of this kind and just tribute to our beloved leader there was a moment of profound silence, our feelings being too deep for utterance. At length, when Miss Barton had subdued her emotions sufficiently to speak clearly, she responded in most graceful terms, expressing her warm and sincere appreciation of the work performed, and the loyal support that had ever been accorded her; that no words could fully express the gratitude she felt for this thoughtful little memento of our comradeship, and she should prize it quite as much as any badge or decoration she had ever received.
Farewells were said, and the party separated, going to their several homes; and so ended our first Cuban expedition.
Financial.
It is a very hard matter to express in dollars and cents the value of the relief distributed, as it was all donated in either material or money which was turned into material; and the kinds were so varied, the market value so fluctuating, and the data so scattered, that only an approximation can be ventured. It is probably underestimating the amount of relief stores that have been sent to Cuba by the Central
Cuban Relief Committee and the American National Red Cross to place it at six thousand tons, approximating in value half a million dollars in New York. Had these same goods been bought in Cuba, their cost would easily have been doubled.