Volume II Part 8 (1/2)

(_Miss Nightingale to Captain Galton_) _June_ 27 Norite to a wretched female, F N, about _who_ is to come in _where_

Does Gen Peel come to the War Office? If so, will he annihilate our Civil Sanitary eleo all the same to Malta and Gibraltar this autumn? Will Gen Peel imperil the Army Sanitary Commission? I _must_ know: ye Infernal Powers! Is Mr Lowe to coated disaster to n Office (the only place where he can be of _no_ use to us), I shall not have a friend in the world If I were to say nant--Ever yours furiously, F N

Captain Galton replied that he had it from Mr Lowe himself that he would not join the Tories; that of the actual appointments he had not as yet heard; but that as the Secretary of State's was an impersonal office, Dr Sutherland's coood--or bad ”You say the S of S is an iale (July 3); ”I wish he wuz!” When the names of the new Ministers were announced, Captain Galton threw out a suggestion tentatively that Lord Cranborne[71] (India Office) h Lady Cranborne ”I have a htingale in some triumph (July 7), ”and have already been put into 'direct communication' with him, _not_ at my own request” The letters tell the story of her introduction to new masters at the India Office and the Poor Law Board:--

(_Lord Stanley to Miss Nightingale_) ST JAMES'S SQUARE, _July_ 6

I shall see Lord Cranborne to-day (we go down to be sworn in) and will tell him the whole sanitary story, and also say that I have advised you to write to hie You will find hiood man of business

[71] Better known as the Marquis of Salisbury, to which title he succeeded in 1868

(_Miss Nightingale to Lord Cranborne_) 35 SOUTH STREET, _July_ 17

Lord Stanley had the kindness to advise me to write to you, and to tell _me_ that he would tell _you_ that he had ”advised” me ”to write to” you as I ”have done to” hireat impertinence and what I fear may seem to you such even now, viz my present application to you on the India Public Health question I know I ought to begin, ”Miss Nightingale presents her compliments to Lord Cranborne” But the ”third person” always becomes confused Lord Stanley has probably scarcely had the ti story I fear, therefore, I y for what you may (justly) consider an unwarrantable interference must be--the part I have taken in the Public Health of the Ar been in communication with Lord Stanley, Sir C Wood, and Lord de Grey about it, and being now in constant communication with Sir John Lawrence and others in India on the same subject

When Lord de Grey left office, Lord Stanley, of his own accord, kindly asked whether he should ”put” me ”in direct coy My particular one is: that by lastletters from India on the subject of the introduction of an efficient Public Health administration into India, which is after this wise:--the spirit of the very general recommendations made by the R Commission which reported in 1863 (presided over by Lord Stanley) had never been completely acted up to--there have been difficulties and clashi+ngs in consequence A Minute (of January 9, 1866) was sent ho to connect the Public Health Service with the Inspectorshi+p of Prisons The proposal appears to have been reatness of the duties; if it were carried out, it would put an end, we believe, to any prospect of efficient progress (I think I a that Lord Stanley concurs in this view) Lord de Grey was deeply impressed with this defect in the scheme; he drew up a Minute (just before he left office) in order to leave his views on record for you, setting forth generally the duties, and asking for a reconsideration of the subject in India, before the organisation was finally decided on--of the Public Health Service I would now venture to ask your favourable consideration for this proposal, because, on the organisation of a service adequate for the object, depends the entire future of the Public Health in India

We commit ourselves into your hands

(_Lord Cranborne to Miss Nightingale_) INDIA OFFICE, _July 17_ I aed to you for your letter; and especially for your kindness in relievinga letter or series of letters in the third person Lord Stanley spoke to o, and told me I should probably hear from you I have made enquiries as to the Despatch youdecision No confirmation of it shall take place until I have communicated further with you upon the subject I shall not be able to go into the sanitary question until I have disposed of the clai to all the best authorities, are very urgently in need of immediate settlement But as soon as that is done with, I hope that the sanitary question may be taken up without delay

(_Mr Gathorne Hardy to Miss Nightingale_) POOR LAW BOARD, _July_ 25 You owemy attention to material points connected with the subject in the consideration of which you are so ed I should say this to any one rote in the same spirit as yourself, but I am really indebted to you who have earned no co which affects the treatment of the sick Your note arrived at the very instant when a gentle to Workhouse Infirmaries, and I should not have hesitated to do so if needful even without the cordial invitation which you give me to ask your assistance At present I have not advanced very far fro I am necessarily very much occupied with other business, and I arievances before I enter thoroughly upon legislation for the future I shall bear in mind the offer which you have made and in all probability avail htingale would not be left wholly friendless after all She was to have new masters Would they, or would they not, accept her service? We shall hear in due course

V

Meanwhile Miss Nightingale had been very busily engaged with the correspondence and other tasks thrown upon her by the outbreak of war in Europe ”Saw Florence for half an hour this ued certainly, but speaking with a voice only too loud and strong Princess [Alice of] Hesse writes to her to ask for instructions for the hospitals there, and Sutherland's joke is 'There's nothing left for _you_, all is gone to Garibaldi'” She had been applied to by representatives of all three combatants Prussia, as usual, was the better prepared, and the Crown Princess had written to Miss Nightingale in March (threefor her assistance and advice about hospital and nursing arrangements A Prussian manufacturer communicated with her about the best form of hospital tents for field-service The two sisters of the British Royal House were on opposite sides in this war, for Hesse-Darmstadt had thrown in its lot with Austria; but it was not till after the outbreak of hostilities that the Princess Alice wrote to Miss Nightingale through Lady Ely[72] for advice about war hospitals Miss Nightingale at once sent it Her Memorandum, she was told (July 3), had been forwarded to Prince Louis for use at Headquarters, and the Princess begged her to send further information for use by the hospital authorities in Darhtingale” The Secretary of the ”Florence Co the Sick and Wounded” had written to her for advice in May Her reply caused great delight, as an English correspondent at Florence recorded

”I have read the letter,” he wrote, ”which will be translated and inserted in the _nazione_ Miss Nightingale gives, with her accustomed clearness and precision, excellent advice to the Committee, which some of them very much need At the same time she expresses her cordial sympathy with the Italian cause She recalls the admirable condition in which the Sardinian army was landed in the Crimea, and the praise which its appearance extorted fro that if the sacrifice of her poor life would hasten their cause by one half-hour, she would gladly give it them But she is a miserable invalid”[73] The Committee had asked whether she would not come to Italy ”were it but for one day” in order to inspire them by her presence Her piece of ”froth” (as she called it) idely printed in the Italian press She had deplored the outbreak of the war, but when it resulted in an extension of the boundaries of free Italy she felt that there were coale also joined the Committee of the ”Ladies' association” formed in this country ”for the Relief of the Sick and Wounded of all nations engaged” She advised the Committee on the form of aidthe Crown Princess of Prussia for a letter, she gave Her Royal Highness an account of what had been done by the English Co, and it forale and Mr Jowett, as a great favourite with the Crown Princess and who entertained a very high opinion of her abilities The answering letter fro (as Dr Sutherland said of it) ”just the kind of practical information which a person who has had experience in these matters desires to obtain” A characteristic extract or two from the correspondence on each side ale to the Crown Princess of Prussia_) 35 SOUTH STREET, _Sept_ 22 [1866] I think your Royal Highness may be pleased to hear even the huner like ed in the late terrible war Inforh hts of St John of Jerusalee of all the Deaconesses and all the offers of houses and rooms made to theed--especially the sending away the wounded in hundreds to tohere roo and e numbers of wounded is always more disastrous than battle itself Froreat devotion, skill and generous kindness of the Prussian surgeons--to all sides alike On this, the day of Manin's death nine years ago, the exiled Dictator of Venice and one of the purest and ood a battle for the freedom of Venice, but who did not live to see its accohness, at the risk of iht about by Prussian ar on Queen Victoria had ale's acquaintance at Balence), June 12, 1866

(_The Crown Princess of Prussia to Miss Nightingale_) NEW PALACE, POTSDAM, _Sept_ 29 I was delighted to receive your long and interesting letter yesterday, and hasten to express land can but give reatest pleasure As you are such an advocate for fresh air, I cannot refrain fro you what I have myself _seen_ in confirmation of your opinion on the subject, and what I areat ally on this point

In a small well-kept Hospital, where wounded soldiers had been taken care of for some tieneral state of health of the patients did not show any progress They were feverish, and the appearance of the wounds was that of the beginning of arden of the Hospital there was a shed or suh boards, with a wooden roof; the little building was quite open in front and on the other sides closed up with boards but with an aperture of two feet all the way under the roof--so that it was like being out of doors

Six patients were ainst their will, they were afraid of catching cold) The very next day they got better; the fever left them, the condition of the wounds became healthy; they enjoyed their summer-house--in spite of two violent storms which knocked down the tables; and all quickly recovered! I had seen thearden; the difference was incredible The Crown Prince wishes ives hieons I reale, yours sincerely, PRINCESS ROYAL

A other details, a particular kind of field-a proved very useful Miss Nightingale at once put Dr Longmore, of our own hospital service, in possession of the facts

It will have been seen that Miss Nightingale's experience was anization of war-nursing under the Red Cross had not then attained full develop to the fact that the Austrian Government had not ratified the Geneva Convention of 1864 In 1867 a gold ale by the Conference of Red Cross Societies at Paris In 1870 (March 31) the Austrian Patriotic Society for the Relief of Wounded Soldiers elected her an Honorary Mereat activity with Miss Nightingale; but by the h pressure as in the preceding months Parliament was up, and the new Ministers, ho round At this tiale HerShe was disinclined to make the usual move with her husband from Hampshi+re to Derbyshi+re; so, while the father went to Lea Hurst, Miss Nightingale decided to stay with her mother at Embley It was an event in the family circle, for Florence had not been to either of the homes for ten years There was much correspondence and hted, and the journey in an invalid carriage did the daughter no serious harust till the end of November It was the first holiday she had taken, for ten years also; but it was not much of a holiday either

She set to work on the health of Romsey, the nearest town, and of Winchester, the county town She wrote up to her friend Dr Farr at the Registrar-General's Office for the ures for those towns above the average, and bade the citizens look to their drains Then she commanded Dr Sutherland to Embley for the transaction of business in view of next year's session She found her mother happy and cheerful ”I don't thinkto21), ”than she is now in her state of dilapidation She is so htful” She was a little critical, however, of her ent Poor lady! she was 78; she had been shaken and bruised in a carriage accident, and was threatened with the loss of her eye-sight Certainly, Florence was not always able to make due allowances for other people But if she was critical of others, she was yetthis holiday at Embley, she resumed those written self-examinations and meditations for which, frequent in her earlier years, she see the strenuous decade 1856-66 ”I never failed in energy,” she said once in later years; ”but to do everything fro her past life on October 21, 1866, the anniversary of her departure for the Crimea, and on subsequent days, she seeht Her meditations were not so much of what she had done as of what she had done areater peace, through a more entire trust in God: ”Called to be the 'hand life! What return does God expect from me--hat _purity of heart_ and _intention_ should Iof myself to Him! The word of the Lord unto thee: He was oppressed and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth But, e are ill, how can we be like God? I look up and see the drops of dew, blue, golden, green, and red, glittering in the sun on the top of the deciduous cypress--_that_ is like God We see Hihts us, even e lie here prostrate Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God--in all teony and bloody sweat, in the Cross and Passion: this is not the prerogative of the future life, but of the present”

PART VI