up the little Christmas gifts and bring their pennies to fill the little white stockings we had in each room the week bfore Christmas. The result was surprising for it amounted to $95.11. A check for $22.11 was sent at a Christmas gift to the war children. The boys and girls are interested in their orphans, Camille Friguet and Jean Friguet, to whom they sent $73 for a year's support. Upon the service flag, purchased by the high school, there are thirty-nine stars representing graduates of the high The people of Rittman village school district were living in peace and school and one star for a Red Cross nurse. One of the stars turned to gold when Frank Cook made the supreme sacrifice. OVERTON Soldiers and sailors library fund, $2.50; Red Cross Junior, $6.25; War Saving Stamps, $20.00; Shoes and clothing for Belgians. WAR WORK OF RITTMAN PUBLIC SCHOOLS The people of Rittman village school district weer living in peace and plenty, enjoying the greatest of prosperity in the "third city of old Wayne," when President Woodrow Wilson, in his famous "war message" to congress, in April, 1917, declared a state of war existed between the United States of America and Germany. By an almost unanimous vote, congress formally declared war on Germany, and the people of America awoke to the seriousness of the situation. The curtain of ignorance was now withdrawn by the press of the country exposing the true status of affairs with Germany, and the spirit of patriotism spread like a forest fire throughout the nation. Rittman, of course, was not behind other cities and towns. Her patriotism grew to a white heat, and war work in the vicinity was soon under way with intense enthusiasm. The schools immediately imbibed the "Rittman Spirit of 1917" and patriotism,thrift, investment and sacrifice played a large part in the daily life of the pupils. The following as far as data can be obtained, is a record of the war work (during the period of the world war) done by those who were pupils and teachers in the Rittman schools during the school year 1918-1919. Work done by pupils-Nine sweaters, 6 pairs socks, 6 pairs wristlets, 14 comfy kits, 20 button bags. By teachers-Twenty sweaters, 12 pairs socks, over 200 hours of work done for Red Cross in other lines. It is interesting to note that the grand total of $11,036.99 devoted to war work, $586.99 was an absolute gift for the advancement of civilization. In addition to the above many of its boys belonged to the Working Reserve and did club work. A large number of school gardens were cared for in whole or in part by the pupils. In 1919 over fifty girls signed up for club work. The Junior Red Cross is being carried on in the different rooms, one having gained the enviable reputation of being 100 per cent. By no means must those graduates and former students of the school who have been in the service be omitted in a record of the school's war work. Of the graduates of Rittman high school, the following have been in various branches of the service: Cecil Conley, Russell Clapper, Boyd Miller, Warren Bodager, Robert Wenger, Ward Sigler, Daniel Wright, Harry Leichty, Ora Leichty, Jacob Meyer. The last three were overseas doing reconstruction work. The following former students, but not graduates of the high school, were also in the service. The last eight, soldiers in the U. S. army, saw foreign service. The first of the list was overseas with the navy: Tracy Shook, George Schwartz, Jay Brenneman, Harold Schwartz, John Faber, Frank Snyder, Clarence Swartz, Charles Rohrer, Howard Qualmon, Platt Sigler, Don Moyer, Floyd Striver, Clyde Hentzel, Elmer Clippinger. The war savings listed were bought. No account was kept of the stamps sold last year. From the first of January until May, 1919, pupils sold over $1500. The teachers of the school participated in the raising of funds in all the drives. Mr. W. S. Fagley was chairman of Green township in the Y. M. C. A. drive, the Third and Fourth Liberty loan drives and the War Chest drive. He was assisted in every instance by the other teachers. Throughout the campaigns the public school was ever ready to do its part in winning the war. STERLING When our nation, the bulwark of liberty and justice, was threatened, the teachers, pupils, patrons of Sterling public schools were inspired with a desire to render any and every tangible assistance. In response to the first call for food conservation by the United States food administration, the heads of families of the entire community responded by signing pledge cards, and carrying out the promises. The call for clothing for refugees was responded to nobly by a generous contribution of wearing apparel for the relief of stricken Belgium. Later they contributed clothing to suffering Armenians. This was solicited through the schools. By common consent of the pupils and teachers, the usual Christmas treat was dispensed with and a fund of $35.50 was given to the Y. M. C. A. Several boxes of books and magazines were collected for the benefit of the men in military camps. When the call for Red Cross subscriptions came, every pupil in each department enrolled; thereby making Sterling school one hundred per cent in this deserving cause. Report cards for a census of animals for meat production were circulated and in addition various pamphlets on thrift, liberty loans, etc., were posted and distributed through the schools. Ecnomy in domestic arts was emphasized, and a "war-time menu," which won first premium at the county fair, are a part of the activities along this line. The national colors were displayed daily and the national anthem memorized. A service flag containing thirtytwo stars reminded the school of those who had answered the call, among whom were two sucessive superintendents. CHAPTER XX. THE SPANISH INFLUENZA The war had nothing to do with it, and yet no compilation treating upon the subject of the great struggle would be complete without at least a reference to the Spanish influenza that swept over the country in October and November, 1918, with a severe recurrence in Ohio during December and the following January. The "flu" as it soon became generally known, was the only circumstance that was of sufficient interest to distract attention from the war itself. It was the only side-show that took the gaze of the crowd from the main tent; and the reason for this was that it drove fear into the hearts of the multitude. The "Flu" was named "Spanish" Influenza because it was commonly reported to have originated in Spain. It swept over that land, crossed to England, thrived with equal ferocity in France and Germany, and finally made its appearance in the United States, breaking out first in dangerous proportions in the army training camps. At Camp Sherman, Ohio, between 1000 and 1100 men of the 30,000 in training there, died within a period of three weeks in October. Other cantonments suffered in proportion. At Camp Meade there were 3,000 deaths, while in the city of Philadelphia there were 12,000 fatalities. The "flu" was a kind of grippe, which left the system especially receptive to the pneumonia germ, which was present in malignant form. There were practically no deaths from the influenza itself. The usual symptoms were bowel disturbance, violent headache, or cold, accompanied by fever, which frequently by the second day rose to 104 or 105 de grees. Where the patient immediately went to bed and was given good care, a recovery was generally effected within three or four days. The least exposure brought in the pneumonia possibility, and deaths were practically all from pneumonia. The epidemic gained a strong foothold in Ashland before it was known to be present in Wayne county. Two thousand cases developed there within a few days, and deaths followed at the rate of from two to ten a day. The Ashland situation, together with the fact that men were dying at the rate of from 150 to 250 per day at Camp Sherman, threw Wayne county people into a paroxysm of fear when the trouble first manifested itself here. Shreve was the first Wayne county community invaded. In Wooster city there were not more than 500 cases at any one time, but in several communities of the county, nearly every family was stricken simultaneously. Doctors believed that neighborhood threshings were partly responsible for the rapid spread through the rural districts, although no definite agreement was ever reached by physicians anywhere concerning the exact nature of the transmission of the germ. The "flu" was, to put it moderately, highly contagious. Physicians were busy, night and day, and the "fear of the 'flu'" made the matter of securing help in stricken homes a most serious one. The passing of October put the peak of the epidemic in the background, and by mid-November the first outbreak had almost entirely disappeared. The new outbreak in December and January was most severe in Wooster and Congress township, but the death rate was not so high as during the October period. Some scattered cases continued to appear during the early months of 1919. Although Wayne county, as a whole, suffered less severely than many in the state, probably because schools, churches, moving picture theaters and all other public gathering places, were closed before the contagion gained a strong foothold, about one hundred persons died before the Scourge was ended. CHAPTER XXI. THE MOTHERS' CLUB No organization that was formed in Wayne county during the period of the war to take part in war work had its membership limited to a field where there was such unanimous interest in the outcome of the war as the Mothers' Club, organized at a meeting held in Memorial Hall, Wooster, on the afternoon of January 29, 1918. Mrs. John M. Russell was elected president and Mrs. Geo. E. Post secretary. The immediate cause of the meeting was a report, disseminated through newspapers, that the young men being sent to camp were not being provided with sufficient equipment in the way of clothing and shelter. A protest was telegraphed to the war department and the message included a demand that conditions be corrected at the earliest possible moment. The real purpose of the organization of the club, however, was to bring together the mothers of young men who were in the military forces. A national association of mothers of soldiers was formed some months prior to the meeting held here in Wooster, and a campaign was undertaken to extend the organization of mothers from federal, through state and to county and town units. The Mothers' club of Wooster held a number of meetings during the summer. It was recognized in all patriotic parades and demonstrations, its members being given a place of honor in the line of march. It was customary for mothers who marched in a parade to carry a service flag, denoting the number of sons they had in the military or naval forces. One act performed by the Mothers' club was the presentation to the county of a Gold Star flag, containing a star for each Wayne county man who gave his life for his country. This presentation was made at special peace celebration service held at the Methodist Episcopal church in November, 1918, at which Judge W. E. Weygandt was the principal speaker. The flag itself was made by the club's secretary. CHAPTER XXII. WHEN THE PEACE NEWS CAME AND EVENTS THAT The first man in Wayne county who learned that armistice between Germany and the Allies had ben signed was E. C. Dix, managing editor of the Wooster Republican. It was 2:30 a. m. on Monday, November 11th, when he was aroused from slumber to answer the telephone. The spokesman was a representative of the International News Service at Cleveland, who informed him that the State Department at Washington |