Chapter II: Ambulance Work

Ambulance work in the French Army comes under the heading of what is known as the Sanitary Service. To each division there is attached a Sanitary Section which serves that division only. Although subject to the orders of the Staff Officers, it is looked upon as a part of the Medical Department, and is directly under the supervision of the Medical Staff. The Service, like everything else in the war to-day, has undergone radical changes.

In the early days of the war, the Sanitary Section of the French Army proved most inefficient. It could not cope with new conditions. Speed in conveying the wounded soldier to the proper hospital was vital; so also was the transfer of cases from the front-line trenches and dressing stations to hospitals where complete service and attention could be given. To facilitate development in this all-important work took time and careful thought to determine just which course would meet the increased demands with greatest efficiency.

While the reorganization was being evolved in the minds of the men who had these matters in charge for the French Government, the German Armies were most actively engaging the French all along their frontier, and it was necessary, for the time being, to meet the situation in whatever make-shift way it might be possible until the desired perfection in this branch of service could finally be attained.

The French were fortunate with the sanitary sections they had organized up to that time and which formed a regular part of their medical service in connection with the army. In order to take care of a great portion of the extra work that was thrown upon them, it must be acknowledged that, with the equipment they had, they carried on the work in a wonderful way.

In Paris lived many people who were able to render service to the French Government during these days, and among them was Mr. Harjes of Morgan & Harjes Company, Bankers. Quick to see the need of expert ambulance work in connection with the army, he equipped his own automobile and donated it to the French Government.

Through his example other people in Paris were induced to make donations of a similar character, and thus, through the generosity of a small group of Mr. Harjes’ immediate friends, Sanitary Section, Unit Five, was formed and became a permanent and famous feature in ambulance work, setting the pace followed later on by the French Government. Mr. Harjes became responsible for the efficiency of this service, spending most of his time in the field personally conducting the operations, and, by his untiring efforts, made it the standard of all other units. About this time Mr. Richard Norton also realized the ever-increasing demand upon the sanitary section service of the French Army. He got into communication with his very close friend, Mr. Arthur Kemp, who was at that time residing in England, and induced him to equip his own private car and bring it over and enter the work with him. Mr. Norton formed Sanitary Section Unit Seven, and himself went into the field as its head. He drove one of the cars himself and lived with the boys at the front, as also did Mr. Kemp.

The wonderful work that was carried on by the volunteer ambulance services quickly attracted the attention of the French authorities. Letters written by the boys of these sections, describing in detail to friends in America the work they were carrying on, resulted in a large number of requests for a chance to serve as volunteers. These enthusiasts proposed not only to donate automobiles equipped for ambulance work, but also to drive them themselves without cost to the French Government. Soon there were enough of these applicants to form Sanitary Section Number Eleven, and, at the termination of the Volunteer Ambulance Work in October, 1917, these volunteer sections constituted the finest and most efficient ambulance service in the world.

By this time recognition had been given to this service from all corners of the globe, and the American Red Cross now became the principal financial support of the service, which enabled it to expand into a vitally important factor of the French Army. Equipment and funds in abundance were placed at the disposal of the organization.

Eliot Norton, a lawyer in New York City, and a brother of Richard Norton, played a large part in the success of that organization. It was he who personally supervised the enlistment of men for service in France as ambulance drivers. No one was permitted to enter this service without having first satisfied Mr. Norton that he would be unafraid, under any conditions, to carry the work of the American Red Cross to the battlefields of France in a creditable way.

Untiring was his devotion and unerring his judgment. A very high official in the Medical Corps in the English Army is quoted as having said: “I have never seen a cleaner, more intelligent crowd of boys than the ones who are serving with the Norton-Harjes Ambulance Corps in the French Army.”

The organization was now taking on such proportions that it was necessary to establish central headquarters. This was done at No. 7 Rue Francois Premier in Paris. Messrs. Norton, Kemp and Havemeyer were compelled to give up the active work in the field and take charge of the offices. Other sections were equipped and sent out; section leaders and assistants called chef and sous-chef, respectively, were chosen from the older men that had been on active duty in the field.

This organization was now continually attracting prominent people to it, one of these being Mr. Robert Goelet, who turned over his estate at Sandricourt, twenty miles outside of Paris, to be used as a cantonment for the American Red Cross, and as a base for training men. Twenty automobiles were donated to this section, which became known as the “Goelet Section.”