At the age of 16, Clara Barton was advised to become a teacher since she was quite shy. She taught in Massachusetts for ten years, and was invited to Bordentown, New Jersey to teach in a school. She saw that these communities needed complimentary education for their citizens, and she took action by creating a free school, one of the first in her state. But later, officials named a male as the head teacher instead of her. Disappointed, she left her job and moved to Washington D.C., becoming the first woman employed by the US Patent Office.
Clara Barton was forever changed by her experience with the army in the Civil War. She saw doctors use leaves when dealing with injuries since they had nothing else. The medical supplies were well behind the army, who were moving faster than their medical supply lines. She brought in a truck of medical supplies that she collected personally some years ago. Miss Barton continued to work on the battlefields throughout the war.
She helped in the recognition of 13,000 dead Union soldiers. This non-stop work made her fully exhausted. Following the advice of her doctor, she traveled to Europe where she recovered energy and enriched herself.
While in Europe, and still in poor health, Miss Barton was moved by the hardship on people caused by the France-Prussia war. She helped in their relief effort, which encouraged her to create the Red Cross, which served the whole army and common people under a neutral flag.
Clara Barton returned to America and then began the establishment(建立)of the American Red Cross. The US government did not think there would ever be another war after the Civil War. But she made them believe that the Red Cross would be valuable to serve in times of natural disasters as well. This was her lasting legacy(遗产), an agency that still provides aid to all people today.
What does the underlined word “complimentary” mean in the first paragraph?
A.Public. | B.Personal. | C.Free. | D.Modern |
Why did Clara Barton bring her personal medical supplies?
A.There were no medical supplies for the army at all. |
B.The army’s supplies couldn’t catch up with them. |
C.The army’s supplies weren’t good enough to treat soldiers. |
D.The enemies cut off the connection between the army and medical supplies. |
Clara Barton set up the Red Cross because of ______.
A.her experiences in Europe |
B.her poor health |
C.the lack of supplies for the army |
D.her work in the US Patent Office |
The US government agreed to establish the Red Cross because Clara Barton ______.
A.gave a lot of her legacy |
B.said there might be wars in the future |
C.explained it would help people in peacetime as well. |
D.believed it could save people from the France-Prussia war. |
What does this passage mainly talk about?
A.The history of American Civil War. |
B.A general introduction to Clara Barton. |
C.Clara Barton’s contributions to the US. |
D.The Establishment of the American Red Cross. |