In the hospitals it was her duty to provide the
services of herself and her nurses when they were asked for by
the doctors, and not until then. At first some of the surgeons
would have nothing to say to her, and, though she was welcomed by
others, the majority were hostile and suspicious. But gradually
she gained ground. Her good will could not be denied, and her
capacity could not be disregarded. With consummate tact, with all
the gentleness of supreme strength, she managed at last to impose
her personality upon the susceptible, overwrought, discouraged,
and helpless group of men in authority who surrounded her. She
stood firm; she was a rock in the angry ocean; with her alone was
safety, comfort, life. And so it was that hope dawned at Scutari.
The reign of chaos and old night began to dwindle; order came
upon the scene, and common sense, and forethought, and decision,
radiating out from the little room off the great gallery in the
Barrack Hospital where, day and night, the Lady Superintendent
was at her task. Progress might be slow, but it was sure.
The first sign of a great change came with the appearance of some
of those necessary objects with which the hospitals had been
unprovided for months. The sick men began to enjoy the use of
towels and soap, knives and forks, combs and tooth-brushes.
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