Elsie Inglis, The Woman With the Torch

This is a brief biography of the Scottish physician and suffragist Dr. Elsie Inglis. Dr. Inglis founded a maternity hospital for the poor in Edinburgh (then known as the Hospice, but later as the Elsie Inglis Memorial Hospital), and was known for her charity and willingness to waive fees when patients could not afford her care. She was also a key figure in Scotland's Women's Suffrage Movement. She is best known, however, for founding the Scottish Women's Hospitals for Foreign Service, which provided staffed teams of female-staffed field hospitals to war zones during World War I.

By : Eva Shaw McLaren (1852 - 1921)

00 - Preface and Introduction 01 - Elsie Inglis Tributes from Various Sources- A Woman of Solved Problems 02 - The Rock From Which She Was Hewn Elsie Ingles the Central Figure on the Stage - Men and Women of the Past, The People of Her Race, Crowd Round Her - Their Influence on Her - Their Spirit Seen in Hers 03 - 1864-1894 Childhood in India- Friendship With Her Father - Schooldays in Edinburgh - Death of Her Mother - Study of Medicine - Death of Her Father - Practice Started in Edinburgh in 1894 - Twenty Years of Professional Interests, Friendships - Varied Descriptions of Dr. Inglis by Miss S.E.S. Mair and Dr. Beatrice Russell 04 - Her Medical Career Fellow Students' and Doctors' Reminiscences - The New School of Medicine for Women in Edinburgh -The Growth of Her Practice - Her Sympathy with Poor Patients - The Founding of The Hospice - Some Characteristics 05 - The Solved Problems The Problems of the Unmarried Woman - Dr. Inglis's Unpublished Novel, The Story of a Modern Woman - Quotations from the Novel - Many Parts of the Novel Evidently Autobiographical - Heroine in Novel Solves the Problem of ''The Lonely Woman'' 06 - ''Her Children'' Dr. Inglis a Child-Lover - Her Writings Full of Descriptions of Children - Quotations from the Novel 07 - The Hospice Founded 1901 - Description of Premises in the High Street Amongst the Poor of Edinburgh - Dr. Inglis's Love for The Hospice 08 - The Suffrage Campaign Justice of Claim Appealed to Dr. Inglis - Worked From Constitutional Point of View - Founding of Scottish Federation of Suffrage Societies - Dr. Inglis's Activities for the Cause - Tributes from Women Who Worked with Her - Description of Meeting Addressed by Her 09 - Scottish Women's Hospitals Dr. Inglis at the Outbreak of War. Full of Vigour and Enthusiasm - Idea Mooted at Federation Committee Meeting - Rapid Growth - Hospitals in the Field in December 10 - Serbia Dreadful Condition of Country - Arrival of Dr. Soltau and Dr. Hutchison and Unit - Dr. Inglis's Arrival in May, 1915 - Fountain of Mladanovatz - Letter from Officer Who Designed Fountain - Dr. Inglis and Her Unit Taken Prisoners in November - Account of Work at Krushevatz - Release in February, 1916 - Tributes from Miss Cristitch and Lieut. Col. Popovitch 11 - Russia Dr. Inglis's start for Russia in August, 1916—Unit attached to Serb Division near Odessa—Three weeks' work at Medjidia—Retreat to Braila—Order of three retreats—Work at Reni—Description of Dr. Inglis by one of her Unit—Account of her last Communion 12 - ''If You Want Us Home, Get THEM Out'' Serb Division in unenviable position—Dr. Inglis's determination to save them from wholesale slaughter—Hard work through summer months to achieve their safety—Efforts crowned with success—Left for England in October, bringing her Unit and the Division with her 13 - ''The New Work'' and Memories Landed at Newcastle on November 23, 1917—Illness on voyage—Dr. Ethel Williams's testimony to her fearlessness in facing death—Triumph in passing—Scenes at funeral in Edinburgh—Memories

"To light a path for men to come" is the privilege of the pioneer; and the life of a pioneer, the hewer of a new path, is always encouraging, whether he who goes before to open the way be a voyager to the Poles or the uttermost parts of the earth, in imminent danger of physical death, or whether he be an adventurer, cutting a path to a new race consciousness, revealing the power of service in new vocations, evoking new powers, and living in hourly danger of mental suffocation by prejudices and inhibitions of race tradition.

The women's irresistible movement, which has so suddenly flooded all departments of work previously considered the monopoly of men, required from the leaders indomitable courage, selflessness, and faith, qualities of imperishable splendour; and to read the life of Elsie Inglis is to recognize instantly that she was one of these ruthless adventurers, hewing her way through all perils and difficulties to bring to pass the dreams of thousands of women. The world's standard of success may appear to give the prize to those who collect things, but in reality the crown of victory, the laurel wreath, the tribute beyond all material value, is always reserved for those invisible, intangible qualities which are evinced in character.

It is wonderful to read how slowly and surely that character was formed through twenty years of monotonous routine. The establishing of a Hospice for women and children, run entirely by women, was not a popular movement, and through long years of dull, arduous work, patient, silent, honest, dedicated unconsciously to the service of others, she laid the foundations which led to her great achievement, and so, full of courage and growing in power, like Nelson she developed a blind eye, to which she put her telescope in times of bewilderment; she could never see the difficulties which loomed large in her way—sex prejudices and mountains of race convictions to be moved—and so she moved them!

In founding The Hospice she gave herself first to the women and children round her; later, in the urgent call of the Suffrage movement, she devoted herself whole-heartedly to the service of the women of the country, and so she was ready when the war came. Her own country refused her services; but Providence has a strange way of turning what appears to be evil into great good. The refusal of the British Government to accept the services of medically trained women caused them to offer their services elsewhere; and so she went first to help the French, and then to encourage and serve Serbia in her dire need.

And so from the first she was a pioneer: in doing medical work among women and children; in achieving the rights of citizenship for women; and in the further great adventure of establishing the true League of Nations which lies in the will to serve mankind.

Introduction

A most interesting Life of Elsie Inglis, written a short time ago by the Lady Frances Balfour, has had a wide circulation which has proved the appreciation of the public.

This second Life appears at the request of The Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge that I should write a short memoir of my sister, to be included in the "Pioneers of Progress" Series which it is publishing. I undertake the duty with joy.

In accordance with the series in which it appears, the Life is a short one, but it has been possible to incorporate in it some fresh material. Not the least interesting is what has been taken from the manuscript of a novel by Dr. Inglis, found amongst her papers some time after her death. It is called The Story of a Modern Woman. It was probably written between the years 1906 and 1914; the outbreak of the war may have prevented its publication. The date given in the first chapter of the story is 1904. Very evidently the book expresses Elsie Inglis's views on life. Quotations have been made from it, as it gives an insight into her own character and experiences.

The endeavour has been made to draw a picture of her as she appeared to those who knew her best. She was certainly a fine character, full of life and movement, ever growing and developing, ever glorying in new adventure. There was no stagnation about Elsie Inglis. Independent, strong, keen (if sometimes impatient), and generous, from her childhood she was ever a great giver.

Alongside all the energy and force in her character there were great depths of tenderness. "Nothing like sitting on the floor for half an hour playing with little children to prepare you for a strenuous bit of work," was one of her sayings.

Not to many women, perhaps, have other women given such a wealth of love as they gave to Elsie Inglis. In innumerable letters received after her death is traceable the idea expressed by one woman: "In all your sorrow, remember, I loved her too."

Those who worked with her point again and again to a characteristic that distinguished her all her life—her complete disregard of the opinion of others about herself personally, while she pursued the course her conscience dictated, and yet she drew to herself the affectionate regard of many who knew her for the first time during the last three years of her life.

What her own countrymen thought of her will be found in the pages of this book, but the touching testimony of a Serb and a Russian may be given here. A Serb orderly expressed his devotion in a way that Dr. Inglis used to recall with a smile: "Missis Doctor, I love you better than my mother, and my wife, and my family. Missis Doctor, I will never leave you."

And a soldier from Russia said of her: "She was loved amongst us as a queen, and respected as a saint."

"In her Life you want the testimony of those who saw her. Dr. Inglis's work before and during the war will find its place in any enduring record; what you want to impress on the minds of the succeeding generation is the quality of the woman of which that work was the final expression."

Something of what that quality was appears, it is hoped, in the pages of this memoir. I am grateful to men and women of varied outlook, who knew her at different periods of her life, for memories which have been drawn upon in this effort to picture Elsie Inglis.