n the parsonage garden.

When the fiftieth anniversary of the rise of the deaconess cause was
celebrated in 1886 the Kaiserswerth sisterhood put their mites together
and purchased the little house, to hold it in perpetuity as a monument
of God's providence.

The symbol of Kaiserswerth is a white dove, carrying an olive branch,
resting against a blue ground. The blue flag floats from the old
windmill tower on the river-bank, attracting the attention of the
traveler as he floats up the Rhine.

Other flags bear messages of conquest, of victory, of battles fought and
won, of storm and stress and endeavor in the conflict of man against his
fellow-man. But only peace and good-will, the victory of goodness and of
love--these alone are the messages that are waved forth to the wind by
the blue flag of Kaiserswerth.

[36] _Haus Ordnung und Dienst-Anweisung fuer die Diakonissen und
Probeschwestern des Diakonissen Mutterhauses zu Kaiserswerth._
[37] _Deaconesses_, Rev. J. S. Howson, D.D., p. 81.
[38] Refer back to page 23, chapter ii, where it can be found.
[39] _Der Armen und Kranken Freund_, August Heft, 1888.
[40] _Woman's Work in the Church_, p. 273, J. M. Ludlow. A. Strahan,
London, 1866.
[41] _Denkschrift zur Jubelfeier_, p. 215.

CHAPTER VII.

OTHER ESTABLISHMENTS ON THE CONTINENT.

In a book of these dimensions no exhaustive historical account can be
given of all the developments of the deaconess movement in the various
countries on the Continent. Only a few of the leading houses can be
spoken of, but through a knowledge of these we can gain an insight into
the life and characteristics of the movement as a whole.

The mother-house at Strasburg is one of the oldest ones, dating from
1842. It owes its origin to the holy enthusiasm and life experiences of
Pastor Haerter, who exercised a deep religious influence in the city
where he lived. In 1817, when he was a young man of twenty, the great
Strasburg hospital was re-organized. The six to eight hundred patients
were divided according to their religious faith. To the Catholics were
assigned as nurses Sisters of Charity. For the Protestants there were
paid women nurses.

The magistrates appealed to the pastors to find at least two Protestant
women of experience and ability to oversee the nurses, but the most
persistent search in the various churches of Strasburg failed to procure
suitable candidates. Years afterward, when death ent