Free press. [volume] (Hays, Kan.) 1888-1908, 1899-04-01
TWO MILLIONS STARVING.
Cities and Towns Submerged and
Crops Destroyed in China.
AWFUL YELLOW RIVER FLOODS

WASHINGTON, March 25.-Citiz ems of
the United States residing in Che
Foo, China, have made an earnest APP
peal, through Consul Fowler at Che
Foo, to the charitable in America and
elsewhere on behalf of the sufferers
from the appalling Yellow river floods
of this year. These floods have been
described by the natives as ''China's
SORROW" and the petitioners state that
never before was the distress so great
and heartrending as now. The most
conservative estimates place the num-
Der of starving at 1000, 900. and time
and the Increasing cold weather will
undoubtedly greatly augment the
distress. The petitioners say that
they are daily, almost hourly,
in receipt OF reports from their coun-
trymen in the interior depicting the
condition of the famine refugees;
hundreds of villages are submerged,
cities surrounded by water; home. fur
niture, clothing-in fact, everything is
under water or destroyed; the natives
themselves are living IN straw huts;
many have absolutely no shelter from
the winters cold and snow; subsistinG
on bark, willow twigs, roots, etc The
summers crops have been failure,
the seed for next springs sowing is
gone and there is nothing for these
starving millions to hope for in the
future.
with our knowledge of the terrible
want prevailing" says the American
committee, I'VE ven ture to call uron
the charitable in our home land to as
sist us in trying to alleviate at least a
portion of this misery.
Therefore we shall be glad to re-
ceive contributions of money and corn.
We earnestly beg the merchants and
others on the Pacific coast to contrib
ute a steamer load of corn; the natives
of Shang Tung, unlike those down
South, subsist upon corn, and we be-
lieve that if the grain men of the
West will ship to the United States
consul at Che Foo direct from the Pa
cific slope a steamer loaded with corn,
it will be the means of not only
saving thousands of lives, but OF
opening market of from 25, 600, 900 &c
30, coo, 900 consumers later on, as under
normal conditions American corn
can easily compete with native, and il
this corn be sent, we guarantee that il
WILL OC oISCA1OuICo Vic 0lA CCl
and personal supervision of Americans
now residing in or near the submerged
districts, We ask for money to be
sent to the United States consul here
with which food, clothing and stock
can be bought for the sufferers, and
we guarantee a strict accounting fol
every dollar thus received. ShaI
Tung is peculiarly interesting tx
! American merchants as the best mar
ket for their products in all China; tt
! the missionaries because there are five
denominations represented, compris
ing lis adults, scattered all over thi!
! vast province, and to whom we look
| to assist US in distri buting such relief
as we may receive. Probably in NJ
other place in the world and probably
not in this generation has there beer
SO much suffering as is now being en-
dured in Shan Ting. The natives arr
doing all in their power; one firm il
Che Foo has contributed the equiva
lent of SO, 600 in cash and 10, GOO bag
of corn, and all classes are contrib but
ing, but let us not forget there arr
] 1000, 600 starving"