Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-06-18
THE Fam GNE IN INDIA
COMMISSIONERS re CONFER WITH
CITIZENS THIS AFTERNOON.
Discussion of Plans, for Anording Aid
address Inst Night by DR..
Abbott.

District Commissioner Mcfarland has in
vited number of the prominent citizens or
the District to attend a meeting at his
office in the District building at $3.50 o'clock
his afternoon to consider whether the Dis
trict should do anything more for the India
famine relief fund, which is now being col
lected by committee of 100 citizens of
New York city. The Rev. ]. E. Abbott,
representing the New York committee, will
be present at the meeting this afternoon,
and those invited by Mr.. Mcfarland to be
present are: Mr.. John Joy Edison, presi-
dent of the board of trade; Mr.. VIM. s.
Knox, president of the Business Mems As
ISOLATION; Mr.. Barry Buckley, its secretary;
Mr.. George H. Harries. secretary of the
board of trade: Mr.. Theodore w. Noyes of
TheStar. Mr. Beriah Wilkins of the Post, Mr..
Walter Stilson Hutchins of the Times. Mr..
Chas. c. Glover. Mr.. George Truesdell, Mr..
s. w. Woodward. Mr.. Chas. J. Bell. Mr..
Clarence F. Norment, Mr.. Henry F. Blount,
Mr.. M. I. Weller, Mr.. Joseph E. Willard,
Mr.. Edward ]. Stellwagen, Mr.. A. NJ.
Lothrop Mr.. Frederick L. Moore and Mr..
B. 7. Janney.
DIR. Abbott's Address.
Rev. Justin E. Abbott, an American mis-
sionary, recently returned from eighteen
years work in India, spoke last night at
Westminster Presbyterian Church of the
famine in that benighted country. Mr.. Alb
bott Is identified with the committee Of one
hundred in New York organized to solicit
contributions to the India relief fund.
The famine in India, the speaker declared,
is directly traceable to the lack of rain
there. Famines have always existed in
India. Last year the rain failed. The pco
pie are in large part farmers. and when
these men have no crops the laborer must
also suffer, for he is dependent upon them
for sustenance. MIR. Abbot. gave several
heart-rending incidents of the famine and
continued:
why. many people will ask. is the call
FOR money rather than for food? The rea-
son is this: AS soon as 1t was known by
reason of the rain failure. that famine
was imminent, the grain merchants made
arrangements to import the cheap grain
that the people eat from other parts of
India and from other countries. A flood of
grain came into the land and the people are
buying nothing else. Those who have
money. no matter how little, would not be-
come victims of the famine.
Need but Little.
'If all the millions of people had an in
come of co cents per month per capita they
would not have succumbed to the famine;
but millions of the people do not have any
thing. Although there is grain in the land
and its price is only double what 1t is ordi-
Earily in good times, the people cannot get
1t because they cannot get the cents a
day necessary to purchase the amount of
grain for sustenance. Thus these millions
are at the point of death. Six millions of
people are being cared for daily by the In
dian government. There is no one to give
them money but the government and the
missionaries the latter of whom are reliev-
ing immense distress.
THE government has great relief camps,
where those able to work are paid, accord
ing to the expense and the price of grain.
That money, or work and money, is given is
an important feature. II prevents the de-
moraliZation of the people. The govern
ment of India is keeping its promise. Every
man. woman and child who comes to the
relief camps Is cared for. The reason why
SO many are starving is that the people liv-
ing in homes have no desire to leave them
and go to the relief camp, and they do not
start until it is too late