The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1903-02-04
TO OPEN AN OFFICE
The Hennepin Committee on Famine
Relief Will Have Permanent
Headquarters.
A Chicago Correspondent Gives
narrowing Account of Suffer
ing He Has Seen.

Harry S. Swensen has been appointed
secretary for the Hennepin county COM
mittee on Scandinavian and Finnish FAM
inc relief. His office will be at the head
quarters Of the local committee, II Third
street N, in the Boston block. To this
number should be sent all communications
and contributions for the committee.
A Letter From the Field.
How pitiful, how far-stretched, is the
hunger of the North-the great famine in
SWeden-has been made clear for the first
time in a long letter received by a Chi
cago newspaper from it's staff correspond
ent, Guy Cramer. When Mr.. Cramer
wrote, Jan. 13, from Lulea, near the head
of the Gulf of Bothnia, he had just COM
pleted journey of 800 miles through the
famine stricken provinces Of Sweden.
But he had not visited Finland, where the
suffering is equally severe. Hence he
does not tell half the, story of misery and
Of death.
Tn the Swedish provinces alone, out OF
total population of 1,093,S56, 215,66s peo-
pie, living in more than sixty villages,
are directly affected by the lack of food.
One hundred thousand men, women and
children are in extreme need, 80, 900 are
absolutely dependent upon charity.
Excessive rain last year caused the
famine. All through the summer, and un-
til winter came, the rains were floods.
Even the valleys Of the mountainous
country flowed with torrents. The grass
was destroyed along the river banks and
the hay was lost that is needed by the
cattle on which the people are dependent.
In the flooded fields of oats and barley
men toiled with water to their waists en-
deavoring to save half-ripened grain. II
examined, says the correspondent, ''sOme
of this stunted. lifeless, pebble like bar
ley. 1t was wholly without nutriment.
int
leather of the toughest kind"
People Eating Birchbark.
AS substitutes for oats or barley the
people are grinding birchbark between
stones and baking a sort of bread i'll
which "the blackness is relieved only by
trif1ing portion of flour a few grains
of unmatured barley" Leaves of the
birch trees are used In a repulsive stew
fit only for beasts Of the field. Women
are begging for the scales off the stunted
heads Of barley, and are baking these
scales, which form the pod for the kernel,
into bread that carries no more nutrition
than SO much sand"
Cows milk is the chief source Of winter
food in the afflicted provinces. But the
hay has been destroyed, cattle can NO
longer be kept alive, and despite a stern
government decree that no stock shall be
killed, more than half the COWS have per-
ished
The severity Of the famine is i'm
measurably ioncreased by the dearth of
communications. One line of railway,
part of which is not completed, trave1ses
the suffering land of the hungry But
hundreds Of families without horses or
reindeer live in the depts Of the pine
forests twenty or thirty miles from the
public highway, not to speak of the rail-
road. Ecores of villages are $50 miles
from the nearest railway station. One
farmer said that he must drive 100 miles
over mountains and through forest to
secure load of hay
The afflicted people are proud, they are
unwilling to uncover their sufferings. Al
a village where a horse had been killed
no one would accept the meat for food
but next morning the bones had been cut
clean with the knives. of famished mer
and women, who came stealthily in the
night for food Mr.. Cramer visited q
family which had killed it's pet dog. ''We
buried it," said the mother. But q, neigh.
Dor told that the mother had cooked the
animal to save her cl1ildren's lives
County chairmen spurred.
Chairman L. o. Thorpe of the com.
mittee appointed by Governor Van SAM
to direct the work Of collecting funds
for the relief of the famine sufferers il
Sweden and Finland, has sent out cir
culars to the county chairmen, urgins
them to bebin active work at once. The,
are requested to appoint two collectors il
each township in their respective coun
ties, who are officially authorized to solici
subscriptions and also urged to expedit,
the work as much as possible.