Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1914-11-18
;AmER R|CAN
ENGINEER
Gets BUSY
BELGIAN RELIEF WORK rs
BEING RAPIDLY AC-
CoMPLIsHED.
has MANY DIFFICULTIES
Success of the Work a Tribute to
the Colleges of the United
States.
bAS MANY DIFFICULTIES

London, Nov. 17.-With the excep-
tion Of It's treasurer, Clarence Graft,
who is a banker, every active mem
Der OF the American commission for
the relief of Eelgians is an engineer
The work OF these men is pointed to
as tribute to the thoroughness OF
the American engineering colleges
II. C. Hoover. who heads both the
American relief committee and the
Belgian commission, is a mining en-
gineer who directs the labors OF 250,-
600 miners and smelter operatives in
various parts OF the world. Hoover
is graduate of Leland Stanford, Jr.,
university, of which institution he is
now a trustee, having succeeded to
the position on the bord vacated by
the death of Whitelaw Reid.
London is the Mecca Of successful
American engineers, and HOovey has
gathered about him a group of men
we'll equipped for the work in hand,
and with considerable leisure to de.
vote to it, because the war has sus.
pended so many of the enterprises in
which they are interested.
The vice chairman is Daniel Heine-
man, who is an electrical engineer
and head of one of the largest inter
national electrical manufacturing
groups The other members are: Will
liam Hulse, also an electrical engi-
neer and head of number OF engi-
neering companies; John Beaver
White, an electrical engineer and a
partner in one of the largest con-
tracing firms in Europe; Milliard
Hunsiker, an electrical engineer. for
many years one of the executives OF
the United States Steel Corporation;
Captain ]. F.. Lucey a mechanical ei,.
gineer and head Of large mapufac.
turing E0ncern doing business In the
+ United States and Europe; J. W.
Dickson, civil engineer; Hart o. Berg,
mechanical engineer; Edgar Rickard,
mining engineer; and Milliard Sha-
Ter, mechanical engineer living in
Brussels.
Pushed 1t Hard.
For three weeks American, Span
ish and Belgian diplomatic represent.
,atives struggled with the question of
supplying Belgium with food without
making much progress beyond secur.
ing the promises of cooperation from
the various governments concerned.
When the need became acute and it
was necessary to get food under way
at once, the American ambassador
here called upon Hoover to form the
needed working organization, and the
result when Hoover called for vOlun-
teers was the existing commission.
with it's predominant engineering
personnel.
The first and most serious obstacle
encountered by the commission was
the refusal of the English govern
ment to remove it's embargo On the
export of food, even for such nee
essary work as the succor of the
starving Belgians. Early in the dip
lomatic negotiations, the British gov
ernment not only promised to allow
the export of food supplies to Bel
GUM. but promised the Belgian min
lister a large cash contribution each
month. Evidently becoming alarmed
over he conditions of he domesic food
supply, the cabinet reconsidered its
action and declined to do more than
make a lump sum contribution of a
quarter of million dollers, to be
used to purchase food for the Bel
gians in Holland. AS one of the mem
bers of the commission expressed it,
this was equivalent to asking the Bel
gian minister to buy food for his
starving fellow countrymen at the
North Pole for Holland has not only
forbidden the export of foodstllffs,
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