The Washburn leader. [volume] (Washburn, McLean County, N.D.) 1890-1986, 1914-12-25

in November. They carried with them
four dead, newborn babies.
It was the same story which one
hears everywhere. The mothers we're
SO reduced by privation that they had
no milk of their own. AZ for cows
milk, 1t q not to be had for any
money.
Add another picture, brought out BY
an American from Belgium. He stood
one morning by the back door of y
German cook camp, watching . group
Of Belgian women grubbing through
the trash-heap piled up behind the
camp. All these women carried babies.
What are they doing?" he asked .
German sergeant with whom he had
struck up acquaintance.
~"Scraping VI condemned milk cans
said the sergeant. Its the ronly way
to get milk for their babies. I've seen
them run their fingers round . can
which looked as bright as . new coin.
and hold them into the babies mouths
to suck. My company" he added, "has
been getting along without milk in its
coffee and giving it to these women,
We've received no orders to the con.
trary-and we're mostly family men.
But we're an exception; and it doesn't
go very far"
Here ia another recent picture from
stricken Brussels, that gay. dainty.
lively city in old times-the city whose
smiling people called it petit Paris.
The scene is the nee busy. pleasant
boulevard Bischofsheim. A woman
collapses on a bench set along the
sidewalk after the fashion Of the
Greater Paris. In her arms is a baby,
A Child staggers along, clinging to her
apron. The woman's face is blue and
yellow; she is on the verge Of collapse.
The baby. surely not over five months
old. has a pale, lead-colored skin. Its
mouth is open as though set that way.
Its eyes are closed.
Two women OF Brussels pass this
unhappy group. They hurriedly ex
change some words, turn back to the
woman on the bench. Then n stands
guard while the other hastens for
some milk and bread-such as Is to be
found in the Brussels Of today. They
force a little milk between the teeth
of the mother. They let the baby drink.
Unweaned though 1t is, it drinks as
though it had eve drunk otherwise.
To the face Of the mother comes a
, few patches of color. She slowly re.
covers until she is able to eat a bit Of
bread The baby opens its mouth
drinks more greedily. 1T has not fed
since two days" the mother whispers.
The mother tries to rise from the
bench but she cannot. The elder child
drinks the milk that is left. 1t looks
curiously at the piece of bread as if II
did not know what it was. The moth
er forces it to eat. A crowd has gath.
cred. murmuring. This sight Is not
new, yet each time it draws a little
crowd. Every one would like to give
but no one can. Who is not poor al
this moment? Many of them have chill
dren at home who today weigh less
than the day they we're born.
Let us view the situation in cold
blood. Belgium is shut on from the
world-ringed with steel. Her "
food supply was used up long ago.
either by the people or by their on
querors. The cattle we're first of all
to go; even in August I saw the Ger
mans killing mich cows for rations
A COW or a small dairy herd is left
here or there; but they are the excep
lions. F
Again, the sucking baby must have
mothers milk or a substitute. There
is. of course, no substitute to be had
in Belgium and equally there is little
mothers milk.
Every woman knows that q civilized
nursing mother must keep up hel
strength" She must have nourishina
food-in many cases special food. Ev.
cry woman knows that a certain pro.
portion of civilized mothers cannot
feed their own babies ever at that. T.
Nourishing food-special food! The
news which filters out Of that locked,
stricken country to the American Com
mission for Relief in Belgium makes
a sarcasm and a mockery Of those
phrases.
In many, If in not most Belgian
cities. the populace is down to one
large bakers bun a day. issued by tho
municipal authorities. In some places,
the authorities have been able to sup
plement that ration by one bowl Of
cabbage soup a day. One bun and one
bowl of cabbage soup a day-for a
Nursing mother!
Even allowing for the reduction OF
the birth rate due to the war, there
must have been forty thousand births
in Pelgium since the Germans came.
There will be forty thousand more in
this winter of hardship and %privation.
How MANY of the newly-arrived forty
thousand have already died unneces.
sarily-undecorated, unsung victims Of
this war-no one will ever kncsv.
How many of the coming forty thou.
sand will die this winter depends up.
on us in America-upon how much
food we send to the nursing mothers,
how much milk to the babies.
No Christmas in our time has
brought such a call for the Christmas
| spirit as this. Belgium is starving.
America is trying to feed the Belgians.
The best we can do is to give them
quarter rations this winter - Just
enough to keep soul and body togeth.
er. We cannot do even that unless ~.
cry American helps. A barrel Of -four
will pull two Belgian adults through
this winter. A Ease Of condensed
milk will save the lives Of three Bel.
rian children. A few tins of meat will