The Washington herald., 1915-02-22
PEOPLE STARVING
In MEXICO CITY
High Prices and the Cost of
Travel Make Leaving
Almost Impossible.
LEADERS WITHOUT FOOD
That Is Why So Many Presidents Have
Failed Lately-Stste Department
Will Not Help.

The American people cannot begin to
realize what conditions are in Mexico ii
the present time and the need for as
sistance from this government by its citi-
zens who cannot get out Of the country.
The prices OF living in the capital have
gone up to many times their real value
and even passage on a steamer from
Vera Cruz to New York has mounted to
500. which is many times what 1t Is to
London
This statement was made last evening
by a woman who recently returned to
the States from the war-tOrn republic
and who knows the status OF the real
Mexican situation.
Ham Sells at 30 . Pound.
LAS instances of the prices, I'll only
mention that ham has reached a sale
price of 50 pound; butter and cheese
are So pound: shoes sell from $50 to $40
a pair and other things are correspond
ingly high. They sell charcoal. but only
in scent lots, which are mighty small
The real reason why Carranza left
Mexico City. why. Gutierrez left. why
Villa could not stay and why Gen. OBJ
regon's forces have either left or soon
will leave is that they cannot get the
subsistence for their men and therefore
have to go. That was why Gen. Huerta
had to leave.
The railroad running from Vera Cruz
to the capital is destroyed for a distance
of five miles through a hilly country.
Therefore. when one goes from the CAPT.
tai to the seaport he has to 'hoof it. for
that distance. Mexico being a hot coun-
try, that walk is equal to one of thirty
miles in this climate. OF course one can
get a horse if he's a millionaire, but
there are few of these gentlemen left in
that country today.
why should the State Department re-
tain the 5000 it has to help in the work
Of getting people out Of Mexico while
there is so great a need for 1t? Why
could not this government run transports
to and from Vera Cruz and Tampico in
order to bring out those Americans who
are left stranded?
Money Here IL Not Used.
THE fixing of the price Of voyage at
$500 prohibits many thousands from leav-
ing. American women and children are
sweltering and starving In Mexico City
at this moment Meanwhile tho State
Department does nothing but say: Well,
we've got $1,000. but what can we do?'
They probably forget that those Ameri-
can citizens have as much right to live
and be protected by the Stars and Stripes
as though they were living in the States.
But our government will allow the de-
fenseless Americans to starve or be killed
without turning a hand to save them.
las another instance Of the awful con-
dition in Mexico. I see in this mornings
paper where Henry 8. Rhoads, manager
Of the Crown Cork and Seal Company.
of Baltimore, which Is the largest
bottling works in Mexico City, has
been seized by Gen. Zapata and
that Consul Silliman tried to get into
communication with Zapata, but found 1t
impossible because the wire connections
around Mexico were useless. know Mr..
Rhoads, his wife and their children.
Also I know what must have been that
woman's feelings as she saw her husband
lassoed like a steer by the Zapatista
Indians and dragged along the road to
what may be his death while she walled
behind him, and the Indians only grinned
and spurred up their ponies.
Il tell you 1t is an awful state of
affairs and Is a terrible indictment of
our State Department and its officials