Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1915-01-21
The Congo Avenged.

| of parents shall be visited on their
| children and their childrens children.
| The sins of Belgium's rulers have
| been terribly brought home to her
| people. The horrors of the Congo
| have been avenged. If the hands Ct
| Belgian children have been chopped
| off to prevent their use against Ger
many, so were the hands of innocent
blacks in Africa Topped off as punish
ment because they We're slow in
| bringing in rubber.
| How many of the guilty live to
| know? How many of Belgiums in
nocent who opposed the hand of the
oppressor, have suffered with the
| guilty? AS Americas heart ached for
| the black people of the Congo. SO it
| now bleeds for the innocents of Bel
GUM. 1t is doing much to relieve the
! suffering there, as it helped to bring
an end to the horrors in Africa.
The Commission for Relief in Bel
/ uIn IDS lSSutu d ildIiubOOh lutCllue0
as guide to state organizations and
! charitable societies engaged in rails
ing funds for food and clothing for
Belgians. In it reasonable statements
of conditions appeal to us as being
fair, sensible and truthful. 1t Is
urged that supplies for food be con-
fined to non perishable articles and
| that vegetables and fruits be omitted
from shipments. Flour, grain, rice.
dried beans. peas, condensed milk,
etc. are best. The COWS of Belgium
| were mostly slaughtered for beef by
the Germans. Therefore, the children
of Belgium are without milk. Fur
thermore, in this period Of reduced
supplies it is probable that most nurs-
ing mothers will have little or no
breast milk for their babies. Con-
Genscd milk or prepared infant foods
will satisfy one of the most pathetic
needs.
Blankets were generally COM
mandeered by the Germany army in
its passage through Belgium. The
need for blankets is probably more
imperative than that for clothes.
While certain amount of old cloth
ing can be used, it is very much bet
ter to send new clothing, no matter
how cheap in quality.
However, all relief organiza tons
should bear in mind that food is By
all odds the greatest necessity The
people of Belgium can doubtless get
through this winter alive with what
Clothes fuel and blankets they have
already They cannot survive with
out food.
a statement is also made as to GER
tain rumors and sensational reports.
Declaration is made that:
1t is not true, as stated in a widely
circulated interview with a German
official that If America had not been
SO soft-hearted Germany would have
fed the Belgians." Germany, for rea-
sons stated before, never had any in
tention Of feeding the Belgian civilian
population. That interview has been
officially denied from Berlin.
1t is not true that the Germans
nave been appropIiating TO their own
military uses food-stuffs sent by the
american Commission. The members
OF the Commission charged with the
distribution of American relief in
Belgium, together with several disin-
terested Investigators who hava
looked into the question, report that
the Germans are facilitating the pas
sage of the b2rges by which the sup
plies go down the Belgian canals, are
giving every assistance in passing t
on to the Belgian population, and
have not so far appropriated an
ounce Of food or pound Of clothing.
I 1t is not true, as stated in certai 1
press reports, that the Germans are
imposing a heavy tax on the entry If
American supplies into Belgium. They
go in absolutely free of duty.
1t is not true that the weather. citi-
zens of Belgium, We're they SO dis
posed, could buy enough food this
winter to feed that Belgian popula
ton. There is no money in Belgium.
Rich and poor are alike bankrupt
1t is not true that the Belgians
could earn money to feed themselves
If they would only go to work."
There is no work to do except per-
haps digging trenches and assisting
in making military supplies for the
conquerors. Being a manufacturing
nation, Belgium depends upon i'm
ports of raw material and exports Of
finished material, and upon coal
There are no exports or imports, and
! there is no railroad traffic to haul
coal to the factories Existing rail-
road traffic will scarcely suffice TO
serve the Belgian cities this winter
with enough coal to keep the inhabi-
tants from freezing.