The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1915-01-13

4 arms bundle wrapped In rags. The
slant of her back showed that the
bundle contained a child--there Is an
attitude of motherhood which none
can mistake.
Death Of Infant.
j The women in the nearest group
followed the pantomime with their
i fearless, hopeless eyes.
j What is it?'' | asked.
i For time none Of the women an
tswered. Then one spoke in dead
tone.
Her baby is dead she said. "she
had no milk in her.
All that happened on the fringe OF
Belgium, to the refugees who had
made their way out and we're nearing
safety, and enough comfort to keep
soul and body together.
4 l could multiply instances from the
observation of others. There was,
for example. the group of two hun
dred refugees who arrived in Holland
early In November. They carried
WAlA '1ACm lOuI = cdS, u0W UOIn UuOASo'
i 1t was the same story which one
hears everywhere. The mothers were
SO reduced by privation that they had
no milk of their own. AS for cows
milk, it was not to be had for any
money II
4 Add another picture, brought out
by an American from Belgium. He
stood one morning by the back door
OF German cook camp, watching
tgroup of Belgian women grabbing
Through the trash-heap piled up be-
hind the camp. All these women car
ried babies.
) What are they doing?" he asked
German sergeant with whom he had
struck up acquaintance.
i German Soldiers Help.
4 "Scraping our condensed milk
]cans,' said the sergeant. Its the
only way to get milk for their babies.
: I've seen them run their fingers
round a can which looked as bright
. las a new coin, and hold them into the
. babies mouths to suck. My com
pany," he added, "has been getting
, along without milk in its coffee and
| giving it to these women. We've re-
! Iceived no orders to the contrary
and we're mostly family men. But
iwe're an exception; and 1t doesn't go
very far.s
J, Here is 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 once busy.
pleasant boulevard Bischofsheim. A
woman collapses on bench set along
the sidewalk after the fashion Of the
greater Paris. In her arms is baby.
A child staggers along. clinging to her
apron The woman's face is blue and
yellow; she is on the verge Of col
lapse The baby, surely not over FIVE
months old, has pale, lead-colored
skin. It's mouth is open as though
set that way. It's eyes are closed.
I. Aid is Given.
! Two women of Brussels pass this
unhappy group. They hurriedly ex-
change some words, turn back to the
woman on the bench. Then one stands
guard while the other hastens for
some milk and Dread-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. 1t drinks as though it
had never drunk otherwise.
To the face of the mother comes a
few patches of color. She slowly re7I
covers until she is able to eat bit
| Of bread The baby opens it's mouth,
drinks more greedily. ut has not
fed since two days" the mother
whispers.
! The mother tries to rise from the
bench but she cannot. The elder
drinks the milk that is left. 1t looks
curiously at the piece of bread as If
lit did not know what 1T was. The
mother forces 1t to eat A crowd has
gathered, murmuring. This sight is
not new. yet each time 1t draws
little crowd. Every one would like to
Igive-but no one can. Who is not
moor at this moment? Many of them
have children at home who today
weigh less than the day they were
! born.
| clear View of Situation.
Let us view the situation in cold
blood. Belgium is shut off from the
world--ringed with steel. Her own
food supply was used up long ago,
either by the people ior by their con-
.,arors Tho cattle were first of all
! to go: even in August saw the Ger
mans killing mich cows for rations.
COW or small dairy herd is left
here or there: but they are the excep.
tons.
| The supply Of condensed milk ran
short long ago. Now milk is neces-
sity to most civilized children between