Semi-weekly herald., 1915-12-06


Association for Relief in Belgium.
Now these slender resources are
gone.
There has been no revival of indus
tries in Belgium. Their factories are
not in operation. The little farms
nave been titled to some extent, but
rather inefficently because all the
horses and other animals were taken
by the German army.
During the past year the American
Association has rendered relief to the
amount of S7,O00,000 month. Ameir-
cans did not furnish all this money
Hundreds of rich Belgians have con
tributed with liberal hand. Relief
has also come from Canada, New
foundland, Australia and other coun-
tries. Probably one-half the money
spent by the association came from
| the United States. The work has
been carried on by America becaue
this country is neutral. No other
man, excepting Herbert C. Hoover
who is at the head of the relief asso-
citation, could have continued to work
against the constant opposition of the
military powers in Belgium. The
telephone and telegraph lines in Bel
gium are not available for 'outsid-
ers," hence the relief association has
been compelled to use automobiles for
lthe purpose of carrying messages from
one part of the country to the other
TO properly keep track of the work.
These messengers are students in
American colleges, or Rhodes men,"
from oxford. The automobiles have
, been supplied by rich Belgians thru
out the country. Belgian shoemak-
ers repair old shoes and work for
nothing Belgian printers print the
enormous number of tickets and
blanks without compensation, the re-
: lief association only furnishes the
white paper.
Ships loaded with foodstuffs are
unloaded at Rotterdam, from which
point canals radiate thruout Belgium.
There is canal from Rotterdam to
Brussels.
This much is preliminary.
The Red Cross has furnished very
little money to the American Re-
lief association. The Rockefeller
Foundation furnished some money at
the start, but is now engaged in re-
lief work in Northern France and Po-
; land.
The test of American liberality
comes now for the reason that the
German government has issued an or
der requiring Belgians to pay to the
German treasury $S,000,O00 month.
This sum must be contributed or else
men will be held as hostages, or some
other process will be taken. There
is no escape from the tax. During
the first year of the German occu-
pancy Brussels paid $6,0O0,O00 per
month into the German treasury as
reward for not being destroyed.
This is the old fashioned tribute.
Now all of Belgium is included in
the assessment and the tax has in
creased from $6,000,O0O to $S,O0O,OOO
per month.
The reader can understand what
this means by wondering what the
people of Iowa would do if they were
held as a hostage and compelled to
pay $S,OO0,00O per month. Now un-
: der these conditions. when the men
' of Iowa are asked 10 contribute to
mo A ID II.
in Belgium they do not reply, "Let
George do it." They reply, Let the
Germans do it," They say the Ger
mans having impoverished the Bel
: gians ought to take care of them
The same argument applies to war
ridden districts of Poland and North
ern France.
; What will the American people do ?
Justice says( "Withhold the money"
Humanity says, Hand over the mon
ey." Shall we follow Justice or HUI
manity? For year we have been
following Humanity, but the new levy
on the part of Germany against Bel
GUM brings the subject up once more.
Every one supposed when the first
year had expired that the German levy
against Brussels would come to an
end and that there would be no more
of it.
A Letter from Rotterdam to the edi-
tor of the Capital says the American
association can keep the Belgians
from starvation only three weeks, un-
less new supplies come in.
The rich and generous people of the
United States must decide the fate
OF Belgium, and its women and child
rem. There are 100000 Belgians in
| Holland summarized h.r