The Sunday telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1914-1927, 1916-02-13
CHANCE FOR ALL OF
US TO HELP BELGIUM
War Correspondent Tells Of
the Winters Need among
n the Destitute.
(By WILL IRwIN.)

Belgium, our own most important part
so far, in Armageddon. An aeroplane
fight is more interesting, essentially,
than an operation In high finance, and
a battle always draws moro attention
than social movement Just ut pres
ent the human race is constituted that
way. so very few ] suppose. really
understand that groupot Americans
is running over In war torn Europe
tho greatest charitable undertaking
tho world ever saw; and running 1t
in such n manner that II may change
and overturn tho old methods OF or
ganlzed charity. Lord cllr2on, mem
Der of the British cabinet. said last
spring ut tho Mansion House that
hitherto public relief on largo scale
had been synonymous With incompe-
tonce or corruption, or both, and that
here, for the first time, the work had
been done with absolute economy and
efficiency.
It has been n miracle Of organlza-
tion; less than one per cent OF the
money has gone for overhead" ex-
penses. Men such rs Hoover. the
chairman. and Bates, until recently.
tho American chairman have let
world wide personal interests go to
pot in order to work without salary
for tho commission, II has been q
miracle OF speed. Less than three
weeks after the call came the COM
mission had begun to cut red tape, and
was pouring stream OF wheat into
Belgium. 1t has been miracle or
diplomacy. Tho commissioners have
been walking tight wire between
the conflicting hatreds and suspicious
OF three warning powers, The whole
story will not be told until after the
war. We have thirty young Amer
leans running food districts in Bel
GUM. They live In the midst OF pa
thos and humor and even personal
danger; but they cannot write about
It, because they are pledged TO hold
their tongues and pens about their
experiences In Belgium, Cnspar Whit
ney Is down in northern France. spe-
cial advocate Of the commission with
the German great staff. Trained re-
porter that he ls, he too works under
tho pledge OF silence. But some day
we shall know It oil, and It will be q
great and romantic story.
Tho problem Is very complex. The
active executives Of tho commission
are volunteers. Most Of The UNDER
lings are working for bare expenses.
In that sense, 1t is all charity. In
another sense, 1t is not. Early In the
gamo the commission found that o.
100000 people could not DO fed with
certainty by the charity OF tho world.
Ways were found to hypothecate Bel
gian property; paper currency was
issued; those who had anything left
were enabled to pay their way. There
remained, however, two or three mil
lion factory operatives who had been
out Of work since the war began, and
who had nothing at all. The outside
world has been obliged to pay for
feeding them. wish | might say that
| America has done most of this, but !
can not. Up to October last we had
given only seven cents per capita,
whereas New Zealand had given a
dollar and a quarter per capita. At
that, the commission has had to strain
every resource OF charity. Now arises
another mergency-curlous Distress
ing, yet in some aspects humorous.
There is a general embargo on wool
and cotton, as well as on made-up
clothes. Not a Belgian loom has
turned since the war began, In short
there has been no new supply Of cloth
ing for seventeen or eighteen months.
That Industrial population would get
no garments even had they money.
Rapidly, they approach nakedness.
The schools in some factory towns
are closed because the children can
not dress to go out Of doors, All over
Belgium, three or four children Of q
large family are lying abed 80 that
the fourth or fifth child may go out
and play In the only garments which
remain to the family. They are a
people IN rags-without patches.
Patches take cloth, and there is no
spare cloth.
The Belgians will need at least $4,-
100000 worth of new clothing Of ma
terlals this winter. Second hand
clothing will not do this time. Owing
to war regulations, cargo Of second
hand clothes would have to DO unload
ed, fumigated and RELOADED three
times In transit between tho United
States and the Dutch border That
would make the second hand gar
ments cost more than new ones, and
three tumigations will ruin all but
the stoutest stun. The commission
rather prefers the materials to the
made-up goods. There are millions
Of idle people in Belgium. TO give
them work at making clothing In in
itself q charity.
Because the stun need be neither
fashionable nor tasteful-just clothes
for warmth and decency-the COM
mission has started out after the
remnants" and shop worn goods"
Of the United States. There are in
our shops millions Of yards oi cloth
which Is scarcely salable because the
material is passe or because The pat
tern failed to hit public fancy. Also,
there are probably hundreds oithousr
ands Of shoes which will Ego out as q
sacrifice" because they are out Of
style: The commission wants these
things, and 1t wants the American
people to buy them. Also, 1t wants
them quickly. The quicker they come
the less pneumonia, tuberculosis and
general debility there win be III Bel
GUM. ~ ~ I'll 20 flIA ~
The American Offices Of the COM
mission are at II Broadway, New
York, and the commissioners are eager
IN anawar innuirfes from those WIN