The West Virginian. [volume] (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1914-1974, 1916-01-17
GREAT EXPLOITS Of
SIBERIAN COMMAND
Former Diplomatic Who
Served With ItTells
About Record.
:.


WET 1nsGermany, unless teach package
5ofSbreads 81 addressed to an individual
prisoner. This order has caused con
ster1ation to those in charge OF the
bread supply to prisoners, as they say
it III practically impossible to send
individual packages except to q rev,
SandEthatGthe great bulk Of prisoners
will have their bread supply cut on.
Theygdelare. too, that back OF this
order IS a sinister move to strike such
terror among the Allies on the starv-
ing Condition OF their prisoners, that
they will be willing to listen to peace.
The international Red Cross organ
sization5has it's headquarters here, aa'
ministering its affairs for the Whole
world at this central point sGustaVe
Adoe, a,distinguished Swiss citizen, ls
atgtheS head, and Max Dollfust an Al
satan Of strong French sentiment IS
l$head Of the bureau for prlsoners-oL-
WAR! AS such Mr.. Dollfus was made
director OF the bread supply furnished
French prisoners.of.war in Germany,
and5its was he who told the Assocta-
tedSPresgs OF the order OF Dec. ~, M
tha#EfaYe effect 1t would have.
bread Is the very element OF a
Frenchman's existence" said he,
Won can cut off anything else and
Ehe8canTstand 1t, but he must have
bread. Now we have built UP a vast
Organization by which bread has beer
poured into Germany to meet this pr!'
mary&want. "A small part OF 1t has
gone in individual packages. but the
great bulk has been without indtvid-
eualanames, as 1t is impossible to des'
iEnate each one OF about 100000 pris.
iGners in a daily bread supply. And
yetSthis order Of Dec. 81 cuts of ov.
arything not addressed in IN tndlvtd'
#uaI8 package, direct to the prisoner.
SoSthat the great bulk OF this supply
4 fstopped.
6 the serious effect OF short bread
Tations to prisoners" added MI.
5Doolfus. 1.-THE prisoners returning TO
France have been conveyed by me to
Lyons and other points in central
France, and I have personally WIZ
messed their condition and heard their
reports: For example, in one party
81 400 prisoners which conveyed,
$50 had developed tuberculosis from
Fbeing{in a famished condition Q a
lack OF bread-they were literally
emaciatedG skeletons stricken with IA:
ta1Edisease. And this was typical OF
ftheSresult3 OF short bread rattons.
THE German ration to prisoners,
Mr.. Dollfus went on, lis n small
loaf, about four inches In diameter, n
fhefmorning. This is intended for the
Eday!gbut the famished men eat at
once and that ends their bread sup
sply9 for the&day, only a soup being
Even at noon. That Is the reason
WeShave been pouring in this bread
supply, largely in bulk, but to indivtd-
Sualss so far as they could be traced. 1t
,ShasS proved a life-saver to thousands.
AndSyet by this order Of the 9th, his
bread supply In bulk Is cut on.
GThis can mean only another great
gfragedy,,$s said Mr.. Dollfus, and am
gc%onvinced there must be a purpose
behind such a move-a purpose 70
force the Allies to consider terms or
$pyesaace rather than see their W peo-
3~plesdying of starvation. And we ex-
cept. also, that II the bulk supply is
scutAoff, this will soon be followed by
cutting on the individual. packages, on
background that it is too great an un.
dertaking to distribute these indtvtd-
ual%daily supplies. And so We are
faced with the present stoppage of
the bulk supply and the probable
stoppage Of the remaining Individual
supply
am seeking as best as possible
sfoameet this condition, by organizing
FaScomplete service of individual pack
ages but It will be a work requiring
Smuch help from private sources-in
WhichsI hope America will help as It
did In Belgium-and will be support
ed by the Allied governments Us Tar
iasgpossible. But it Is a strange ract
that the Hague Convention designed
for the betterment of the world,
stands in the way OF a government
helping its own prisoners. One pro-
Vision of the Hague agreement Is that
stheEcountry holding prisoners III be
$chargedEwith feeding them, and that
StheScountry from which the prisoners
come5sha have no control Of the mat
ter. That provision, made in peace
times. has had an unfortunate effect
I'm actua1 war times, and France and
England are thus prohibited by the
HagueSagreement from officially seek
ing to control the bread or food sup
sply OF their prisoners in Germany.
Therefore we must organize 1t with
out direct government support, but
Withft the expectation that the Allied
Governments will give it semi-oittcial
Recognition without encroaching on
the Hague agreement.
.sTaking about 100000 French pris-
toners as a basis, perhaps half OF them
cam be reached after by the efforts
iofEfamilies and friends in sending IN.
diyidual3 packages. That leaves 1906
N000EtoS be looked after daily. 1t takes
8EkilosgTof bread to supply one man
adequately for a month, or 100000
kiIoB5 for $50 prisoners a month. I am
&payingA46H centimes per kilo (9.15
cents) but the cost may advance to
70Ecentimes GA cents.) This makes
aboutS75 cents per mar per month, or
about. 100000 francs ($120,o0o) for
100000 men per month. That is the
problem which I am trying to work
out-aIls resulting from the order cut
ting on the bulk bread supply"
EUNERAL OF E. z. sALTER
Funeral services over the body OF
E.&Z!SSalter, whose death occurred on
Thursday at his home on Madison
street, were held on Sunday afternoon
fromEth residence conducted by DR..
81 C.sBroomheld OF the M. P. Temple.
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