The daily telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1901-1926, 1916-03-20
As Result of Bad Internal Man
agement of Greece, De-
CIares Correspondent.

ATHENS, March 20.-"Greece is
much more likely to be starved into
war than German Is to be starved out
of It," said a prominent official of the
present Greek government to the AS
ISOLATED Press correspondent. The
expression Is scarcely accurate, for
while the prices of the ordinary COM
modities Of life and especially food
stuffs have In many instances doubled
and In virtually all instances great
~ increased In the last year, the fault
Is largely with Greece. II there be
serious discomfort in the country, 1t
Is quite as much due to bad internal
management as to the mastery OF the
Mediterranean maintained by the
Franco-Brltish feet. The starving
process. therefore, Is much more apt
to lead to trouble for the. present
Greek cabinet than, unaccompanied
by any other circumstance, to
Greece's enforced participation In the
war. &
For the common people OF Greece
the situation is rapidly growing des-
perate. The streets Of Athens are
alive with beggars. The island OF Sa-
mos Is in a state OF sporadic revolt.
Pireus and Patras have had disqulet-
Ing demonstrations of popular discon-
tent under the increased cost OF liy-
ing. While a million and quarter
pounds OF potatoes rot on the ground
in Thessaly for lack OF transport, the
price OF potatoes In Athens has risen
from twenty-four cents to forty-eight
cents a pound in the last year. Yet
the second attempt to tlx maximum
prices Of foodstuffs, which went into
effect at the end of January and
which Is supposed to be vigorously en-
forced by the police set the whole-
sale price of potatoes at three and
one-ftth cents a pound; maximum
and the retail price at four cents a
pound. Potatoes today, therefore,
cost twelve times the legal price and
double the market price of a year
ago, though there Is no lack Of pota-
toes within days sale OF Athens.
Prices Soar.
1t is much the same with almost
every other article Of food normally
within reach of people of moderate
means. No cargoes Of rice have been
held up by the police boats OF the al
lied powers-yet rice, which in jan
uary, 1915, was four and nine-tenths
cents per pound today bring ten and
two-ffths cents. Mutton, the princi-
pal meat consumed in Greece, was ten
cents a pound year ago; now II
sells for nineteen cents-and Greece
supplies her own mutton and to spare.
Beef was nine and three-htths cents
now it is twenty-one cents a pound.
Frech fish, in a country where fishing
Is one of the leading occupations.
brought thirteen and one half cents
to fifteen cents a year ago-and now
run from seventy-flve cents to $1.08.
Onions, for the peasants soup cost
one and three-tenths cent per pound
in January, 1916; today the peasant
must pay four and four-afths cents
nor pound-or eat his SOUP unhav-
ored. Bread. when It can be had at
all. which is by no means always and
even then only after hours OF waiting
In line before the bakeries. Is 4.8
cents pound. against three and two-
fits cents a pound a year ago.
In some instances, this anomalous
situation Is due to the control exer-
cised by the allied feet over the conl-
merce OF the Mediterranean. Notably
has this been the case with coal and
until recently. with petroleum.. 1t is
not that the Allied powers deliberate
ly hold up shipments Of coal to
Greece In order TO cripple Greek In
ternal transport, but that the Allied
nations themselves have none too
much coal to spare and certainly no
very great number Of vessels avail
able for its carriage. IL coalfi high
in Greece, so 1t Is also,in France; but
the French government has had the
foresight to provide against anything
like coal famine, while the Greek
government has not
Coal Is High.
1T Is on this account that from $40
DO $50 per ton has been frequently
offered for coal at tlte waters edge,
IN Pireus, with none 10 be had even
at that price. For whenever coal
does reach Greece, Il Is snapped UP
by members Of the present cabinet
i