The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1916-08-29
WARS TRAGEDIES ARE. REVEALED IN
 POLISH LEIIERS
Sufferers In Russian Provinces Occupied by Germans Send
 100000 Letters Here.

J
 100000 Letters Here.
 New York, Aug. 29-More than f00, 900 letters have been received by the Hebrew Sheltering and Immigrant Aid Society within two weeks from families in the provinces occupied by the German Army in Russia and Po- land. The letters are forwarded by the society to relatives of the writers In America, in accordance with ar rangements- made, with the German government by Isidore Hershfield, who recently visited Germany for that purpose.s The plan has just begun to produce results, and a consignment of more than 35,000 messages was re- ceived on Saturday, the society an- nounced yesterday.
 Before Mr. Hershfield's understand ing with the German authorities no mail from the occupied provinces reached America. Even now the writers are confined to a form mes sage giving only the barest informa- tion, but these brief notes are the only news from home which many of the friends here have received since the beginning of the war. Occasionally careless censor overlooks a slight di- { gression from the formula and per- lnYits a more personal touch to slip through.
 The society has had cards printed for distribution in the provinces, de- filming the nature of the information which is permitted to pass and leav- : ling a space for writing opposite. >S, xxriff on these cards. sThe writers are allowed to give their names and addresses, to say whether they are sick or well. whether any member of the family has died during the course of the war. and whether financial aid is needed. Unless the letter is addressed directly Ito the Hebrew Sheltering and Immi- grant Aid Society, it is not permitted to pass.
 With these limitations there is small room for much that Is personal, but it is often easy to read between the { lines and imagine the circumstances of the writers The officials of the society hay discovered some particu- larly pathetic cases, although it Is difficult for one who looks through the letters to see anything but trag- Iedy in any of them. They are nearly all pressing appeals for aid, with sem ltences of two or three words telling of the death of father or mother or sister. but no opportunity to tell how or where.
 Occasionally there Is bit of uncon- gcious lumcr. One letter from War saw began with a message to the so- ciety as follows: "We are in a very critical situation and need money, and we accordingly ask you and your hon Aored society to deliver this letter to our relative in America" The ad- dress, obviously copied from letter head, is then given as North Station ! e&1e and 4Commissicn Stables, 103 and 106 Beverly Street, Horses of every description always on hand, Boston, Massachusetts"
 There is no humor in the letter in- closed, which reads:s My dear fa- ther-a and d-snother-in-law we ask you very much to send this money as we are in a very critical situation. We send you most heartfelt greetings. Dear parents-in-law, all can tell you Is that have not heard from my hus- band and pray to God that he is werl.'' s-
 The writer Is not allowed to say whether her husband is fighting or where she believes him to be.
 Another letter was addressed to M. Hessler, 17 Beaubiem Street, Ladies' Furnishings, Detroit. It was an ap- peal from a wife to her husband to send money immediately, but without a word of explantiony of her plight
 Another, postraarked Godorowa, and addressed to Solomon Ginsberg, Ro- chester, TssY., read:
 xTy ga marks which you sent, but it is highly necessary that you send us greater amount of money, as L.eiser is sick and has been sick the whole winter" :. Not aA line as to the nature or seri- ousness of the illness is permitted, and the recipient must guess for himself whether it is a bullet wound or ttber- cu1oSig which threatens his relatives life Occasionally a writer attempts to exceed the limits of permitted infor- nation. and the letter is then usually received with half the page clipped or. often manglfns it so that what is left is unintel,igible.
 The letters come on all sorts of pa- per. as the She1tering and Innmigran, Aid soctety's forms are copied abroad where the paper shortage is more stringent than here, and as a result yellow, blue. and pink envelopes oi varying I,a'ity are used.
 As the society's plan has gradually become known 1t has brought about many odd postal arrangements. One woman who lived in Lodz left the city when the Germans entered, and fled to- the interior of Russia, while hel husband remained behind She now writeJ to him through the society ir New York Letters have been rec ..vef by the -ociety for many South Ameri. can countries. and even the British colonies in South Africa have sent tc New York thousands of letters to be Forwarded to the os cupfed provinces
 The extent of these clearing house operations has made necessary large lstan of clerks. and many of then must be language experts to deciphel ltne addresses. In its operation the Isociety's bureau resem, 'o- in some de lgree the dead letter office.
 NAME CLINTON AVENUE