New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1917-06-21
Malnutrition Fatal to Chill
dren, Says New York
Man Here from Berlin
All Rations Reduced
nsc,ares Housewives Abandon
Kitchens and Eat in Gov
eminent Restaurants

=. Atlantic Port. June 2o.-The Ger
sys,em Of food distribution ana
rsrr,sn economic conditions were oe-
80 bv Wallingford Riegger' OF 'oS
riverside Drive, New York "hen ne
-.,,,sd this port from Berlin to-day
an a Danish steamer. -.
'D ror the last three years and hali
-, p;orrer and his family have lived
.I' p.rl;r They left the German cap
~ orly three days before the United
S 80 declared war. Although an
.morican. Mr.. Riegger has occupied the
~ :. CONDUCTOR Of the Bluthner Or
cb.stra in Berlin.
m,l.boueh the food situation in Ger
u.,y Is acute. it has not yet reached
49,. ,oirt 20 make the people revolt
~ p;.oger said "The great trouble
:. that there is no variety. Last win
- !, was impossible for the civilian
.orrlatjon to obtain vegetables. despite
re fact that they were plentiful. All
Vas said 10 have been sent to the
army.
States Run independently
~Tbat was untrue. The people IN the
,grarian districts had plenty, but they
would not ship into the cities or the
rrea. manufacturing districts. There
are two great distractions TO the Ger
man distribution plan. The first IS
that the various provinces refuse to in
.erchanre products, but keep all to
themselves. All the states keep their
old limits. as prior TO 1s4S, and decline
TO ship their products across the Dor
ders
"The other obstruction is the Central
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES purchas-
inc society-to which all the public
officials and their friends belong There
mas been much graft in it, and the or
ranization refused to deliver TO the
rublic the necessities of life. Through
+, friend Of mine was able TO obtain a
hama great luxury-but was forced
n nav for il 40 marks, while another
friend bought two geese at 800 marks
apiece.
Housekeeping Difficult
housekeeping in Berlin is difficult
under the present allotment OF food
stuTs. Last winter and spring we were
allowed only one-eighth of pound OF
butter and one-half pound OF sugar a
week for each person. while one egg a
month and one-hali litre of milk day
for each child under eight was the gov
eminent regulation.
"For three weeks we could obtain no
potatoes. and until January 10 we were
allowed goose fat TO supplement butter,
but then that was stopped"
M. Riegger declared that the ma
iority of the people had stopped house
keeping and were attending the Nit
telskuche "-government restaurants
where meals with no variety were
served fairly cheaply
He said that despite the high cost
Of living the majority Of the people
were so imbued with the thought OF
victory that no sacrifice seemed too
great. Many of the Berlin shops car
RED large quantities Of canned goods
in their display windows, but the peo-
rle never made any complaint that
they couit not be purchased. since it
was contrary 70 the government de-
cree.
No Starvation in Germany
There is no starvation in Germany"
he said. "but the people, and especially
the children. are suffering severely
from malnutrition-'hun typhus' II
is called which really means that when
sickness occurs their systems haven't
the powers Of resistance or former re-
operative powers. In the cases Of
younger ehildren hunger typhus' is
nearly always fatal