The Chesterfield advertiser. [volume] (Chesterfield C.H., S.C.) 1884-1978, 1917-04-26

Is now realized better than It was a
few months ago that the conditions of
life during war are utterly disastrous
to the interests of peace. The other
day Dutch farm hand who had been
working in Germany most of the time
since the war began returned to his
home In Holland. He painted n pic-
ture of conditions in rural Germany.
He had been the one able bodied man
on farm of more than 200 acres, II
had been his work to get maximum
OF production out of the land i'm the
face of the fact that he was the ONLY
really competent unit Of man power
there
In former times several men would
nave worked on that farm, amply sup
piied with live stock for power, for
meat and milk supplies, for the pro-
auction of fertilizers. But the last of
the men vas taken away to the army.
some OF the women to munition works
Ih" horses had been taken away to
the lighting forces and long step had
oeen taken toward destruction of the
othcr live stock to provide meat.
Fertilizers were almost utterly lack
ing. In anticipation of the cr0p sen
son OF 1917 he found that the stock of
seed had been drawn upon to Il ruin
Gus extent because Germany like the
rest of Europe, is living so largely up
on its capital.
Working long hours under the most
nrflnnnS "a 4,
months been underfed although well
paid. He simply could not stand the
strain and left his place. This is pic
ture of what may be seen and Is daily
being reported all over Europe Swift
zerland, Holland, Greece, tell of null
ttudcs in dire need of food. The Scan
dinavian countries suffer less for food
nut more for some other nccessaricS.
NeutraIs Also Suffer.
Yet 1T is not safe to presume that ir,
the outside world the wheat fields and
the stock resources of Canada and In
dia and Egypt, the Argentine and Aus
tralin, can be looked upon this wear
to make up EurOpe'S deficiencies. Ncu-
trails are suffering through the same
causes, even if not so aculcly, that are
diminishing the productive power of
Europe. Labor is scarce, machinery
and credit are almost impossible To- Sc
cure. Manufactured articles which rep
resent the least of Europc's troubles
thus far are not to be had by reason
of both the industrial and financial
breakdown.
The outside world cannot produce
food for bl0ckaded Germany and Aus
trin. The naval power of the allies
Will not permit IL to feed them. Wheth.
er 1t will be able to send its surplus To
the entente nations must depend on the
capacity of an overworkcd and under
tonncd merchant marine. There is
more acute need for shipping than ever
before in modern times, while the sup
ply Of it is being diminished day by
day. The world is no longer on d nor.
nal basis. Credit and money, even
gold money, mean little. The tonnage
unit Of shipping capacity is the stand.
ard by which the capacities of nations
to live and support themselves must
be gagged
BY all accounts there is no real hun.
George has Informed the nation that
It's food supplies are lower than ever
before; he has required II drastic limi.
tation of imports other than sheer ne.
ceSStieS of life so that there may he
cargo space to bring these ncceSSaricS
England has not only To supply It's own
requirements from abroad but largely
to provide the shipping that shall bring
food to France and to Italy. 1t must
find means to carry troops and sup
plies to the near East and necessaries
of war to Russia.
Wastage Also a Factor.
This rough outline explains how the
war is coming To be looked upon as one
more likely to be determined by eco
n"mic than military attritiOn. Economic
wnStage, breaking down the physical
strength and the morale of armies may
help bring the war to the determine
tive military or naval victory. 1t is
for that decision that England and heI
allies are desperately bidding. They
believe that If Germany is now begin
ming to feel the pinch of hunger she
will feel 1t more acutcly Il year hence
when the blockade will have become
tighter and only partial crops will have
been raised. England and her allies
unafraid, are tightening their belts ant
preparing for just This kind of war
Germany has undertaken to Starve
England; the allies to Starvc Germany
Barring some tremendous, d"tcrmina
tive event that nobody really expect.
the war will not be ended till after tn,
pinch Of absolute hunger shall hay,
been felt by many millions. Pcstilrnc,
and suffering in many forms would ac.
company such Il disaster. Yet the wai
steadily moves on toward such eli
max.
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