Evening journal., 1918-12-10

Now that the first smoke OF the great
battle Is clearing away, and II becomes
possible TO discern In a measure what
has been accomplished and what stlll
remains 10 be accomplished, one fact
seems TO stand out with ever-increas-
ing clearness, and that is that the Al
lies have only completed one task TO
find another, Just as imperative and Just
as honorable, lying before them. The
world has been freed. II must now be
fed and clothed, rehabilitated and com
fOrted. The call for these things comes
In from every quarter, and. as might
be expected. II comes In most insist
emily from Germany Hardly was the
ink dry on the armistce which marked
the downfall Of that nation. after an
unparalleled effort on the part OF It's
rulers, supported by its people, to dom
mate the world and to put an end to
human liberty, than there began TO
come across the German frontiers thl
most abject appeals to the world for
food and clothing. Within a few days
all the familiar means which, during
the last four years, have been so in
discriminatory used TO hOOdwink peO-
pie everywhere were requisltioned for
this new campaign. The one-time Ger
man Colonial Minister, DR.. Solf, one OF
the foremost exponents Of Great Ger
many" sent out his appeal TO the Pres
dent OF the United States, and this was
followed, shortly afterward, by appeals
from the German women, exploiting all
those sympathies Of which every action
OF Germany, during the previous four
years, had been a denial.
Now as to the position OF Germany
I'm this matter, no one Is likely to be In
the least deceived Mr.. Hoover stated
quite bluntly. the other day. before hi
departure for Europe. that he was not
concerned in the least about German
And 10 is quite certain that anyone who
will for a moment calmly review the
situation need be under no misgivings
that the German people are really in
danger Of starvation, or anything ap-
preaching such a condition There are
other people throughout the world,
thousands and even millions OF them'
who are in far greater need than thos
Of Germany, and who have an lmmeas-
tirably greater claim for immediate at
tentOn.
There Is a call that this work OF relief
shall be done on an unparalleled scale
and perhaps the chief problem involved
Is the difficulty of realizing the Inn
mensty OF the task. In Asia Minor
alone, TO take the one instance IN which
something like accurate figures are
available, there are now nearly 4'OOO'-
900 refugees These people are for the
most part destitute; that is to say, they
are without food, clothing, or houses
and many thousands OF them are wan
dering about the countryside which mas
been swept clean even OF every ediDle
root. Many Of them are crowded INTO
towns and villages, where only the
wealthy can obtain food, and, as DR.
BARTON of the American Committee TOT
Armenian and Syrian Relief explained
10 a representative OF this paper some
time ago, unless the Allies are at thls
time forehanded in providing for these
people, the door OF opportunity VIII
open and find them unprepared 10 en-
ter in time TO save and provide Tor thein
Four and a half years ago, u Is sai'
10 say, such a problem as TINS Woul'
have seemed impossible OF solution
| An Indian famine, which, In the years
mast was perhaps the only parellel c
sueh a condition, was the merest TEN
| moral deficiency compared with m
nresent conditions in Asia Minor. Bu
Inc nroblem In Asia Minor, today, pre-
sonts only a 1.-THE OF the whole. TIT
RESTITUTION throughout the whole o
me Near East can be only very smal
nart of the destination oDlalhlhe
throuehout immense areas OF EUROPE