New-York tribune., 1918-11-20
First of Shipment of ESQ.,.
600 Tons Now on WAY
to Former Foes
Shipping Boards
Vessels Are Used
Government Makes Great
Purchases to Relieve
France and Belgium

A programme providing for the ship
ment OF 100000 tons of food from this
country for the relief of the civilian
population of Austria is now being car
rled out, with a portion of the planned
total already en- route, The Associated
Press learned yesterday The supplies
will be- shipped in vessels under the
control of the United States Shipping
Board, and will be distributed through
Austria by the machinery of the Com
mission for Relief in Belgium.
At the New York Office of the COM
mission, 165 Broadway, it was said that
the commission has lent it's agencies
to send emergency food shipments, the
destination of which shall not be de-
termined until the boats are at Eng
lish Channel ports on the northern
route and Gibraltar on the southern
route. BY the time these ships shall
reach the stipulated ports, it was stat
ed, Food Administrator Hoover. who
sailed on Saturday, will be able to de-
termine where there is the most urgent
need for the supplies. The vessels are
said to carry 100000 tons of foodstuffs.
Two Routes Chosen
The craft going to Gibraltar are ex-
pected to proceed to Adriatic and Medi-
terranean ports and the others to
French and Belgian ports. Advices
from the Washington Offices of the Bel
gian Relief Commission express be-
lief that the ships destined for Glib
raltar will eventually deposit their
cargoes at the port of Trieste for dis
tribution through Austria.
Huge quantities of food, especially
adaptable for shipping, have been pur-
chased during the last week by the
government, causing produce men gem
orally to believe that it is carrying
out plans to feed Europe. Govern
ment purchases of -four during the last
week amounted to 100000 barrels,
equivalent to 12,750,0OO bushels of
wheat. On bids which were opened
Monday alone the government pur-
chased 1,415,oOO barrels of -four and
175,00O barrels of oatmeal.
Five hundred thousand cans of con-
densed milk have been sent from Chi
cago in the last few days, it was re-
ported there yesterday, for shipment
abroad. This milk was purchased
from the Queen Elizabeth fund, and
most Of it will go to save Belgian
babies, 100000 of whom were left
helpless when their parents were de-
ported by the Germans.
Hoover Directs Work
That the Belgian Relief Commission
should be employed as the organiza-
tion to carry out the plans for feeding
Austria was not surprising news to
shipping and marketing circles. The
commission. which is headed by Her
bert Hoover, began its work in Novem-
her, 1914, and since that time has
shipped and distributed 3,1SS,6 ,6z6 long
tons of foodstuHs through Belgium
From October. 1915, to October, 1916,
the commission came to starving Bel
gums rescue with 1,017,323 tons of
shipping.
The commission has in active service
at the present time about eighty ships,
of total tonnage of 405,45O. The steam
ers can carry from 1000 to 5000 tons of
material each. 1t was said ct the com
missions Office here yesterday that all
the ships are now in service
One of the last acts of Mr. Hoover
before sailing last Saturday for Europe
was to appoint a special shipping com
mittee, headed by Theodore Whitmarsh,
of the food administration, to cooper
ate with the Shipping Board and the
Commission for Relief in Belgium in
facilitating the shipment of food to the
demorallzed civilian populations in the
countries devastated by war.
Plans Not Revealed
Neither the number of ships involved
in the present movement nor the pro-
portion that would be diverted at
Gibraltar for relief of Southern Europe
and the Near East could be learned as
food administration headquarters in
Washington.
The ships now on their way are
understood to be the first that have
left American ports with food for coun-
tries other than Northern France and
Belgium. 1t was said that more than
100000 tons of food monthly will
be required to relieve distress in Cen
tral Europe and the Near East.
Increased shipments from American
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