The Washington herald., 1918-06-09
BY JOHN LLOYD BALDERs ON.

London, June S-When Hans schmidt.
of Berlin. comes downstairs on Mon
day morning and finds his Tageblatt
lying beside hts plate at the breakfast
table. he does not snatch 1t up and
read eagerly OF colossal victories ~
the Western front. His FIRST thought
Is for his stomach.
Reductions in rations are generally
announced on Monday morning. ON
the rare occasions when the govern
ment has a bonus Of some unrationed
food to divide among millions of num-
cry mouths, 1t is on Monday that the
glad tidings are printed. SO Schmidts
eye travels up and down the columns,
his brow contracting. until he reads
Of transport confusion In the Ukraine
that will hold up food shipments in
definitely. He throws the paper down
with a curse. Then he picks 1t up
again. shamefacediy. He has failed
in his duty as a patriot. He has for
gotten to read Ludendorff's bulletin.
Poor Schmidt. worthy scion OF
race given to eating and drinking
more than any other. is on shorter
commons than is realized by some
pessimists about the military situa-
tion who live in allied countries.
Schmidt, the paper fallen to the
WI No ouN vi tit pdNh VI al
envelope what he will be permitted
to eat the first week in April-if he
can get il. He knows that some OF
the food he is allowed" cannot be
bought.
His Bread Ration.
| First the bread ration OF four pounds
and four and a quarter ounces re-
mains unchanged. This comes out at
about ten ounces a day; Schmidt con-
soles himself with the thought that In
Paris the bread ration is the same,
but he also reflects that the black.
sticky substance he eats is not what
he would get in the little restaurant
he knows on the Seine-that will
never allow his bulky form. or that
Of any other German. to darken its
| doorsteps again.
| Schmidt may eat during the week
eight and three-fourths ounces Of
meat This is half an ounce more
/ than he got the month before, but
he does not feel elated. zone good
steak" he mutters. Schmidt, for
! three years. has never had a pound
OF meat in a single week. For two
years he has been down to ten ounces
or less. He wonders whether he feels
the lack of meat SO much as that of
butter. His cards. he finds, allow him
for this week LIZ ounces OF butter,
Is ounces of margarine. a total of
e.i5 ounces Of fats.
| Schmidt is sick OF potatoes He
VOWS that he will never look at a Do
tato again after the war. Neyerthe-
less. he shudders as he thinks OF TIE
| warnings ne has heard whispered mat
the potato crop OF 1918 will be a fall
ure, and that meanwhile the ration
OF seven pounds and ten ounces. that
has continued for many weeks. will
be further reduced.
For Schmidt and the rest Of the
| German civilians practically exist on
potatoes Schmidt has more than
! pound day at present of potatoes;
without them he could scarcely live;
, Germany owes all her successes in this
war TO the potato. Take away the
potato and she would have to SUI for
peace in week.
I His Dietary.
! The rest OF Schmidt's weekly di-
etary he knows by heart lie gets
2S ori."es OF Groats, liz o-noes OF
/ farinaceous foods; 292 ounces of ar
| tifiCial honey" SO ounces OF pad
jam substitute. 10 smear on his worse
I bread. But MS face lights up as
he remembers tnat t..is is egg week.
| Every other week, Schmidt gets one
! Cog. Sometimes 1t Rn't very good.
\ then tragedy settles down over the
household. And tnat is all Schmidt
has to eat.
The scale OF rations upon which
Schmidt drags out an existence is
that at present obtaining in Berlin
| Before me lies table, compiled from
! official sources here, showing the
supplies Of food doled out TO the peo-
pie in all parts OF the German En-
pire. This table Is believed TO be
entirely accurate; the way in which
information is obtained here about
, the smallest details OF daily life in
every nook and corner OF Germany
! will make a thrilling story. when it
can be told.
The table shows that Schmidt Is
rather lucky in his place of resi-
dence. The Kaiser's capital Is bet
| ter served, for food. than most other
parts of his dominions. In Breslau,
for instance. the weekly average
/ combined butter and margarine ra-
tions in March worked out at LOS
ounces; no other fats were supplied.
excepting those found in the eight
and three-fourths ounces of meat
eaten weekly. The result of this
sort OF diet is an epidemic of hun
ger disease. Throughout all Ger
many. the fat ration averages less
than in Berlin for instance. IL is
2.1s ounces in Aix-la- Chapelle, 2.20
ounces in Dresden. 2.lO ounces in
| Frankfurt, 2.45 ounces in Bremen,
the same in Hamburg and Kiel. Ia
ounces in Munich. Berlin with its
half an egg weekly. is not so well
of as Munich and Stuttgart, where
the people enjoy a whole egg. but in
| Frankfurt and Dresden only one
egg q month is available.
! Potato Ration.
Throughout the German Empire, The
potato ration is now seven pounds and
ten and half ounces everywhere, ex-
cepting in Magdeburg. where the peo-
pie have only six pounds and nine
ounces.
The normal meat ration. eight and
three-quarters ounces for each per-
son per week, varies more. When
the allowance OF fresh meat falls
greatly below this figure, a few
ounces of sausage are generally al
lowed.
For instance. Dusseldorf gives
only 5.SS ounces of fresh meat. but
supplements this with 2.33 ounces
of sausage. Fish Is doled out SPAR
ingly: there ID none at all in most
cities for the civilians. the North
Sea catches going TO the army: out
at Charlottenburg and Dusseldorf.
one ton OF snrdines every .hIes
weeks is supplied and Ma Pj hurr q
and Gladback find II possible to