Denver labor bulletin. [volume] (Denver, Colo.) 1915-19??, 1918-06-29
CENTRAL EUROPE
FOOD SITUATION
SURVEY MADE BY LABOR
DEPARTMENT.
Turkey Is in State Of Actual Starva-
ton; Germany and Austria Short
of Food, While Efficiency Plans
Have Broken Down

A detailed survey of the food situa-
ton in Germany, Austria Hungary,
Bulgaria and Turke' during 1917 has
just been published as Bulletin 242 by
the bureau of labor statistics of the
United States department of labor.
This survey is based exclusively on
laws, DEGREES, orders, utterances of
public officials and civic bodies of the
countries covered, and on comments of
the daily press and leading economic
and trade journals of these countries.
In general the survey shows that
Turkey is actually starving because
of the corruption of her own officials
and the greed of Germany; that Ger
many and Austria are not starving,
but are having a very hard struggle
to feed themselves; that Hungary is
in better shape than either Germany
or Austria, and that Bulgaria so far
as food is concerned, is suffering the
least of all the countries covered. The
survey also shows that Germany has
failed by a wide margin to live up to
her reputation for efficiency in her
attempts at food administration, hav-
ing been obliged to reverse her poll
cies in an effort to remedy in part the
fatal results of official blunders. 1t
shows conclusively that the civil pop
ulations of Germany and Austria are
suffering permanent physical deterior-
alton from lack of proper food that the
death rate from tuberculosis is rap
idly increasing, that growing boys and
girls are not getting half the nourish-
ment they should have, and that man.
ual laborers are being underfed to
about the same extent.
Politically, the most interesting
thing revealed by the survey is the
fact that the traditional hatred be-
tween the two parts Of the dual mon
archy Austria Hungary has been man.
ifesting itself in the refusal of Hun
gary TO share her comparative abund-
ance with Austria and in the official
and public resentment of that fact in
the latter country.
Profteering, greed: breakdown Of
transportation, and faulty organizR-
ton are big factors in the food situa-
ton of Germany and her allies.
Many original articles on the food
situation in leading German and Aus
TRAN newspapers were at the dis
posal of the bureau of labor statistics
Comments on food orders, their en-
forcement, and the practical result of
their application were available from
organs of all political parties, thus
representing every point of view. Ma
terial relating TO the food situation in
Hungary, Bulgaria and Turkey was
much scarcer. Those parts of the bull
letin which cover the food situation in
these three countries are therefore less
comprehensive than the parts covering
Germany and Austria As fa@ as it
was possible the material for each
country covered was arranged in the
following order: First, an official or
unofficial summary Of the food situa-
ton in 1917, or both; this is followed
by an outline of the food policy for
the 1918 harvest reports, food orders
relating to individual foodstuffs, COM
ments on and criticism of these orders
and their practical application, data
on the supply and prices of individual
foodstuffs and their rationing, illegal
procuring of food, food-card systems,
measures for cheapening the food for
the poorer classes and the effect of the
food shortage on the health of the
civilian population.