Forest City press. (Forest City, Potter County, D.T. [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1918-07-11
Pshograd City Gone to Seed
Where Hams SeHfor $500 Each
Only Change For Better Since Peace Came Is In the Weather.
Food So Scarce and Dea Even Relatives Rob
One Anothers Larders.
by the Correspondent of the London
Chronicle.

by the Correspondent of the London
Chronicle.
The famine in P%etrograd is becoming
positively alarming. There is prac-
tically no food on the markets or IN
the shops. Quite t~wo-thirds. if not
more. of the latter are permanently
closed for want of goods of all kinds
beside foods,uffs. There is no flour.
no sugar, potatoes. cheese. or milk, no
grains or goats, and very little meat;
all is under control unless accidentally
or privately obtained.
The principal necessities of life nave
to be got when possible through friends
and chance a"cquaintances at enormous
cost, if one has money to pay for them,
as the meager rations doled out by the
authorities are absolutely inadequate
for subsistence. The present ration of
indigestible black bread. h~alf-baked,
with as much water as possible left
one-eighth of a pound per day, and
often that is not forthcoming, on ac-
count of the hopeless disorder and uni
versal thieving habit. Relatives and
dependents rob ono another of food
without compunction. Hunger has no
is left on the plate for later consump-
ton it will disappear as soon as one
turns his back. Every scrap has to
be put under lock and key after each
meal. In my own case the house com
mittee which receives lour from the
town authorities for distribution TO us
tenants could not account for nine
pools of flour, SO that WI all had to
go without any bread for two days.
In spite of special commissions and
stringent measures against boarding
and speculation, profiteering goes on
to a great extent among all classes.
IN fact, food is a far more valuable
commodity than paper money, and Sc
cretly circulatcs instead OF 1t. All con-
Nersation indoors and out is about food
and how to get it. Half the working
day is wasted in pursuit OF sufficient
to eat. AS an Illustration of 10Y far
"dlSoyganiZatiOn and greed can go /
may mention that no few han Is cart
loads of rotten hares We're recently
brought into the town and several at
tempts We're made to foist them on to
the municipal executive, but they were
finally rejected and condemned. Good
hares are being sold at sl2.4 apiece
according to the rate OF exchange be-
fore the war.
Hams az $500.
The prices of other articles are quite
fabulous. Hams are offered at 5000 and
$500 each. Butter costs $40 a pound.
white flour $40 j pound. eggs 10 cents
apiece, potatoes $1.45 a pound. With
the exception of occasional limited
1 XIV Vi llgCSC IL l1SlSs CAN Oli
be obtained privately.
In these circumstances the British
community of I'etrograd, which is now
reduced perhaps to about 500 persons
who were unable. for various reasons
to leave Russia. nave felt obliged to
induce t:.e British consu and the in
c,srnbent of the English church to wire
to London for Il few edible supplies
to help us tide over this serious crisis.
am told that n telegram to this eff
feet has been sent to the foreign office,
but so far no assistance is forthcom-
ing. We do not want luXuries. but IL
Few cases OF crushed oats for example,
some sugar. margarine. and flour.
would be a godsend.
There has been no essential improve
ment of internal affairs here; on the
contrary. the situation in many re-
spects has been going from bad to
worse. The only real change for the
better has been in the weather. With
a sudden increase Of temperature q
| change appeared In the general aspect
of the eX-capital. The solar rays
powerfully assisted artificial meters
with fires OF wood to thaw down the
switcllback. 'ice-caked roadWays to the
rough. uneven cobble stones and rotten
wooden cubes Of antiquated paving
which, have been SO long unre paired.
TIE ice and frozen filth. covering the
IoadwaXs two or three feet deep. was
first broken up by gangs Of men and
women. with whom the bourgeois were
ve0uisitioned to cooperate. and at some