The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1918-01-29
SHEDEN'S ANXIETY
OVER FOOD CRISIS
HANGS LIKE PAIL
Nation IL Aroused to Scarcity That
Must Ind I'm Catastrophe Unless
Terms Are Made,

AtAT *@A'. ~fAt@'f'
stockholm tvia I,ondonl, Ian, %.
sweden enters the new year under
the darkest cloud Of anxieties and
fears Prime Minister Edens state
naent that Sweden has only enough
-four ro last until May has suddenly
aroused the swedish masses TO the,
gravity IF the food crisis In which
Sweden has become Involved, which
certainly must end in a catastrophe
unless a compensatory agreement can
be reached with America and Eng
Iand,
I The World correspondents expert
ence proves that food conditions
among the broad masses OF the Swed-
isr people are worse than In Ger
MANY Il year ago Travellers confirm
the fact that the food In Stockholm
compares favorabiy with that In Ber-
liz today. while the cost of living here
averages double that of Berlin or
London and lis mounting steadily,
having increased nearly per cent 81
month during the last three months.
Root Of the Food Trouble,
The heart OF the food trouble rs the
utter inadequacy ~ the nfty fix
ovrce per capita weekly bread ration.
particularly in this harsh northern
winter climate, and the almost en-
tire absence OF fats, while the cost Of
meat In prohfhitfve 10 this working
me- ssea.
| Butter. margarine and milk have
! vanished from Stockholm with a COM
! ploteness unequailed even In those
/ portions Of Germany where fats are
| acarcest.
/ The milk situation ID little better In
1.-The provinces because the produc-
! ttor Of milk has dwindIed fraction
ally owing 10 the absence Of tndispen-
sable American fodder, which also re
suits In the enforced slaughter Of
A cattte on wholesale scale. Worst
NJ an is the prospect that it may not
hs possible 10 maintain even the
present slender rattons until tho
nnKt harvest
Moreover. sweden's winter hunger
la rendered doubly Erueson1e by the
tnnnEhted darkness OF the northern
winter. Only since the embargo haze
Sweden realized how utterly depend
tert the nation ts on American kero-
sene and today since the rroduc-
Itiou Of carbide Is utterly unable m
surniv even = small part of the de-
tr7nrs hundreds of thousands OF
iR,vnalsh worlsrnen ard peasants and
their families are forced 70 sit in
complete ae~kreas when the few
hours Of daylight end.
No Coffee 81 RNnl Hardship
Curloual5, The most grievous hard
shin felt ny the Swedish people as a
result ~ the embargo IF their depr1-
va+ton ~ coffee. which i% tie Swedish
national drink in peace Hn9e. Sweden
i~az t9c greatest per capita coffee
Id1-.nkev ~ Europe. with an annual
tccnwumpt}rn experimenting 50 .eoe, o0c
pounds To-day there ia less than
GOO bags of coffee TN all sweden.
government aud doled out 10 leading
cafes srd restaurants subject to the
restriction that only one deni-tasse
she'll he served tn = ruest after ,
m sal
The masses Of the Sweder who
have considered coffee not only A nee
cewsitv hut virtually, as the only Coy
iof country lfe during the long win
ter, h. We felt the sudden dcprivatlo"
taf IL intensely Cries for coffee are
req ching Stockholm even from the
Iretndeer hunting f.ap'3adera and
fro m far within the Arctic >ircle. and
the stoppage oT coffee Is about the
only phase OF the embargo which the
Sv-edea have resented with a touch
OF bitterness
Sells nj Fabulous Price.
Occasionally small lots of coffee
atnl change hands at fabulous prices
anything from $40 a pound up, while
the newspapers are full OF hum orouS
advertisements IN which boots and
ealoshes-worth $40 q pair today
ten pounds OF butter, 1ewelry or
household goods are offered in ex
change for "a pound of coffee. The
sw edes, consequently. were thrilled
with 10Y when they read today that
America had offered to send Christ
mas ships." and that part of the car
goes might he coffee.
II this proves TRUE il would give a
black eve tn Germany's food propa-
ganda here and do much to swing
h. on sentiment toward America
Their FIRST experience OF a dark hun
ger winter has made the bulk of the
Swedish people realize that they can
mot hope for food salvation from Ger
mary that a policy Of one-si6ed eco
monte orieutation by the central
powers would he suicidal mistake
and that an economic agreement must
absolutely be reached with America
in which Sweden will give as wei as
receive
\ Tn pursuing this policy OF real
agreements with America and Eng
land the new Liberal Socialist gov
eminent is backed by more than two.
thtrda Of the Swedish people.