The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1919-03-14
Even England is Obliged to
Enforce Restricted Ra-
tons of War Times
WORTHLESS MONEY
is STARVING RUSSIA
Peasants Hoard Their Food Because
They Cannot Get Anything Of Value
for It-French Get Short Rations of
Bread and Potatoes.

4
Bread and Potatoes. - lf
WASHINGTON, March sal4.t While
the people of the United States exploded
over their grocery bills, and are onlyI
mildly thankful that eggs have slumped
to so cents dozen, Frenchlnen pay 10
cents for a single egg, and at that they
get off comparatively easy. In Belgium
eggs are a dollar each. \ pound Of but.
ter would cost the average Belgian wage
Garner hall weeks salary.
The war, they tell us, is all over ex-
cept the final pen hourishing ceremonies,
! but not country in Europe has let down.
It's restrictions on food. Over here, we
revert to the old habit OF shoyeling the
contents OF the sugar bowl into our break-t
fast cup, while absorbed in the latest bon
mot of the peace conference In England
the meat ration, and most of the other
meal time exigencies of war, continue III
full force. \ society leader back from
London reports that during here entire
stay thcre-at the Ritz-Carlton hotel
she never had one square meal. There
wasn't enough food.
At Christmas England celebrated the
return of peace in prodigal recklessness
by permitting double rations for 10 days
of the holiday season. The double ra-
ton" term is misleading. 1t suggests
our Christmas custom of eating ourselves
: under the table. The English double IA
ton was something less than OUR usual
meal. After 10 days of comparative feast
ing, England returned to the old regime
OF a slim menu with lots of conversation.
Official England puzzles its head over
the problem OF how to feed nation OF
hearty eaters on invalid rations. There
4 are many hungry persons in Britain, but
! the worries of the empire sink into in
Z significance beside the dilemma OF the
\ rest of Europe
Il There is a persistently popular impress
sion in the United States that when the
: last gun stopped firing, the world $
troubles in getting food and other neces.
a sites were over. Most parts of Europe
e are slowly pulling themselves. together,
$ but there IS little, if any. more food and
: clothing in Europe now than at the close
u of the war; and prices are higher than
d ever.
The reason for the high cost of living,
aud the suffering IN Elirope IS twofold
First there is the lack OF fooa and other
necessities, and then, there is, the linan-
cial situation caused largely by the scare
ity of commodities
Money has deteriorated in valnc 50 that
% in some countries it Is worthless Tle
m new Russian government intensified it;
&c financial difficulties when if issued paper
al money different from that of the monar
Sc chy Germany had seized a large part o
Il Russia's gold, and the Russian govern
in ment is spending the rest for expense:
ar at the rate of about Is rubles for cvel9
lie Iublc coined As there is no gold or 81
yer to back it, the paper in circulation i
to not acceptable to the people. The govern
X ment recently tried to revive the conf
OF aence of the people by printing pa
as per money of discarded denomina
a. tons This might have been a stel
ne toward a more stable financial con
le dition had not Germany anticipates
IN The Russian move and prepared grea
ed numbers of similar Counterfeit notes
ve When the Ru ssian government re
turned to the old monetary system
- the German counterfeit notes wer
spread broadcast with disastrous results
Throughout the continent there Is on
Dig ul1HcuHN. IHeFe Is NOT enough ioQS
OF course, but what food there is canno
be distributed as it should be The wors
trouble is in the cities Everywhere Tia
cities clamor for food. not eggs. butte
and beefsteak. but bread and potatoes
Vegetables and grain arc not in the. MAJ
ket The trouble is farther back.
Ont in the country the peasant raise
his crop of wheat and potatoes grnmbln,
at the meagerness OF it and the troub
TO accomplish anything III wartime. @
dinarily he would retain a part OF h
harvest, and send. the rest to inarke
Now he boards every vegetable as som
thing precious, and hides his store
food under the ground like squire
He is not to blame He cannot sell
produce in the city. for the dealers w
give him nothing for it except money. al
money buys almost nothing, Tor there
nothing to buy il the farmer could.
would eagerly trade his extra produ
for pillow, COW, or some clothing; b
thcge things arc as scarce as ioed. al
| he would rather hoard his little food 81
| ply for him self than sell sit~fnr bits
| paper. - I'm ~
| The Ukraine lands raises tIices - t
\ amount OF produce they need for hol
H consumption In other parts of Russ
Il thousands OF people are starving or /
II from undorfeedTag Russia has seen i
II peasantE eat vegetable seeds stlteA.prom
II of the next erop--and dread mixed vi
II straw because. there was nothing else.
II The United States is doing alb it c
i to get food to those people. Englal
4 Switzerland. and Canada also furnish q
II Without this help, conditions ID tic gre
III er nart of Europe would be too appalli
4 j To imagine.
III In one preat center OF Formulation alo
III Vienna. 100000 people do not KIN
III where next weeks, or even today brt
III is TO come from. America j. now distr
III utng sunples in Austria. When the Fl
III train load Of -four from the United Sta
Al was brought into Vienna, the Americ
III soldiers who unloaded the cars we're
- main ohiecta Of interest IN the city. II
- lwere douby welcomed in that. II
. E-s+fsstaE 49, ssff5,5sE