The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-01-20
SOME FAMILIES OF
 ARMY MEN SUFFER
By HOLLAND

New York, January 19.-(Specia)
 While Congress was considering an ap-
 propriation of a hundred million dol
 lars so that funds could be provided
 for the purchase of food for the relief
 of people in Europe, some of the work
 CTS in the relief associations, socalled,
 were meeting with experiences which have caused them to say that it may be necessary for Congress or some other authoritative body to provide funds whereby the needy families of soldiers can be saved from suffering although the government owes pay to the soldiers.
 Many are the cases which have been brought recently to the attention or the men and women who are occupied in Investigating the cases of those who are reported to be actually sui fering for the necessities of life and who for the most part constitute fam lilies of soldiers. One case may be re- ported which will tell the story Of many of the cases which these relief organizations are Investigating. The wife of prominent citizen. good man, a great man in the field of nor ality and benefaction, in fact bishop or one of the largest dioceses, was called upon a few days ago at relief as- sociation room by woman whose ap- pearance made it unnecessary for her to say that she was suffering. When asked what relief she needed her reply was: "I need something to eat, have saved such scanty food as I pos- sess so that my children shall not starve and there is none left for me" The relief representative to whom this statement was made had heal Il of a number of cases of this kind. She realized immediately that the woman who pleaded for bread was the wife Of a soldier This woman was asked to tell her story and she said that when her husband was called into the ser vice they were all familiar with the comforts of life. They had been able to save some money and after careful calculation believed 1t would be un- necessary to utilize any part of their savings while the husband and father was in the army, for thy could Ses along on the allotment of the soldiers pay which the family was assured | would be promptly put into the hands of the mother.
 But no pay came so at last it was necessary to withdraw money from | the savings bank and then again when no funds were received from the gov ernment on account of the allotment | the savings were drawn upon once more until they were all gone There after little articles of the household l wers exchanged at the pawnbrokers E. | but leven these were exhausted. The l case was investigated and it was spec d. | fly found that the woman had not exaG- gerated Not one cent had been paid 1 to her by the government upon ac- count of the allotment made by hor husband when he became soldier. Many instances of this kind could be reported so that the managers of the ~.. ton ,nyIf c er necessary as it is for the United States l to feed those who are starving across | the sea, nevertheless it is the pre- eminent duty of the government which 1 has funds in plenty. which pledged IT, self to turn over to the families or soldiers the fixed allotment of their pay, to relieve the sufferings which these families are now experiencing, even before we undertake to relieve those who are suffering in other lands. Many of the soldiers do not complain l that they are still without their pay. ! many of the families who have receiy- J ed no money from the government maintain silence. struggling in one | way or another to get along. It is es- | pecially significant of mismanagement 1 understanding, confusion or ineffi- ciency in some one or more of the gov ernment departments. that soldiers and their families are held up where , as no trouble of this kind has been | found to exist in the navy. The sail ors have received their pay promptly | And so it is said that if 1t were 1 possible to pay the sailors and to fuf- | nish funds to the families of sailor 5 1 it should be possible promptly to pay | the soldiers and to see to 1t that the l families of soldiers to whom the gov | ernment is a debtor should receive funds in sufficient amount to proven them from making such pathetic ap' peals for food as some of these fam lies have been compelled to do.
 l A CHANGE THAT IS NEEDED
 Some who are familiar with busi- ness and industrial executive manage ment as this has been in the past as sert that it is vital, if the United State: is to maintain industrial strength, tha ] some of the methods and conditions which have hitherto prevailed in va rious industrial activities be radically changed. One of the changes whict must be established if there is to bf i industrial peace and prosperity will in volve the elimination of underhant competition characterized as secretiv' and dangerous methods. Probably th' better way to illustrate some of thu practices and methods which in th' mast have prevailed will be by mar | rating some concrete example. Som time ago an apparatus was offered t' the managers of one of the larges American railroad companies. It pur' ported favorably to effect the me charism of the cars. It related to thu journals and the bearings upon whic; the journals rest. A test was made T the apparatus and it was found to b'
 woefully lacking in all the qualitie! that were claimed for it. The presi dent of the railroad of the company a man of national reputation and ? high character, was not satisfied wltl the result of the test He therefor'
 caused careful. almost microscopic
 examination to be made and then i was discovered that some one nat iinjected sand into the bearings an
 journals, thereby creating excessiv
 amount of friction. The president 0
 this railroad summoned his chief me
 1 chanic and commanded him to max
 a new test with new bearings an
 journals, being scrupulous to watc'
 the apparatus from the time it wa
 installed until the completion of tL
 test This was done and the secon
 test made it evident that the apparatu
 was capable of accomplishing all tha
 was claimed for it. Somebody presum
 ably associated with rival manufac
 turing cororpation had undoubtedi caused this malicious. even crimina
 method to be made use of by which
 would appear that the apparatus wa
 worthless
 INJECTING GOLD