Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1920-12-06
HOOver's Address
Continued from Page One)

AAOVV NJ - A&A&2A WIN
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half of our own people, during the
Forthcoming, winter, cannot believe
but that the great prosperity of our
people still affords margin above
the care of our own children and our
neighbors' children. sufficient to sup
port this mass of waits, under
nourished, destitute orphan children.
Surely we can devote five percent Of
our annual outlay for tobacco. cos
metics and ice cream soda to saving
this mass of human life.
l find great difficulty in visualizing
$500 600 children to the American
people 1t may perhaps come nearer
home If you bear in mind Vienna il
city of 1,750,000 people. 100000
children in that city must be few by
charity in the forthcoming winter.
Waterville is a city of 10000 people.
and in a case of proportionate misery
would have only comparatively
small number of children dependent
upon public canteens. orpranages,
hospitals, for their support. Can you
picture the economic Generalization
that would reduce your city to the
point where 20 percent OF your little
children would gratefully receive
their daily bred from the hands Of
their enemy? These are the scenes of
Warsaw, Lodz. Budapest, Vienna and
a dozen other cities larger than
yours. trt
One of the most profound under
currents of this war has been the
problem of food. These last 10 years
Of industrial development created
great States dependent upon imports
for large portions Of their food sup
ply or upon fertilizers to produce it.
Through destruction of shipping.
blockades. famine in fertilizers, d.
version of labor, destruction Of the
implements and animals, the problem
of food became the dominant Ques-
ton of the war. aside from directly
military action.
In 1914 within two months Of the
outbreak of the war, one Of these in.
dustrial Observation-Disclosures 80
percent Of the population were de-
pendent upon food imports, was in
vaded by Germany and blockaded by
the Allies. Thus, the 10000. 900 peo-
France were threatened with exter-
mination within 80 days after the iir-
ing of the first gun. At this moment
emerged the first mobilization of the
moral reserve of the United States.
It demanded in tho naRe of out
ragged humanity from the combatants
on both sides that a gate should be
opened in this wall Of steel and that
this population should be fed. This
was the first Intervention of the
American people to prevent famine in
Europe.
The Belgian Relief commission, OF
which had the honor to be the
chairman, carried the problem OF
feeding these 100000 people for
four and one-half years. Backed by
American public opinion, it rose
from an organization conceived in
charity to an organization. dominat-
ing the economic life Of the entire
people. an organization possessing,
by sheer grant Of moral necessity
many of the functions of govern
sHSAS 40 O"h bo6s Ato O"u pdSSROTt,
its own immunity from the laws OF
war. In time it came to control the
domestic food production of these
people, to add them to imports OF
food, and in necessity to reduce con-
sumption to the minimum at which
they could survive they were ra.
toned with a rigor never witnessed
outside Of Jail. Its operations rose
TO an ultimate expenditure of one
billion of dollars, supported at one
time and another by ten govern
ments, together with the charity OF
the world.
Early in these operations, one
heartbreaking phenomenon stood
out, and that was that under the
rigors Of famine and the measures
taken to meet it child life could not
survive unless a special provision
was made for them. The Relief
commission therefore undertook to
give supplemental food required for
the whole 100000 children outside
their homes. There was built nm
there by cooperation between Bel
gians and Americans a system such
that when the armistice brought
real relief the well being Of the chill
dren was such that the statistics Of
morbidity and mortality showed low
er average than ever before In the
history OF Belgium. It 10 q sirnifl.
cant thing that Belgium was the first
of the countries of Europe to re-
euperate to q stable economic situa-
ton. ,.t.asi .I.s
With the entrance of our country
into the war, came q second great
intervention of America in preven-
ton of famine. By this time the al
lied countries, through the shortage
OF shipping. the necessity to RELY
upon the nearest market. the ex-
haustion Of credit and of their own
production, became dependent on
North America for their food.
Through the self denial of our peo-
pie and the extra exertion of our
farmers, we were able to increase the
exports of the United States from a
pre-war average Of four millions of
tons upwards Of seventeen million
tons per annum. OF total valHe of
seven billions Of dollars. We were
able to hold them firm and strong
in the war. to prevent famine amonR
The women and children of our COM
rades in war.
The war collapsed amongst both
allies and enemy in the face of the
A Bed Cough
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