The bystander. [volume] (Des Moines, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1920-06-18
HOW EUROPE CAN
ESCAPE COLLAPSE
European Ruin Would Involve
America. starvation ana
av Disease Rampant.
CRAVE MENACE TO U. s. A.
Outline Of Speech by Henry T.
Dawson Before N. E. Con-
ference, Des moines.

the general conference OF Lno
odist Episcopal Church. Henry
Dawson Chairman Of the Board u
Governors of the League OF Reo oio''
Societies, said: ~
As chairman OF the convention OF.
Red Cross Societies. composer
representatives Of twenty-se'en 10
tons that met recently IN Geneva
am custodian of authoritative reports
recording appalling conditions among
millions of people living in eastern
Europe.
One of the most terrible trageoles
in the history of the human race
being enacted within the broad oel'
of territory lying between the balt'o
and the Black and Adriatic seas.
This arear includes the new baltic
states-Poland, Czecho SlovaKla' tne
Ukraine. Austria, Hungary, Roumanla'
Montenegro, Albania and Serbia
The reports which come 10 US laaAe
If clear that in these war raVaseo
lands civilization has broken uo"n'
disease. bereavement and suHerlns
are present in practically every mousse
hold, while food and clothing are III
sufficient to make life tolerable
Wholesale starvation is threa1eneo
in Poland this summer unless she Can
procure food supplies in large quar-
titles. There are now approximately
100000 cases Of typhus in Poland anu
in the area occupied by Polish troops.
Worst Typhus Epidemic In History.
This is already one or the, WORST
typhus epidemics in the Worlds MS
tory. In Galicia whole towns are
crippled and business suspended. III
some districts there is but one uoctor
to each $4,000. In the UKRAINE we
were told typhus and influenza nave
affected most of the population.
A report from Vienna dated feoru-
ary y said: There are ratlons 1or
three weeks Death stalks through
the streets of Vienna and takes unnln-
dered toll"
In Serbia typhus has broken out
again and there are but 200 physl-
clans to minister to the needs or that
entire country.
In Montenegro where food is run
ming short there are but five phys1-
clans for a population Of 100000
Returning to the United States
few weeks ago with all these horrors
rim gipg in my ears, l found myself
once more in a land whose granaries
were overlooking, where health and
plenty jabounded and where life and
activity and eager enterprise were IN
the full food.
asked myself: What II this
plague and famine were here in the
great territory between the Atlantic
sea board and the Mississippi valley,
which roughly parallels the extent of
these ravaged countries and that 3d..
600 900 of our own people condemned
to idEeness by lack of raw material
and whose fields had been devastated
by invasion and rapine, were racked
by starvation and pestilence and if
we had lifted up our voices and in
voked the attention of our brothers
in happier Europe to our own deep
miSeries and our cries had fallen on
deaf ears, would we not in our de-
spair exclaim against their heartless-
ness.
Only Three Ways to Help Europe.
There are only three ways by
which these stricken lands can Sc
cure supplies from the outside world
One is by payment. one by credit,
and the third is by exchange Of COM
modities. If these peoples tried to
buy materials and supplies in America
at the present market value of their
curyencies, Austria would have to pay
forty times the original cost, Ger.
many thirteen times. Greece just
double, Czecho Slovakia fourteen
times and Poland fifty times These
figures are official and are a true In
dex Of the economic plight Of these
countries
1t is clear. therefore that they can.
not give us gold for the things they
must have nor have they either pro.
ducts or securities to offer in return
for credit. If only they could obtain
raw material which these idle mil.
lions of theirs could convert into
manufactured products they would
have something to tender the world
in return for its raw material, food
and medicine. But if they have
neither money or credit, how are they
to take this great step towards re.
,demption?
OMe-half the world may not eat
while the other half starves. How
long do you believe the plague of ty.
plus that is taking a hideous death
toll in Esthonia and Poland and the
Ukraine and eating along the fringes
Of Germany and Czecho Slovakia will
.conhne itself to these remote lands.
Only last Saturday our health COM
missioner Of New York. DR.. COPELAND.
said for the other side just to mee.
sure the danger and take precaution
against such en- invasion.
This is one menace at our thres-
hold. The other more Threatening
more terrible is the menace of the