River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1920-01-22
Our Weekly Letter
From Washington
By James A. Frear, NJ. c.
January 10, 1919.

January 10, 1919.
Secretary cf War Baker, Assistant
Secretary of the Treasury Davis,
Herbert Hoover, late food admins
TRAITOR, and General Bliss all appear
ed before the Ways and Means COM
mittee last week. Hoover said the
United States made authorized loans
to foreign governments of over two
billion dollars spent for food in 1919
to feed Europe. Both Hoover and
Davis said these loans will be repaid
with interest. They realized that
Congress is in no mood to make fur
Their loans but asked that authority
be given the Government Grain Cor
poration to loan $150,000,000 of funds
in its hands and $50,0O0,00O in profits
made from sale of food stufs to Eur
opean countries. These officials
claimed nearly all Of the money would
be repaid, although a comparatively
small amount will mean charity to
Armenia and possibly others to keep
people from starving.
=
Speaking of deaths from famine
and sickness, Secretary Baker gave
letters stating that over so per cent
of the children received in January,
1919, by child's hospital in Bude-
pest, died. In February, the peak
month, deaths reached 966 out of ev-
cry thousand received. Other sta
tistics carried an equally tragic story.
General Bliss stated $4,000 box cars
on the Siberian railway are used by
homeless people who live in them and
over 5000 little children sent by their
parents from Petrograd cannot be
returned No loans are to be made
to Siberia or the Russians but these
statements were made during the
hearing. Mr.. Hoover said that pri-
vate charities and relatives of this
country were sending over five mil
lion dollars monthly to friends in
Europe. He proposes to issue
food draft" to be sent abroad in
stead of money, which draft can be
exchanged for food. A great saving
Of money and more certainty of food
will thus be assured; He also de-
tlared that by the time fall crops are
harvested every European country
ought to be placed on self-support-
ng basis for the future. Requests
tor large business losns to reach bill
lions of dollars have been made but
as before stated, the committee has
announced its policy of turning the
legs in the Treasury doors against
such loans.
Two years ago a New York City
corporation, headed by a binding
Irvine trust broker, financed with ov-
Ell a half million dollars by Wall
Street capitalists, claiming to control
400 papers, made a political cam
raign with a slogan of patriotism
and 100 per cent Americanism. It's
purpose was so patent that the writ
cr presented the matter to the House
and asked for a Congressional inves
tgating committee A resolution was
unanimously passed and several
weeks hearing were held with an ex.
posture showing the selfish purposes
behind the move. congressman ties
tiled they had been called before this
leagues committee in 1918 AMI ask
ed their position OH immediate re.
turn of railways-withou reference
to patriotism. Attention has been
called to new league organized IN
New York, with a familiar platform
in the coming campaign to advance
"Americanism."
Societies that sincerely work to adj
vance patriotism and love OF country
are of unquestioned value and have
large field, but the average citizen
HOHNSIS WHY tiiio IlSW ACcSp az - -
nanced by presidents of railways and
big business interests of New York
City, and who announce a drive Tor
100000 members during the coming
campaign with unlimited funds. 6e-
Gently the writer walked oVe~ on the
East Side" of New York city, where
probably million or more people are
housed in stuffy, dirty tenamentj that
reach for many blocks amid poverty
and squalor, where the English Ian
guage is frequently unheard and
where "Reds" and Bolsheviks End
good field in which to work. L the
multimillionaires a few blocks away
in Wall Street and on lower Broad
way are really in earnest about ct"2n
ing up nests of un-Amerieanlsm
they will bend their efforts toward