The Challis messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1912-current, 1920-09-15
now EUROPE. CAn
ESCAPE COLLAPSE
We Must Aid by Extending
Credit, Says Dawson.
GRAVE MENACE TO U. s. A.
European Ruin Would Involve
AmeI'ica.-StarvatiOn and
Disease Rampant.

i1son, chairman Of the board of govern.
jors Of the League of Red Cross So.
:cieties, said:. *
! As chairman Of the convention of
Red Cross Societies, composed of rep.
,reseniatiyes Of twen.y-seven nations
that met recently in Geneva, am Gus.
todian Of authoritative reports record.
ing appalling conditions among mil.
lions Of people living in Eastern
Europe.
One Of the most terrible tragedies in
THE history Of the human race is be-
ing enncted fn the broad belt of terri.
tory lying between the Baltic and the
Black and Adriatic seas.
This area includes the new Baltic
Istates--Poland. Czecho- Slovakia, the
Ukraine, Austria, Hungary, Roumania.
Montenegro, Albania and Serbia.
The reports which come to us make
lit clear that in these war-ravaged
lands civilization has broken down.
Disease, bereavment and suffering are
ipresent in practically every house,
hold, while food and clothing are in
sufficient. to make life tolerable.
Men, women and children are dying
by th0psands, and over vast once civil
.lixed areas there are to be found
neither medical appliances nor medical
skin sufficient to cope with the devas.
'tnting plaques.
Wholesale starvation Is threatened
In Poland this summer unless she can
procure food supplies In large guam
titles. There are now approximately
.25O,O00 cases Of typhus in Poland and
In the area occupied by Polish troops.
Worst Typhus Epidemic In History.
This Is one Of the worst typhus cpl.
denies in the worlds history. In
Galicia whole towps are crippled and
business suspended. lii some districts
there Is but one doctor to each 10000
people. Xxx
In the Ukraines, we are told, typhus
and Influenza have affected most Of
the population.
A report from Vienna, dated Feb.
ruary II, said: 'There are rations for
three weeks; death stalks through the
streets Of Vienna and takes unhinder.
ed toll"
Budapest, according to our inforlna-
'tion, is one vast city of misery and
suffering. The number of deaths is
double that Of births. or the 16O,.
600 children in the schools, 100000
are dependent on public charity. There
are 10000 workers idle.
Typhus and smallpox have invaded
the four countries composing Czecho
Sloyakia, and there Is lack Of medi.
clnes. soap and physicians.
In Serbia typhus has broken out
again and there are but 200 physicians
to minister to the needs Of that en-
tire country.
In Montenegro, where food is run.
ming short, there are but five ply.
sIcians for population of 100000.
Returning to the United States 8
fewsweeks ago with all these horrors
ringing in NY ears, II found myself
once more iii a land whose granaries
were overflowing. where health and
plenty abounded and where life ac'
tivity and eager enterprise were in the
full flood.
/ ask myself: "what II the plague
and famine were here in the great ter.
rltory between the Atlantic seaboard
and the Mississippi valley. which
roughly parallels the extent.cf these
sravaged countries. and that G50oo,OOt
of our own people condemned to idle
ness BY lacl, of raw material and
whose fields had been devastated by
Invasion and rapine were rackad by
starvation and pestilence and If we
had lifted up our voices and invoked
the attention of cur brothers in hap
pier Europe to our own deep miseries
land our cries hard fallen on deaf ears
would we not In our despair exclaim
against their heartlcssness."
Only Three Ways to Help Europe.
There are only three ways by which
Gplies from TIE outside world. One is
by payment, one by credit, and the
third is by exchange of commodities
III these people tried TO buy materia
and supplies in America at present
market value Of their currencies, Aus
.tria would have TO pay forty times thu
original cost. Germany thirteen times
Greece just double, Czecho-S.oyakis
fourteen times, Poland fifty times
These figures are Official and are q
true index OF the economical plight
.of these countries.
It,is clear, therefore, that they can
not give Us god for the things theJ
mus. have, nor have they either pro
duets or securities to offer In return
for credit. If only they could obtalL
raw material which these idle miiliont
of theirs could convert into p,anufac
ture,l products they would have some
thing to tender the world in return
for its raw material, food and iuedf
cine. But IL they have neither Honey
nor credit how are they to take thi,
first great step towards redemption.
One half the world may not eat
49, 49, 4 ulA 49, H<x~ nr~,a