The New York herald., 1920-12-30
$50 FEAST ON RICE
AT $1,000 TO
AID WARS VICTIMS
3,5OO,OOO Starving Children
Invisible Guests at
Unique Gathering.
S2.011.221 is REALIZED
New York NOtables Help
Fund Raised by Hoover
and Pershing.
ALL SIT AT BARE TABLES
Films Emphasize Pitiful
Plight Of Millions in Europe
While Meal Is Served.
ALL SIT AT BARE TABLES

An empty high chair. on the dinner
less tray of which there cleaned the
yellow light of single tallow candle.
stood last night in the centre of long
bare wooden table in the great dining
room of the Hotel Commodore. AT
either end Of the long table sat Gen.
John J. Pershing and Herbert Hoover
and between them and all around them
at other long wooden tables sat $50
men and women who had paid $1,000
each for the privilege of being guests
at a dinner which consisted solely Of
rice. bread and cocoa.
The empty chair marked the place of
an invisible guest. the S,500.00O starv-
ing and diseased children of Eastern
and Central Europe, for whom the din
ner, which cost 22 cents a plate. was
given. and it is for these children that
the s960,o0o paid by the guests of Mr..
Hoover and Gen. Pershing will be
spent.
And In order that the guests, as they
ate their small portion of rice and drank
their poor cocoa, might understand a
little more of the plight of the thou
sands who have not even that much.
there was a screen at one end of the big
hall on which were shown moving pic
lures Of the undernourishcd children as
they stood in long lines waiting for
small gifts of food.
Tables of Plain Wood.
Those at the speakers table, aid
they numbered a score OF New fork's
best known men and women. looked
across their plain wooden table, on
which was not a sign of linen or silver
or sparkling glass. at gathering OF
fashionably dressed women also seated
at rudely made wooden tables. The
guests were dressed in silks and velvets
and costly lace. On their arms and
necks and in their hair flashed precious
Jewels. Yet the diners partook OF the
simple fare set before them because they
wanted TO realize more vividly what 2
small quantity Of food the starving chill
dren of Europe are being fed. IL they
are lucky enough 10 be fed at all.
Sweetened rice, two half slices o'
white bread and small portion OF cocoa
constituted the meal. The rice was
served on a white enamel plate and the
cocoa in an army cup. Only one OF the
two spoons at each place was needed
and II took less than fifteen minutes tC
consume the entire meal.
Yet each cover represented $1,000 anc
the meal il paid for was double the por-
ton served to the European children. I'VE
have provided you with 963 calories.
Mr.. Hoover who was toastmaster. said
And IL you will come around tomorrow
morning we will give you some con
densed milk and n further allowance
OF bread. That will bring you UP to th'
1900 calories allowed each OF these three
and a half million children daily"
Receipts s2,O1I,221.
The dinner receipts totalled S2.011.2 .22i
according to figures provided Mr.. Hoovo
by John Love. chairman OF the New
York state committee OF the European
Relief Council, of which Mr.. Hoover L
chairman and under whose auspices tn
novel meal was served. 81 have tn
pleasure to announce that this dinner ha
placed In Mr.. Loves hands that sun
and that you have undertaken to pro
tect the lives of col. 900 children on thi
occasion, and that Is the number o
your invisible guests tonight.
This campaign OF service was
launched ten days ago by the womer
of New York at public meeting in thc
Metropolitan Opera House. The sub
scriptions at that meeting were $685.,
600. bringing the total from New Yorl
city and New York state for the frs'
ten days OF this campaign to s2,575..
s5f. That represents practically one.
third Of the amount that we must Sc
cure from the people OF this city ant
state II We are to succeed In tho preser.
Walton OF the total number OF children In
the starving areas.
IL may further report 10 YOU tina
up TO midnight tonight tho total ma
tional subscriptions for these arst to-
DAYS Of our campaign arc Sli.210.000
Wo arc one-third complete We have
given assurance Of life to 100000"
Mr.. Hoover and tho other speakers
who included representatives OF The
church and organizations. counsclled
economy In order TO give more gcner-
ously. ~ do not believe that tho excuse
OF hardship that our workers among
you complain Of has made them I'M
responsive TO their requests has any
validity whatever. So long as any per-
son IN this nation can entertain an
automobile he can entertain an invisible
guest. There are nearly 1000. 900 auto
mobiles in the United States and VIC
have but three and a half million in
visible guests. This nation Is spending
a billion dollars on Ice cream. cosmetics
and chewing gum and few billion more
on tobacco and other things"
Franklin X. Lane. secretary OF the
council, was one of the hosts with Cen
PershinR and M. Hoover. but was kept
away on account Of Illness.
Among the speakers Mr.. Hoover called
upon was Mgr. Dunn who represented
Archbishop Hayes. and who brought
this message from the Archbishop: Il
Continued on Scrcnth Page.