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diff --git a/40628-8.txt b/40628-8.txt deleted file mode 100644 index ed30ea1..0000000 --- a/40628-8.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,10653 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook, The Iron Ration, by George Abel Schreiner - - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org - - - - - -Title: The Iron Ration - Three Years in Warring Central Europe - - -Author: George Abel Schreiner - - - -Release Date: August 30, 2012 [eBook #40628] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - - -***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE IRON RATION*** - - -E-text prepared by Moti Ben-Ari and the Online Distributed Proofreading -Team (http://www.pgdp.net) from page images generously made available by -Internet Archive (http://archive.org) - - - -Note: Project Gutenberg also has an HTML version of this - file which includes the original illustrations. - See 40628-h.htm or 40628-h.zip: - (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/40628/40628-h/40628-h.htm) - or - (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/40628/40628-h.zip) - - - Images of the original pages are available through - Internet Archive. See - http://archive.org/details/ironrationthreey00schriala - - - - - -THE IRON RATION - -by - -GEORGE ABEL SCHREINER - - -[Illustration: Photograph from Henry Ruschin - -AUSTRIAN SOLDIER IN CARPATHIANS GIVING HUNGRY YOUNGSTER SOMETHING TO EAT - -Moved by the misery of the civilian population the soldiers will often -share their rations with them. An Austrian soldier in this case shares -his food with a boy in a small town in the Carpathian Mountains, -Hungary.] - - -THE IRON RATION - -Three Years in Warring Central Europe - -by - -GEORGE ABEL SCHREINER - -Illustrated - - - - - - - -[Illustration] - -Harper & Brothers Publishers -New York and London - -THE IRON RATION - -Copyright, 1918, by Harper & Brothers -Printed in the United States of America -Published February, 1918 - - - - - TO MY FRIEND - DR. JEROME STONBOROUGH - MAN--SCHOLAR--PHILANTHROPIST - - - - -TABLE OF CONTENTS - - - I WAR HITS THE LARDER OF GERMANY 1 - II WHEN LORD MARS HAD RULED THREE MONTHS 22 - III THE MIGHTY WAR PURVEYOR 34 - IV FAMINE COMES TO STAY 56 - V THE FOOD SHARK AND HIS WAYS 70 - VI THE HOARDERS 93 - VII IN THE HUMAN SHAMBLES 115 - VIII PATRIOTISM AND A CRAVING STOMACH 131 - IX SUB-SUBSTITUTING THE SUBSTITUTE 144 - X THE CRUMBS 161 - XI MOBILIZING THE PENNIES 173 - XII SHORTAGE SUPREME 195 - XIII "GIVE US BREAD!" 213 - XIV SUBSISTING AT THE PUBLIC CRIB 245 - XV THE WEAR AND TEAR OF WAR 265 - XVI THE ARMY TILLS 275 - XVII WOMAN AND LABOR IN WAR 293 - XVIII WAR AND MASS PSYCHOLOGY 305 - XIX SEX MORALITY AND WAR 325 - XX WAR LOANS AND ECONOMY 353 - XXI THE AFTERMATH 368 - - - - -ILLUSTRATIONS - - - AUSTRIAN SOLDIER IN CARPATHIANS GIVING - HUNGRY YOUNGSTER SOMETHING TO EAT _Frontispiece_ - - PROVING-GROUND OF THE KRUPP WORKS AT - ESSEN _Facing p._ 30 - - A LEVY OF FARMER BOYS OFF FOR THE - BARRACKS " 66 - - GERMAN CAVALRYMEN AT WORK PLOWING " 66 - - STREET SCENE AT EISENBACH, SOUTHERN - GERMANY " 96 - - CASTLE HOHENZOLLERN " 188 - - TRAVELING-KITCHEN IN BERLIN " 260 - - STREET TRAM AS FREIGHT CARRIER " 260 - - WOMEN CARRYING BRICKS AT BUDAPEST " 296 - - VILLAGE SCENE IN HUNGARY " 296 - - SCENE IN GERMAN SHIP-BUILDING YARD " 378 - - - - -PREFACE - - -"The Iron Ration" is the name for the food the soldier carries in his -"pack" when in the field. It may be eaten only when the commanding -officer deems this necessary and wise. When the iron ration is released, -no command that the soldier should eat is necessary. He is hungry -then--famished. Usually by that time he has been on half, third, and -quarter ration. The iron ration is the last food in sight. There may be -more to-morrow. But that is not the motive of the commander for -releasing the food. What he has to deal with is the fact that his men -are on the verge of exhaustion. - -The population of the states known as the Central Powers group of -belligerents being in a position similar to that of the soldiers -consuming their iron ration, I have chosen the designation of this -emergency meal as title for a book that deals with life in Central -Europe as influenced by the war. - -That life has been paid little attention by writers. The military -operations, on the one hand, and the scarcity of food, on the other, -have been the cynosures. How and to what extent these were related, and -in what manner they were borne by the public, is not understood. Seen -from afar, war and hunger and all that relates to them, form so -bewildering a mosaic in somber colors that only a very general -impression is gained of them. - -I have pictured here the war time life of Central Europe's social and -political aggregates. Of that life the struggle for bread was the major -aspect. The words of the Lord's Prayer--"Give us our daily bread"--came -soon to have a great meaning to the people of Central Europe. That cry -was addressed to the government, however. Food regulation came as the -result of it. What that regulation was is being shown here. - -It will be noticed that I have given food questions a great deal of -close attention. The war-time life of Central Europe could not be -portrayed in any other manner. All effort and thought was directed -toward the winning of the scantiest fare. Men and women no longer strove -for the pleasures of life, but for the absolute essentials of living. -During the day all labored and scrambled for food, and at night men and -women schemed and plotted how to make the fearful struggle easier. - -To win even a loaf of bread became difficult. It was not alone a -question of meeting the simplest wants of living by the hardest of -labor; the voracity of the tax collector and the rapacity of the war -profiteer came to know no bounds. Morsels had to be snatched out of the -mouth of the poor to get revenue for the war and the pound of flesh for -the Shylocks. - -So intense was that struggle for bread that men and women began to look -upon all else in life as wholly secondary. A laxness in sex matters -ensued. The mobilizations and the loss of life incident to the war -aggravated this laxity. - -But these are things set out in the book. Here I will say that war is -highly detrimental to all classes of men and women. When human society -is driven to realize that nothing in life counts when there is no food, -intellectual progress ceases. When bread becomes indeed the irreducible -minimum, the mask falls and we see the human being in all its nakedness. - -Were I presumptuous enough to say so, I might affirm that this book -contains the truth, nothing but the truth, and the whole truth about -Germany and Central Europe. I have the necessary background for so bold -a statement. I know the German language almost perfectly. German -literature, tradition and thought, and I are no strangers. Three years -of contact as newspaper-man with all that is German and Central European -provided all the opportunities for observation and study one could wish -for. And the flare of the Great War was illumining my field, bringing -into bold relief the bad, which had been made worse, and the good, which -had been made better. - -But there is no human mind that can truthfully and unerringly encompass -every feature and phase of so calamitous a thing as the part taken in -the European War by the Central Powers group of belligerents. I at least -cannot picture to myself such a mind. Much less could I claim that I -possessed it. - -What I have written here is an attempt to mirror truthfully the -conditions and circumstances which raised throughout Central Europe, a -year after the war had begun, the cry in city, town, village, and -hamlet, "Give us bread!" - -During the first two months of the European War I was stationed at The -Hague for the Associated Press of America. I was then ordered to Berlin, -and later was given _carte blanche_ in Austria-Hungary, Roumania, -Bulgaria, and Turkey. When military operations, aside from the great -fronts in Central Europe, had lost much of the public's interest, I -returned to Germany and Austria-Hungary, giving thereafter the Balkans -and Turkey such attention as occasional trips made possible. In the -course of three years I saw _every_ front, and had the most generous -opportunities to become familiar with the subject treated in this -book--life in Central Europe as it was amidst war and famine. - -You will meet here most of the personages active in the guiding of -Central Europe's destiny--monarchs, statesmen, army leaders, and those -in humbler spheres. You will also meet the lowly. Beside the rapacious -beasts of prey stand those upon whom they fed. Prussianism is -encountered as I found it. I believe the Prussianism I picture is the -real Prussianism. - -The ways of the autocrat stand in no favor with me, and, being somewhat -addicted to consistency, I have borne this in mind while writing. The -author can be as autocratic as the ruler. His despotism has the form of -stuffing down others' throats his opinions. Usually he thinks himself -quite as infallible as those whose acts he may have come to criticize. -But since the doctrine of infallibility is the mainstay of all that is -bad and despotic in thought as well as in government, we can well afford -to give it a wide berth. If the German people had thought their -governments--there are many governments in Germany--less infallible they -would not have tolerated the absolutism of the Prussian Junker. To that -extent responsibility for the European War must rest on the shoulders of -the people--a good people, earnest, law-abiding, thrifty, unassuming, -industrious, painstaking, temperate, and charitable. - -Some years ago there was a struggle between republicanism and monarchism -on the South African veldt. I was a participant in that--on the -republican side. I grant that our government was not as good as it might -have been. I grant that our republic was in reality a paternal -oligarchy. Yet there was the principle of the thing. The Boers preferred -being _burghers_--citizens--to being subjects. The word _subject_ -implies government ownership of the individual. The word _citizen_ means -that, within the range of the prudently possible, the individual is -co-ordinate instead of subordinated. That may seem a small cause to some -for the loss of 11,000 men and 23,000 women and children, which the -Boers sustained in defense of that principle. And yet that same cause -led to the American Revolution. For that same cause stood Washington, -Jefferson, and Lincoln. For that same cause stands every good American -to-day--my humble self included. - - S. - - NEW YORK, _January, 1918_. - - - - -THE IRON RATION - - - - -THE IRON RATION - - - - -I - -WAR HITS THE LARDER OF GERMANY - - -Press and government in the Entente countries were sure that Germany and -Austria-Hungary could be reduced by hunger in some six months after the -outbreak of the European War. The newspapers and authorities of the -Central Powers made sport of this contention at first, but sobered up -considerably when the flood of contraband "orders in privy council" -began to spill in London. At first conditional contraband became -contraband. Soon non-contraband became conditional contraband, and not -long after that the British government set its face even against the -import into Germany of American apples. That was the last straw, as some -thought. The end of contraband measures was not yet, however. It was not -long before the neutrals of Europe, having physical contact with the -Central Powers, were to find out that they could not export food to -Germany without having to account for it. - -Small wonder then that already in September of 1914 it was asserted that -the elephants of the Berlin Zoo had been butchered for their meat. I was -then stationed at The Hague, as correspondent for an American -telegraphic news service, and had a great deal to do with the "reports" -of the day. It was my business to keep the American public as reliably -informed as conditions permitted. - -I did not publish anything about the alleged butchering of elephants and -other denizens of the Berlin zoological establishments, knowing full -well that these stories were absurd. And, then, I was not in the -necessary frame of mind to look upon elephant steak as others did. Most -people harbor a sort of prejudice against those who depart from what is -considered a "regular" bill of fare. We sniff at those whom we suspect -of being hippophagians, despite the fact that our hairier ancestors made -sitting down to a fine horse roast an important feature of their -religious ceremonies. I can't do that any longer since circumstances -compelled me once to partake of mule. Nor was it good mule. Lest some be -shocked at this seeming perversity, I will add that this happened during -the late Anglo-Boer War. - -The statement, especially as amended, should serve as an assurance that -I am really qualified to write on food in war-time, and no Shavianism is -intended, either. - -Food conditions in Germany interested me intensely. Hunger was expected -to do a great deal of fighting for the Allies. I was not so sure that -this conclusion was correct. Germany had open-eyedly taken a chance with -the British blockade. That left room for the belief that somebody in -Germany had well considered this thing. - -But the first German food I saw had a peculiar fascination for me, for -all that. Under the glass covers standing on the buffet of a little -restaurant at Vaalsplatz I espied sandwiches. Were they real sandwiches, -or "property" staged for my special benefit? It was generally believed -in those days that the Germans had brought to their border towns all the -food they had in the empire's interior, so that the Entente agents would -be fooled into believing that there was plenty of food on hand. - -Vaalsplatz is the other half of Vaals. The two half towns make up one -whole town, which really is not a whole town, because the Dutch-German -border runs between the two half towns. But the twin communities are -very neighborly. I suspected as much. For that reason the presence of -the sandwiches in Vaalsplatz meant nothing. What assurance had I that, -when they saw me coming, the sandwiches were not rushed across the -border and into Germany, so that I might find the fleshpots of Egypt -where the gaunt specter of famine was said to have its lair? - -This is the manner in which the press agents of starvation used to work -in those days. And the dear, gullible public, never asking itself once -whether it was possible to reduce almost overnight to starvation two -states that were not far from being economically self-contained, -swallowed it all--bait, hook, line, and sinker. - -My _modus operandi_ differed a little from this. I bought three of the -sandwiches for ten pfennige--two and a quarter cents American--apiece, -and found them toothsome morsels, indeed. The discovery was made, also, -that German beer was still as good as it always had been. - -My business on that day took me no farther into Germany than the -cemetery that lies halfway between Vaalsplatz and Aix-la-Chapelle. There -I caught on the wing, as it were, the man I was looking for, and then -smuggled him out of the country as my secretary. - -I had seen no other food but the sandwiches, and as I jumped from the -speeding trolley-car I noticed that they were digging a grave in the -cemetery. Ah! Haven of refuge for a famine victim! - -I said something of that sort to the man I was smuggling into Holland. -Roger L. Lewis looked at me with contempt and pity in his eyes, as the -novelist would say. - -"Are you crazy?" he asked. "Why, the Germans have more food than is good -for them. They are a nation of gluttons, in fact." - -With Mr. Lewis going to London I could not very well write of the -sandwiches and the grave in the cemetery. These things were undeniable -facts. I had seen them. But the trouble was that they were not related -to each other and had with life only those connections they normally -have. The famine-booster does not look at things in that light, though. - -Four weeks later I was in Berlin. The service had sent me there to get -at the bottom of the famine yarns. There seemed to be something wrong -with starvation. It was not progressing rapidly enough, and I was to see -to what extent the Entente economists were right. - -In a large restaurant on the Leipzigerstrasse in Berlin I found a very -interesting bill of fare and a placard speaking of food. The menu was -generous enough. It offered the usual assortment of _hors-d'oeuvre_, -soup, fish, _entrée_, _relevée_, roasts, cold meats, salads, vegetables, -and sweetmeats. - -On the table stood a basket filled with dinner rolls. The man was -waiting for my order. - -But to give an order seemed not so simple. I was trying to reconcile the -munificence of the dishes list with the legend on the placard. That -legend said--heavy black letters on white cardboard, framed by broad -lines of scarlet red: - - +--------------------------------------------+ - | | - | SAVE THE FOOD! | - | | - | The esteemed patrons of this establishment | - | are requested not to eat unnecessarily. Do | - | not eat two dishes if one is enough! | - | | - | THE MANAGEMENT. | - | | - +--------------------------------------------+ - -It was my first day in Berlin, and having that very morning, at -Bentheim, on the Dutch-German border, run into a fine piece of German -thoroughness and regard for the law, I was at a loss what to do under -the circumstances. While I knew that the management of the restaurant -could not have me arrested if I picked more than two dishes, I had also -ascertained that the elephant steak was a fable. I was not so sure that -ordering a "regular" dinner might not give offense. That is the sort of -feeling you have on the first day in a country at war. I had seen so -many war proclamations of the government, all in heavy black and red on -white, that the restaurant placard really meant more to me than was -necessary. - -I asked the waiter to come to my assistance. Being a native of the -country, he would know, no doubt, how far I could go. - -"You needn't pay any attention to that sign, sir!" he said. "Nobody does -any more. You can order anything you like--as many dishes as you -please." - -I wanted to know whether the placard was due to a government regulation. - -"Not directly, sir. The government has advised hotels and restaurants to -economize in food. The management here wanted to do its share, of -course, and had these signs printed. At first our patrons minded them. -But now everybody is falling back into the old eating habits, and the -management wants to make all the money it can, of course." - -The war was then about two months old. - -What the waiter said was enough for me. I ordered accordingly and -during dinner had much of the company of the serving-man. It seemed that -to a great deal of natural shrewdness he had added, in the course of -much traveling, a fair general education. When I left the restaurant I -was richer by a good picture of food conditions in Berlin, as these had -been influenced up to that moment by the intentions of the Prussian -government. - -So far the authorities had done very little to "regulate" food -questions, though problems were already in sight and had to be dealt -with by the poor of the city. That economy had to be practised was -certain even then. The government had counseled economy in consumption, -and various patriotic societies and institutions of learning had given -advice. But actual interference in public subsistence matters had so far -not taken place. - -The German government had tried to meet the English "business-as-usual" -with a policy of "eating-as-usual." It was felt that cutting down on -food might put a damper on the war spirit. To be enthusiastic when -hungry may be possible for the superman. It is hard work for the -come-and-go kind of citizen. - -Nor had anybody found cause to abandon the notion that the European War -would not last long. True enough, the western front had been congealed -by Marshal Joffre, but there was then no reason to believe that it would -not again be brought into flux, in which case it was hoped that the -German general staff would give to the world a fine picture of swift -and telling offensive in open-field operations. After that the war was -to be over. - -Of the six months which the war was to last, according to plans that -existed in the mouths of the gossips, two were past now, and still the -end was not in sight. An uncomfortable feeling came upon many when -seclusion undraped reality. That much I learned during my first week at -the German capital. - -I must mention here that I speak German almost perfectly. Armed in this -manner, I invaded markets and stores, ate to-day in the super-refined -halls of the Adlon and shared to-morrow a table with some hackman, and -succeeded also in gaining _entrée_ into some families, rich, -not-so-rich, and poor. - -In the course of three weeks I had established to my own satisfaction, -and that of the service, that while as yet there could be no question of -food shortage in Germany, there would soon come a time when -waists--which were not thin then by any means--would shrink. The -tendency of food prices was upward, and, as they rose, more people -increased the consumption of food staples, especially bread. Since these -staples were the marrow of the country's economic organism, something -would have to be done soon to limit their consumption to the absolutely -necessary. - -The first step in that direction was soon to be taken. -War-bread--_Kriegsbrot_--made its appearance. It was more of a staff of -life than had been believed, despite its name. To roughly 55 per cent. -of rye was added 25 per cent. of wheat and 20 per cent. of potato meal, -sugar, and shortening. The bread was very palatable, and the potato -elements in it prevented its getting stale rapidly. It tasted best on -the third day, and on trips to the front I have kept the bread as long -as a week without noticing deterioration. - -But the German had lived well in the past and it was not easy to break -him of the habits he had cultivated under a superabundance of food. The -thing had gone so far that when somebody wanted to clean an expensive -wall-paper the baker would be required to deliver a dozen hot loaves of -wheat bread, which, cut into halves lengthwise, would then be rubbed -over the wall-paper--with excellent results as regards the appearance of -the room and the swill-barrel from which the pigs were fed. - -On this subject I had a conversation with a woman of the upper class. -She admitted that she herself had done it. The paper was of the best -sort and so pleasing to her eyes that she could not bear having it -removed when discolored from exposure to light and dust. - -"It was sinful, of course," she said. "I believe the Good Book says that -bread should not be wasted, or something to that effect. Well, we had -grown careless. I am ashamed when I think of it. My mother would have -never permitted that. But everybody was doing it. It seems now that we -are about to pay for our transgressions. All Germany was fallen upon -the evil ways that come from too much prosperity. From a thrifty people -we had grown to be a luxury-loving one. The war will do us good in that -respect. It will show us that the simple life is to be preferred to the -kind we have been leading for some twenty years now." - -Then the countess resumed her knitting, and spoke of the fact that she -had at the front six sons, one son-in-law, and four automobiles. - -"But what troubles me most is that my estates have been deprived of so -many of their laborers and horses that I may not be able to attend -properly to the raising of crops," she continued. "My superintendents -write me that they are from two to three weeks behind in plowing and -seeding. The weather isn't favorable, either. What is going to happen to -us in food matters, if this war _should_ last a year? Do you think it -_will_ last a year?" - -I did not know, of course. - -"You ought to know the English very well," said the countess. "Do you -think they really mean to starve us out?" - -"They will if the military situation demands this, madame," I replied. -"Your people will make a mistake if they overlook the tenacity of that -race. I am speaking from actual experience on the South African plains. -You need expect no let-up from the English. They may blunder a great -deal, but they always have the will and the resources to make good their -mistakes and profit by them, even if they cannot learn rapidly." - -The countess had thought as much. - -I gained a good insight into German food production a few days later, -while I was the guest of the countess on an estate not far from Berlin. - -The fields there were being put to the best possible use under intensive -farming, though their soil had been deprived of its natural store of -plant nutriment centuries ago. - -I suppose the estate was poor "farmland" already when the first crops -were being raised in New England. But intelligent cultivation, and, -above all, rational fertilizing methods, had always kept it in a fine -state of production. The very maximum in crops was being obtained almost -every year. Trained agriculturists superintended the work, and, while -machinery was being employed, none of it was used in departments where -it would have been the cause of a loss in production--something against -which the ease-loving farmer is not always proof. - -The idea was to raise on the area all that could be raised, even if the -net profit from a less thorough method of cultivation would have been -just as big. Inquiry showed that the agrarian policy of the German -government favored this course. The high protective tariff, under which -the German food-producer operated, left a comfortable profit margin no -matter how good the crops of the competitor might be. Since Germany -imported a small quantity of food even in years when bumper crops came, -large harvests did not cause a depression in prices; they merely kept -foreign foodstuffs out of the country and thereby increased the trade -balance in favor of Germany. - -Visiting some small farms and villages in the neighborhood of the -estate, I found that the example set by the scientifically managed _Gut_ -of the countess was being followed everywhere. The agrarian policy of -the government had wiped out all competition between large and small -producers, and so well did the village farmers and the estate-managers -get along that the _Gut_ was in reality a sort of agricultural -experiment station and school farm for those who had not studied -agriculture at the seats of learning which the bespectacled -superintendents of the countess had attended. - -I began to understand why Germany was able to virtually grow on an area -less than that of the State of Texas the food for nearly seventy million -people, and then leave to forestry and waste lands a quarter of that -area. There was also the explanation why Germany was able to export -small quantities of rye and barley, in exchange for the wheat she could -not raise herself profitably. The climate of northern Germany is not -well suited for the growing of wheat. If it were, Germany would not -import any wheat, seeing that the area now given to the cultivation of -sugar-beets and potatoes could be cut down much without affecting home -consumption. As it is, the country exported before the war almost a -third of her sugar production, and much of the alcohol won from potatoes -entered the foreign market either in its raw state or in the form of -manufactured products. - -But the war had put a crimp into this fine scheme. Not only was the -estate short-handed and short of animal power, but in the villages it -was no better. Some six million men had then been mobilized, and of this -number 28 per cent. came directly from the farms, and another 14 per -cent. had formerly been engaged in food production and distribution -also. To fill the large orders of hay, oats, and straw for the army, the -cattle had to be kept on the meadows--pastures in the American sense of -the word are but rarely found in overcrowded Europe--and that would lead -to a shortage in stable manure, the most important factor in -soil-fertilizing. - -The outlook was gloomy enough and quite a contrast to the easy war -spirit which still swayed the city population. - -Interviews with a goodly number of German government officials and men -connected with the Prussian Ministry of Agriculture confirmed the -impressions I had gained in the course of my food investigation. For the -time being, there was enough of everything. But that was only for the -time being. - -Public subsistence depends in a large measure on the products of animal -industry. There is the dairy, for instance. While cows can live on -grass, they will not give much or good milk if hay and grass are not -supplemented by fat-making foods. Of such feed Germany does not produce -enough, owing to climatic conditions. Indian corn will not ripen in -northern Europe, and cotton is out of the question altogether. In the -past, Indian corn had been imported from Hungary, Roumania, and the -United States mostly, and cotton-seed products had been brought in from -the United States also. Roumania still continued to sell Indian corn -during the first months of the war, but Great Britain had put -cotton-seed cake and the like under the ban of contraband. If the -bread-basket was not as yet hung high, the crib certainly began to get -very much out of reach. - -One day, then, I found that every advertisement "pillar" in the streets -of Berlin called loudly for two things--the taking of an animal census -throughout Prussia, and the advice that as many pigs as possible should -be killed. Poor porkers! It was to be wide-open season for them soon. - -Gently, ever so gently, the Prussian and other German state governments -were beginning to put the screws on the farming industry--the thing they -had nursed so well. No doubt the thing hurt. But there was no help. -Animal feed was discovered to be short. The authorities interfered with -the current of supply and demand for the first time. Feed Commissions -and Fodder Centrals were established, and after that the farmer had to -show cause why he should get the amount of feed he asked for. The -innovation recoiled on the lowliest first--among them the pigs. - -Into them and upon them had been heaped a great deal of fat by -purposeful feeding with an ulterior motive. The porkers stood well in -the glory for which they are intended. But the lack of fattening feed -would soon cause them to live more or less on their own stores of fat. -That had to be prevented, naturally. By many, a butchered -two-hundred-pound porker is thought to be better than a live razorback. -The knife began its deadly work--the slaughter of the porcine innocents -was on. - -To the many strange cults and castes that exist we must add the German -village butcher. He is busy only when the pork "crop" comes in, but -somehow he seems to defy the law that only continued practice makes -perfect. He works from November to February of each year, but when the -next season comes he is as good as before, seemingly. - -But in 1914 the village butcher was busy at the front. Thus it came that -men less expert were in charge of the conservation of pork products. The -result could have been foreseen, but it was not. The farmers, eager not -to lose an ounce of fat, and not especially keen to feed their -home-raised grain to the animals, had their pigs butchered. That was -well enough, in a way. But the tons of sausages that were made, and the -thousands of tons of pickled and smoked hams, shoulders, sides-of-bacon, -and what not, had been improperly cured in many cases, and vast -quantities of them began to spoil. - -It was now a case of having no pigs and also no pork. - -The case deserves special attention for the reason that it is the first -crevasse that appeared in the levee that was to hold back the high-flood -of inflated prices and food shortage. - -The affair of the porkers did not leave the German farmers in the best -frame of mind. They had needlessly sacrificed a goodly share of their -annual income. The price of pork fell to a lower level than had been -known in twenty years, and meanwhile the farmer was beginning to buy -what he needed in a market that showed sharp upward curves. To this was -being added the burden of war taxation. - -But even that was not all. Coming in close contact with the Berlin -authorities, I had been able to judge the quality of their efforts for -the saving of food. I had learned, for instance, that the Prussian and -other state governments never intended to order the killing of the pigs. -The most that was done by them was to advise the farmers and villagers -to kill off all animals that had reached their maximum weight and whose -keep under the reduced ration system would not pay. - -Zealous officials in the provinces gave that thing a different aspect. -Eager to obey the slightest suggestion of those above, these men -interpreted the advice given as an order and disseminated it as such. -The farmer with sense enough to question this was generally told that -what he would not do on advice he would later be ordered to do. - -I was able to ascertain in connection with this subject that all which -is bad in German, and especially in Prussian, government has rarely its -inception in the higher places. It is the _Amtsstube_--government -bureau--that breeds the qualities for which government in the German -Empire is deservedly odious. At any ministry I would get the very best -treatment--far better, for instance, than I should hope to get at any -seat of department at Washington--but it was different when I had to -deal with some official underling. - -This class, as a rule, enters the government service after having been -professional non-commissioned officers for many years. By that time the -man has become so thoroughly a drill sergeant that his usefulness in -other spheres of life should be considered as ended. Instead of that, -the German government makes him an official. The effect produced is not -a happy one. - -It was a member of this tribe who once told me that I was not to think. -I confess that I did not know whether to laugh or cry when I heard that. - -The case has some bearing on the subject discussed here, and for that -reason I will refer to it briefly. - -At the American embassy at Berlin they had put my passport into proper -shape, as they thought. A Mr. Harvey was positive that such was the -case. But at the border it was found that somebody was mistaken. The -Tenth Army, in whose bailiwick I found myself, had changed the passport -regulations, and the American embassy at Berlin seemed not to have heard -of the change. - -A very snappy sergeant of the border survey service wanted to know how I -had dared to travel with an imperfectly viséd passport. There was -nothing else to say but that I thought the passport was in order. - -"_Sie haben kein Recht zu denken_" ("You have no right to think"), -snarled the man. - -That remark stunned me. Here was a human being audacious enough to deny -another human being the right to think. What next? - -The result of some suitable remarks of mine were that presently I was -under arrest and off for an interview with the _Landrat_--the county -president at Bentheim. - -The _Landrat_ was away, however--hunting, as I remember it. In his stead -I found a so-called assessor. I can say for the man that he was the most -offensive government official or employee I have ever met. He had not -said ten words when that was plain to me. - -"Ah! You _thought_ the passport was in order," he mocked. "You _thought_ -so! Don't you know that it is dangerous to _think_?" - -There and then my patience took leave of me. I made a few remarks that -left no doubt in the mind of the official that I reserved for myself the -right to think, whether that was in Germany or in Hades. - -Within a fortnight I was back in Berlin. I am not given to making a -mountain out of every little molehill I come across, but I deemed it -necessary to bring the incident at Bentheim to the attention of the -proper authorities. - -What I wanted to know was this: Had the race which in the past produced -some of the best of thinkers been coerced into having thinking -prohibited by an erstwhile sergeant or a _mensur_-marked assessor? - -Of course, that was not the case, I was told. The two men had been -overzealous. They would be disciplined. I was not to feel that I had -been insulted. An eager official might use that sort of language. After -all, what special harm was there in being told not to think? Both the -sergeant and the assessor had probably meant that I was not to surmise, -conclude, or take things for granted. - -But I had made up my mind to make myself clear. In the end I succeeded, -though recourse to diagrams and the like seemed necessary before the -great light dawned. That the German authorities had the right to watch -their borders closely I was the last to gainsay. Nor could fault be -found with officials who discharged this important duty with all the -thoroughness at their command. If these officials felt inclined to warn -travelers against surmise and conjecture, thanks were due them, but -these officials were guilty of the grossest indecency in denying a -rational adult the right to think. - -Those who for years have been hunting for a definition of militarism may -consider that in the above they have the best explanation of it. The -phrase, "You have no right to think," is the very backbone of -militarism. In times of war men may not think, because militarism is -absolute. For those that are anti-militarist enough to continue thinking -there is the censorship and sedition laws, both of which worked smoothly -enough in Germany and the countries of her allies. - -The question may be asked, What does this have to do with food and such? -Very much, is my answer. - -The class of small officials was to become the machine by which the -production, distribution, and consumption of food and necessities were -to be modified according to the needs of the day. This class was to -stimulate production, simplify distribution, and restrict consumption. -No small task for any set of men, whether they believed in the God-given -right of thinking or not. - -It was simple enough to restrict consumption--issue the necessary -decrees with that in view, and later adopt measures of enforcement. The -axiom, You have no right to think, fitted that case well enough. But it -was different with distribution. To this sphere of economy belongs that -ultra-modern class of Germans, the trust and _Syndikat_ member--the -industrial and commercial kings. These men had outgrown the inhibitions -of the barrack-yard. The _Feldwebel_ was a joke to them now, and, -unfortunately, their newly won freedom sat so awkwardly upon their minds -that often it would slip off. The class as a whole would then attend to -the case, and generally win out. - -A similar state of affairs prevailed in production. To order the farmer -what he was to raise was easy, but nature takes orders from nobody, a -mighty official included. - - - - -II - -WHEN LORD MARS HAD RULED THREE MONTHS - - -Germany had reared a magnificent economic structure. Her prosperity was -great--too great, in fact. - -The country had a _nouveau-riche_ aspect, as will happen when upon a -people that has been content with little in the past is suddenly thrust -more than it can assimilate gracefully. The Germany I was familiar with -from travel and literature was a country in which men and women managed -to get along comfortably by the application of thoroughness and -industry--a country in which much time was given to the cultivation of -the mind and the enjoyment of the fruits that come from this -praiseworthy habit. - -Those were the things which I had grouped under the heading, _Kultur_. -Those also were the things, as I was soon to learn from the earnest men -and women of the country, for which the word still stood with most. But -the spirit of the _parvenu_--_Protzentum_--was become rampant. The -industrial classes reeked with it. - -From the villages and small towns, still the very embodiment of thrift -and orderliness, I saw rise the large brick barracks of industry, topped -off with huge chimneys belching forth black clouds of smoke. The -outskirts of the larger towns and cities were veritable forests of -smoke-stacks--palisades that surrounded the interests of the thousands -of captains of industry that dwelt within the city when not frequenting -the international summer and winter resorts and making themselves -loathed by their extremely bad manners--the trade-mark of all -_parvenus_. - -I soon found that there were two separate and distinct Germanys. - -It was not a question of classes, but one of having within the same -borders two worlds. One of them reminded me of Goethe and Schiller, of -Kant and Hegel, and the other of all that is ultra-modern, and cynical. -The older of these worlds was still tilling the fields on the principle -that where one takes one must give. It was still manufacturing with that -honesty that is better than advertising, and selling for cost of raw -material and labor, plus a reasonable profit. - -In the new world it was different. Greed was the key-note of all and -everything. The kings of industry and commerce had forgotten that in -order to live ourselves we must let others live. These men had been wise -enough to compete as little as possible with one another. Every -manufacturer belonged to some _Syndikat_--trust--whose craze was to -capture by means fair or foul every foreign field that could be -saturated. - -I have used the word "saturated" on purpose. Germany's industrials do -not seem to have been content with merely entering a foreign market and -then supplying it with that good tact which makes the article and its -manufacturer respected. Instead of that they began to dump their wares -into the new field in such masses that soon there was attached to really -good merchandise the stigma of cheapness in price and quality. A proper -sense of proportions would have prevented this. There is no doubt that -German manufacturers and exporters had to undersell foreign competitors, -nor can any reasonable human being find fault with this, but that, for -the sake of "hogging" markets, they should turn to cheap peddling was -nothing short of being criminally stupid--a national calamity. - -I have yet to be convinced that Germany would not have been equally -prosperous--and that in a better sense--had its industry been less -subservient to the desire to capture as many of the world's markets as -possible. That policy would have led to getting better prices, so that -the national income from this source would have been just as great, if -not greater, when raw material and labor are given their proper -socio-economic value. - -Some manufacturers had indeed clung to that policy--of which the old -warehouses and their counting-rooms along the Weser in Bremen are truly -and beautifully emblematic. But most of them were seized with a mania -for volume in export and ever-growing personal wealth. - -Germany's population had failed to get its share of this wealth. Though -the _Arbeiter-Verbände_--unions--had seen to it that the workers were -not entirely ignored, it was a fact that a large class was living in -that peculiar sort of misery which comes from being the chattel of the -state, on the one hand, and the beast of burden of the captains of -industry, on the other. The government has indeed provided sick benefits -and old-age pensions, but these, in effect, were little more than a -promise that when the man was worked to the bone he would still be able -to drag on existence. The several institutions of governmental -paternalism in Germany are what heaven is to the livelong invalid. And -to me it seems that there is no necessity for being bedridden through -life when the physician is able to cure. In this instance, we must doubt -that the physician was willing to cure. - -The good idealists who may differ with me on that point have probably -never had the chance to study at the closest range the sinister purpose -that lies behind all governmental effort that occupies itself with the -welfare of the individual. The sphere of a government should begin and -end with the care for the aggregate. The government that must care for -the individual has no _raison d'être_, and the same must be said of the -individual who needs such care. One should be permitted to perish with -the other. - -The deeper I got into this New Germany, the less I was favorably -impressed by it. I soon found that the greed manifested had led to -results highly detrimental to the race. The working classes of the large -industrial centers were well housed and well fed, indeed. But it was a -barrack life they led. At best the income was small, and usually it was -all spent, especially if a man wanted to do his best by his children. It -was indeed true that the deposits in the German savings-banks were -unusually high, but investigation showed that the depositors were mostly -small business people and farmers. These alone had both the incentive -and the chance to save. For all others, be they the employees of the -government or the workers of industry, the sick benefit and old-age -pension had to provide if they were not to become public charges when -usefulness should have come to an end. - -I found that Germany's magnificent socio-economic edifice was inhabited -mostly by members of the _parvenu_ class, by men and women who dressed -in bad taste, talked too much and too loud, and were forever painfully -in evidence. - -For the purpose of illustrating the relative position of the two worlds -I found in Germany, I may use the simile that the new world inhabited -all the better floors, while the old was content with the cellar and the -attic. In the cellar lived the actual producers, and in the garret the -intellectuals, poor aristocracy, government officials, professional men, -and army officers. - -Food being the thing everybody needs, and, which needing, he or she must -have at any price, the men who in the past had "saturated" foreign -markets turned of a sudden their attention to matters at home. The -British blockade had made exports impossible. The overseas channel of -income was closed. Exploitation had to be directed into other fields. - -The German government saw this coming, and, under the plea of military -necessity, which really existed, of course, began to apply a policy of -restriction in railroad traffic. More will be said of this elsewhere. -Here I will state that from the very first military emergency was well -merged with socio-economic exigency. - -The high priest of greed found that the government, by virtue of being -the owner of the railroads, was putting a damper on the concentration of -life's necessities and commodities. But that, after all, was not a -serious matter. So long as the food shark and commodity-grabber owned an -article he would always find the means to make the public pay for it. -Whether he sold a thing in Cologne, Hanover, Berlin, or Stettin made -little difference in the end, so long as prices were good. All that was -necessary was to establish a _Filiale_--a branch house--at the point and -all was well. - -But as yet there was no actual shortage. Things were only beginning to -be scarce at times and intervals. - -The population had begun to save food. The counters and shelves of the -retailers were still full, and the warehouses of the wholesalers had -just received the harvest of the year. - -Hoarding had as yet not been thought of to any extent. Germany had not -been at war for forty-three years, and normally the food-supply had been -so generous that only a few pessimists, who saw a long war ahead, -thought it necessary to store up food for the future. - -It was not until the fourth month of the war that prices of food showed -a steady upward tendency. That this should be so was not difficult to -understand, and the explanation of the authorities appeared very -plausible indeed. Whenever the possibility of a shortage had at all to -be intimated, the government took good care to balance its statement -with the assertion that if everybody did what was fit and proper under -the circumstances there would never be a shortage. If people ate -war-bread, a lack of breadstuffs was said to be out of the question. - -That was very reassuring, of course. Not a little camouflage was used by -the merchants. I never saw so much food heaped into store windows as in -those days. On my way back and forth from my hotel to the office of the -service, I had to pass through the Mauerstrasse. In that street four -food-venders outdid one another in heaping their merchandise before the -public gaze. One of them was a butcher. His window was large and -afforded room for almost a ton of meat products. - -I do not wonder that those who passed the window--and they had to be -counted in thousands--gained from it the impression that food would -never be scarce in Germany. Farther on there was another meat-shop. Its -owner did the same. Next door to him was a bakery. War-bread and rolls, -cakes and pastry enough to feed a brigade, were constantly on -exhibition. The fourth store sold groceries and what is known in Germany -as _Dauerware_--food that has been preserved, such as smoked meat, -sausages, and canned foods. The man was really doing his best. For a -while he had as his "set piece" a huge German eagle formed of cervelat -sausages each four feet long and as thick as the club of Hercules. I -thought the things had been made of papier-mâché, but found that they -were real enough. - -But camouflage of that sort has its good purposes. Men are never so -hungry as when they know that food is scarce. - -The several state governments of Germany employ the ablest economic -experts in the world. These men knew that in the end show would not do. -The substance would then be demanded and would have to be produced if -trouble was to be avoided. How to proceed was not a simple matter, -however. From the food of the nation had to come the revenue of the -government and the cost of the war. This had to be kept in mind. - -The assertions of the Entente press that Germany would be starved into -submission within six months had been amply ridiculed in the German -newspapers. That was all very well. Everybody knew that it could not be -done in six months, and my first survey of the food situation proved -that it could not be done in a year. But what if the war lasted longer? -Nothing had come of the rush on Paris. Hindenburg had indeed given the -Russians a thorough military lesson at Tannenberg. But this and certain -successes on the West Front were not decisive, as everybody began to -understand. The Russians, moreover, were making much headway in Galicia, -and so far the Austro-Hungarian army had made but the poorest of -showings--even against the Serbs. - -Thus it came that the replies in the German press to the Entente famine -program caused the German public to take a greater interest in the food -question. Propaganda and the application of ridicule have their value, -but also their drawbacks. They are never shell-proof so far as the -thinker is concerned, and ultimately will weaken rather than strengthen -the very thing they are intended to defend. - -"_Qui s'excuse s'accuse_," say the French. - -The Prussian government inaugurated a campaign against the waste of food -as associated with the garbage-pail. Hereafter all household offal had -to be separated into food-remains and rubbish. Food-leavings, potato -peels, fruit skins, the unused parts of vegetables, and the like, were -to be used as animal feed. - -A week after the regulations had been promulgated and enforced, I took a -census of the results obtained. These were generous enough and showed -that as yet the Berliners at least were not stinting very much, despite -the war-bread. - -[Illustration: Photograph by Underwood & Underwood, N. Y. - -PROVING-GROUND OF THE KRUPP WORKS AT ESSEN - -The guns shown represent types of artillery used in modern warfare on -land and sea.] - -About the same time I was able to ascertain that in the rural districts -of Germany little economy of any sort was being practised so far, though -the establishing by the government of Fodder Centrals was warning -enough. The farmers sat at the very fountainhead of all food and pleased -themselves, wasting meanwhile much of their substance by sending to -their relatives at the front a great deal of food which the men were in -no need of. The German soldier was well fed and all food sent to him was -generally so much waste. It was somewhat odd that the government should -not only permit this practice, but actually encourage it. But the -authorities knew as little yet of food conservation as did the populace. - -So far the traffic incident to supplying large population centers with -food had moved within its regular channels, the interference due to the -mobilization duly discounted, of course. The ability of the Germans as -organizers had even overcome that to quite an extent. There were delays -now and then, but the reserve stores in the cities counteracted them as -yet. - -Normally, all men eat too much. The Germans were the rule rather than -the exception in this respect. Most men weighed anything from twenty to -sixty pounds more than they should, and the women also suffered much in -appearance and health from obesity. The _parvenu_ class, especially, was -noted for that. The German aristocrat is hardly ever stout--hallmark of -the fact that he knows how to curb his appetites. - -Before the war most Germans ate in the following manner: - -Coffee and rolls early in the morning. A sort of breakfast about nine -o'clock. Luncheon between twelve and one. Coffee or tea at about four in -the afternoon. Dinner at from seven to eight, and supper at eleven or -twelve was nothing unusual. That made in many cases six meals, and these -meals were not light by any means. They included meat twice for even the -poorer classes in the city. - -Six meals as against three do not necessarily mean that people addicted -to the habit eat twice as much as those who are satisfied with sitting -at table thrice each day. But they do mean that at least 35 per cent. of -the food is wasted. Oversaturated, the alimentary system refuses to work -properly. It will still assimilate those food elements that are the more -easily absorbed, which then produce fat, while the really valuable -constituents are generally eliminated without having produced the effect -that is the purpose of proper diet. - -It was really remarkable to what extent in this case an indulgence -became a reserve upon which the German government could draw. A good 35 -per cent. of all food consumed need not be consumed and would to that -measure increase the means of public subsistence available. - -I am inclined to believe that the enemies of Germany overlooked this -fact in the computation of elements adduced to show that, within six -months from the outbreak of the war, famine would stalk the land. The -Entente economists and politicians counted on actual production and -consumption in times of peace and failed to realize that a determined -people, whose complete discipline lacked but this one thing--economy in -eating--would soon acquire the mind of the ascetic. - -It was not easy to forego the pleasures of the full stomach, since in -the past it had generally been overfilled. But, as the Germans say, -"When in need, the devil will eat flies." - -Upon this subject the Prussian and other German state governments -concentrated all their efforts in November of 1914. A thousand methods -of propaganda were used. "Eat less," was the advice that resounded -through the empire. I do not think that, unsustained by government -action, the admonition would have helped much in the long run, though -for the time being it was heeded by many. It was the fact that the end -of the war seemed not so imminent any longer which furnished the _causa -movens_ for the saving of food. The war spirit was still very strong and -the Germans began to resent the assertion of their enemies that they -would be defeated by their stomachs, as some learned university -professors insisted at the time. Not the least value of the propaganda -was that it prepared the German public for the sweeping changes in food -distribution which were to come before long. - - - - -III - -THE MIGHTY WAR PURVEYOR - - -Three months had sufficed to enthrone the _Kriegslieferant_--war -purveyor. He was ubiquitous and loud. His haying season was come. For a -consumer he had a government that could not buy enough, and the things -he sold he took from a public that was truly patriotic and willing to -make sacrifices. It was a gay time. Gone were the days in which he had -to worry over foreign markets, small profits, and large turnover. He -dealt no longer with fractions of cents. Contracts for thousands did not -interest him. At the Ministry of War he could pick up bits of business -that figured with round millions. - -I attended once a funeral that was presided over by an undertaker who -believed in doing things on a large scale. The man in the coffin had -always earned a large salary and the family had lived up to it. There -was nothing left when he died. But the undertaker and the widow decided -that the funeral should be a large one. It was, and when it was over and -paid for the woman was obliged to appeal to her relatives for financial -aid. The activity of the war purveyor was of the same quality. - -The Berlin hotels were doing a land-office business. The Adlon, Bristol, -Kaiserhof, and Esplanade hotels were crowded to the attic--with war -purveyors. When his groups were not locked up in conference, he could be -seen strutting about the halls and foyers with importance radiating from -him like the light of an electric arc. In the dining-rooms his eating -could be heard when his voice was not raised in vociferous ordering in -the best drill-sergeant style. Managers and waiters alike danced -attention upon him--the establishment, the city, the country were his. - -"_Wir machen's_" ("We'll do it"), was his parole. The army might do its -share, but in the end the war purveyor would win the war. - -The express in which I was traveling from Osnabrück to Berlin had pulled -up in the station of Hanover. The train was crowded and in my -compartment sat three war purveyors, who seemed to be members of the -same group, despite the fact that their conversation caused me to -believe that they were holding anything from a million tons of hay to a -thousand army transport-wagons. Business was good and the trio was in -good humor, as was to be expected from men of such generous dimensions -and with so many diamonds on the fleshy fingers of ill-kept hands. One -of them was the conspicuous owner of a stick-pin crowned with a -Kimberley that weighed five carats if not more. He was one of the -happiest men I have ever laid eyes upon. - -I was sitting next to the window, a place that had been surrendered to -me because there was a draught from the window. But I can stand such -discomfort much better than perfume on a fat man, and I didn't mind. - -After a while my attention was attracted by a tall young woman in black -on the platform. She was talking to somebody on my car, and -surreptitious passes of her hand to her throat caused me to conclude -that some great emotion had seized her. No doubt she was saying good-by -to somebody. - -I had seen that a thousand times before, so that it could not be mere -and superficial curiosity that induced me to leave my seat for the -purpose of seeing the other actor in this little drama. The woman was -unusually handsome, and the manner in which she controlled her great -emotion showed that she was a blue-blood of the best brand. I was -anxious to learn what sort of man it was upon whom this woman bestowed -so much of her devotion. - -A tall officer was leaning against the half-open window in the next -compartment. I could not see his face. But the cut of his back and -shoulders and the silhouette of the head proclaimed his quality. - -The two seemed to have no words. The woman was looking into the face of -the man, and he, to judge by the fixed poise of his head, was looking -into hers. - -I had seen enough and returned to the compartment. Presently the -conductor's cry of "_Bitte, einsteigen!_" ("Please! All aboard!") was -heard. The woman stepped to the side of the car and raised her right -hand, which the officer kissed. She said something which I could not -hear. Then she set her lips again, while the muscles of her cheek and -throat moved in agony. It was a parting dramatic--perhaps the last. - -The train began to move. The war purveyor opposite me now saw the woman. -He nudged his colleague and drew his attention to the object that had -attracted him. - -"A queen!" he said. "I wonder what she looks like in her boudoir. I am -sorry that I did not see her before. Might have stayed over and seen her -home." - -"Would have been worth while," said the other. "I wonder whom she saw -off." - -"From the way she takes it I should say that it was somebody she cares -for. Class, eh, what?" - -The man rose from the seat and pressed his face against the window, -though he could see no more of the woman in that manner than he had seen -before. - -I think that is the very extreme to which I ever saw hideously vulgar -cynicism carried. - -In a way I regretted that the war purveyor had not been given the chance -to stay over. I am sure that he would have had reason to regret his -enterprise. - -A few days later I was on my way to Vienna, glad to get away from the -loud-mouthed war purveyors at the German capital. The ilk was -multiplying like flies in summer-time, and there was no place it had not -invaded. - -Though it was really not one of my affairs, the war purveyor had come to -irritate me. I was able to identify him a mile off, and good-natured -friends of mine seemed to have made it their purpose in life to -introduce me to men who invariably turned out to have contracts with the -government. Fact is that, while the war was great, the _Kriegslieferant_ -was greater. When I found it hard to see a high official, some kind -friend would always suggest that I take the matter up with Herr -Kommerzienrat So-and-so, whose influence was great with the authorities, -seeing that he had just made a contract for ever so many millions. - -And the "commercial counselor" would be willing, I knew. If he could -introduce a foreign correspondent of some standing here and there, that -would be water for his mill. The official in question might be -interested in propaganda, and the war purveyor was bound to be. The -inference was that the cause of Germany could be promoted in that -manner. In some cases it was. Now and then the war purveyor would spend -money on a dinner to foreign and native correspondents. His name would -not appear in the despatches, but the _Kriegslieferant_ saw to it that -the authorities learned of his activities. After that the margin of -profit on contract might go up. - -For a man who had conceived a violent prejudice against war purveyors, -Berlin was not a comfortable place. - -I was either playing in bad luck or half the world had turned into war -purveyors. At any rate, I had one of them as travel companion _en route_ -to Vienna. The man dealt in leather. He had a contract for the material -of 120,000 pairs of army boots and was now going to Austria and Hungary -for the purpose of buying it. He was a most interesting person. Before -the war he had dealt in skins for gloves, but now he had taken to a -related branch in order that he might "do his bit." The Fatherland, in -its hour of need, depended upon the efforts of its sons. So far as he -was concerned no stone would be left unturned to secure victory. He -could be home attending to his regular business, instead of racing -hither and thither in search of leather. But duty was duty. - -I might have gotten the man to admit that he made a _small_ profit on -his patriotic endeavor. But that could serve no purpose. I feared, -moreover, that this would needlessly prolong the conversation. When the -war purveyor finally tired of my inattention, he took up his papers and -I surveyed the country we were passing through. - -For the finest rural pictures in Central Europe we must go to Austria. -The houses of the peasants, in villages and on farms alike, had a very -inviting appearance. I noticed that the walls had been newly -whitewashed. There was fresh paint on the window shutters, and new -tiles among the old showed that the people were keeping their roofs in -good repair, which was more than the government was doing with the state -edifice just then. Prosperity still laughed everywhere. - -The train raced through small towns and villages. At the railroad -crossings chubby youngsters off for school were being detained by the -gateman. A buxom lass was chasing geese around a yard. Elsewhere a man -was sawing wood, while a woman looked on. From the chimneys curled -skyward the smoke of the hearth. - -It was hard to believe that the country was at war. But the groups of -men in uniform at the stations, and the recruits and reservists herded -in by men-at-arms over the country roads, left no doubt as to that. If -this had not been sufficient proof for me, there was the war purveyor. - -In Austria, as well as in Germany, the fields had had the closest -attention. And that attention was kind. Exploitation had no room in it. -Though it was late in the season, I could still discern that plowing and -fertilizing were most carefully done. The hedges and fences were in good -repair. In vain did I look for the herald of slovenly farming--the rusty -plow in the field, left where the animals had been taken from under the -yoke. Orderliness was in evidence everywhere, and, therefore, human -happiness could not be absent. - -There was a great deal of crop traffic on the good roads, and the many -water-mills seemed very busy. Potatoes and sugar-beets were being -gathered to add their munificence to the great grain- and hay-stacks. I -ran over in mind some population and farm-production statistics and -concluded that Austria was indeed lucky in having so large a margin of -food production over food consumption. - -What I had settled to my own satisfaction on the train was seemingly -confirmed at Vienna. Not even a trace of food shortness could I find -there. There had been a slight increase in food prices, but this was a -negligible quantity in times such as these. - -The Vienna restaurants and cafés were serving wheat bread, butter, and -cream as before. In a single place I identified as many as thirty-seven -different varieties of cakes and pastry. Everybody was drinking coffee -with whipped cream--_Kaffee mit Obers_--and nobody gave food -conservation a thought. While the Berlin bills of fare had been -generous, to say the least, those of Vienna were nothing short of -wasteful. Even that of the well-known Hardman emporium on the Kärntner -Ring, not an extravagant place by any means, enumerated no less than one -hundred and forty-seven separate items _à la carte_. - -I thought of the elephant steak and marveled at the imagination of some -people. It seemed that in Austria such titbits were a long way off. A -_mêlée_ of Viennese cooking, Austrian wine, and Hungarian music would -have left anybody under that impression. - -But all is not gold that glitters! - -At the hotel where I was staying, a small army of German food-buyers -was lodged. From some of them I learned what food conditions in Germany -might be a year hence. These men were familiar with the needs of their -country, and thought it out of place to be optimistic. The drain on farm -labor and the shortage of fertilizer were the things they feared most. -They were buying right and left at almost any price, and others were -doing the same thing in Hungary, I was informed. - -These men were not strictly war purveyors. Most of them bought supplies -for the regular channels of trade, but they were buying in a manner that -was bound to lead to high prices. It was a question of getting -quantities, and if these could not be had at one price they had to be -bought at a higher. - -Within two days I had established that the war purveyors at Vienna were -more rapacious than those at Berlin. But I will say for them that they -had better manners in public places. They were not so loud--a fact which -helped them greatly in business, I think. Personally, I prefer the -polished Shylock to the loutish glutton. It is a weakness that has cost -me a little money now and then, but, like so many of our weaknesses, it -goes to make up polite life. - -Vienna's hotels were full of _Kriegslieferanten_. The _portiers_ and -waiters addressed them as "_Baron_" and "_Graf_" (count), and for this -bestowal of letters-patent nobility were rewarded with truly regal tips. -But there the matter ended. - -I was holding converse with the _portier_ of the Hotel Bristol when a -war purveyor came up and wanted to know whether telegrams had arrived -for him--the war purveyor never uses the mail. - -"_Nein, Herr Graf_," replied the _portier_. - -The war purveyor seemed inclined to blame the _portier_ for this. After -some remarks, alleging slovenliness on the part of somebody and -everybody in so impersonal a manner that even I felt guilty, he turned -away. - -The _portier_--I had known him a day--seemed to place much confidence in -me, despite the fact that so far he had not seen the color of my money. - -"That fellow ought to be hung!" he said, as he looked at the revolving -door that was spinning madly under the impulse which the wrathful war -purveyor had given it. "He is a pig!" - -"But how could a count be a pig?" I asked, playfully. - -"He isn't a count at all," was the _portier's_ remark. "You see, that is -a habit we easy-going Viennese have. The fellow has engaged one of our -best suites and the title of count goes with that. It may interest you -to know that years ago the same suite was occupied by Prince Bismarck." - -There is no reason why in tradition-loving and nobility-adoring Austria -the title of count should not thereafter attach to any person occupying -a suite of rooms so honored. For all that, it is a peculiar mentality -that makes an honorary count an animal of uncleanly habits within the -space of a few seconds. - -The Grand Hotel was really the citadel of the Austro-Hungarian war -purveyors. Every room was taken by them, and the splendid dining-room of -the establishment was crammed with them during meal-hours. Dinner was a -grandiose affair. The _Kriegslieferanten_ were in dinner coats and -bulging shirt-fronts, and the ladies wore all their jewels. Two of the -war-purveyor couples were naturalized Americans, and one of them picked -me up before I knew what had happened. - -While I was in Vienna I was to be their guest. It seems that the man had -made a contract with the Austrian Ministry of War for ever so many -thousands of tons of canned meat. He thought that his friends "back -home" might be interested in that, and that there was no better way of -having the news broken to them than by means of a despatch to my -service. There is no doubt whatever that being a war purveyor robs a man -of his sense of proportions. - -To see the Vienna war purveyor at his best it was necessary to wait -until midnight and visit the haunts he frequented, such as the Femina, -Trocadero, Chapeau Rouge, Café Capua, and Carlton cabarets. Vienna's -_demi-monde_ never knew such spenders. The memory of certain harebrained -American tourists faded into nothingness. Champagne flowed in rivers, -and the hothouses were unable to meet the demand for flowers--at last -one shortage. The gipsy fiddlers took nothing less than five crowns, -and the waiters called it a poor evening when the tips fell below what -formerly they had been satisfied with in a month. - -All of this came from the pockets of the public, and when these pockets -began to show the bottom the government obligingly increased the -currency by the products of the press. More money was needed by -everybody. The morrow was hardly given a thought, and the sanest moment -most people had was when they concluded that these were times in which -it was well to let the evils of the day be sufficient thereof. One never -knew when the Russians might spill over the Tartra and the Carpathians, -in which case it would be all over. The light-heartedness which is so -characteristic of the Austrians reached degrees that made the serious -observer wonder. _Après nous le déluge_, was the motto of the times. So -long as there was food enough, champagne to be had, and women to share -these, the Russians could have the rest. - -I speculated how long this could go on. The military situation could be -handled by the Germans, and would be taken in hand by them sooner or -later. That much I learned in Berlin. But the Germans were powerless in -the Austro-Hungarian economic departments. Though the Dual Monarchy had -been self-contained entirely in food matters before the war, it seemed -certain that the squandering of resources that was going on could in the -end have but one result--shortage in everything. - -Despite that, Austrian government officials were highly optimistic. -Starve out Austria and Hungary! Why, that was out of the question -entirely--_ausgeschlossen_! At some statistical bureau on the -Schwarzenbergstrasse I was given figures that were to show the -impossibility of the Entente's design to reduce the country by hunger. -These figures were imposing, I will admit, and after I had studied them -I had the impression that famine was indeed a long way off. It seemed -that the Stürgkh régime knew what it was doing, after all, as I had been -told at the government offices. Everything would be well, even if the -war should be long. - -Two weeks later I was at the Galician front. Going there I passed -through northern Hungary. The barns of that district were bursting. The -crops had been good, I was told. Every siding was crowded with cars -loaded with sugar-beets and potatoes, and out in the fields the sturdy -women of the race, short-skirted and high-booted, were taking from the -soil more beets and more potatoes. The harvesting of these crops had -been delayed by the absence of the men, due to the mobilizations. By the -time I reached Neu-Sandez in Galicia, then seat of the Austro-Hungarian -general headquarters, I had fully convinced myself that the Entente's -program of starvation was very much out of the question. - -I found that the soldiers were well fed. The wheeled field kitchens were -spreading appetizing smells over the countryside, and that their output -was good was shown by the fine physical condition of the men. - -Having established this much, and the Russians coming altogether too -close, I had occasion a week later to visit Budapest. In that city -everybody was eating without a thought of the future, and that eating -was good, as will be attested by anybody who has ever sat down to a -Budapestian lamb _pörkölt_, of which the American goulash is a sort of -degenerate descendant. The only other thing worth mentioning is that the -Astoria Hotel was the only place in town not entirely occupied by the -war purveyors. - -A trip through central and southern Hungary served merely to complete -and confirm what I have already said here, and when later I took a look -at Croatia, and the parts of Serbia known to-day as the Machwa, I began -to realize why the Romans had thought these parts so necessary to them. -Soil and climate here are the best any farmer could wish for. The -districts are famous for their output in pork and prunes. - -With the Russians firmly rooted in Galicia, and with the -Austro-Hungarian troops driven out of Serbia, my usefulness as a war -correspondent was temporarily at an end. I returned to Budapest and -later visited Vienna and Berlin. The food situation was unchanged. -Austria and Hungary were consuming as before, and Germany was buying -right and left. The course of the German mark was still high, despite -the first issuance of Loan-Treasury notes, supported as it was by the -generous surrender of much gold by the German people. Purchasable -stores were still plentiful throughout southeast Europe. - -Despite that, the subject of food intruded everywhere. More concerned -than it was willing to admit, the German government was gathering every -morsel. Several neutral governments, among them the Dutch, Danish, -Swiss, and Norwegian, had already declared partial embargoes on food, -and these the German government had made up its mind to meet. It had in -its hands the means to do this most effectively. - -There was Holland, for instance. Her government had reduced the export -of food to Germany to a veritable minimum even then, as I learned on a -trip to The Hague in December. That was well enough, but not without -consequences. Holland has in Limburg a single mine of lignite coal. The -output is small and suited for little more than gas production. But the -country had to get coal from somewhere, if her railroads were to run, -the wheels of industry to turn; if the ships were to steam and the -cities to be lighted and heated. - -Much of the coal consumed in Holland in the past had been imported from -Belgium. But that country was in the hands of the Germans. The British -government had made the taking of bunker coal contingent upon conditions -which the Dutch government thought unreasonable. The Dutch were between -the devil and the deep blue sea. Coal they had to get, and Germany was -the only country willing to supply that coal--provided there was a _quid -pro quo_ in kind. There was nothing to do but accept the terms of the -Germans, which were coal for food. - -The bartering which had preceded the making of these arrangements had -been very close and stubborn. The Dutch government did not want to -offend the British government. It could not afford, on the other hand, -to earn the ill-will of the Germans. I had occasion to occupy myself -with the case, and when my inquiry had been completed I had gained the -impression that the German government had left nothing undone to get -from the Dutch all the food that could be had. The insistency displayed -and applied was such that it was difficult to reconcile with it the easy -manner in which the subject of food had been discussed in Berlin. It -seemed that the food and live-stock enumerations that had been made -throughout the German Empire had given cause for anxiety. - -In January of 1915 I was sent to the Balkans for the purpose of -surveying the political situation there. While in transit to Roumania I -had once more taken stock in Berlin. No great change in food-supply -conditions could be noticed. The war-bread was there, of course. But -those who did not care to eat it did not have to do so. In Vienna they -lived as before, and in Budapest they boastfully pointed to their full -boards. - -But in Bucharest I once more ran into food actualities. Thousands of -German commission-men were buying everything they could lay hands on, -and with them co-operated hundreds of Austro-Hungarians who had long -been residents of Roumania, and many of whom stood high on the grain -exchange of Braila. - -Accident caused me to put up at the Palace Hotel, which was the -headquarters of the grain-buyers. In the lobby of the establishment -thousands of tons of cereals changed hands every hour. - -I evinced some interest in the trading in speaking to the man behind the -desk. - -"Yes, sir! All these men are German grain-dealers," explained the -Balkanite _portier_ to me. "This hotel is their headquarters. If you -don't happen to sympathize with them, no harm will be done if you move -to another hotel. There are many in town." - -But I don't mind being spoken to frankly, and since I had no special -interests in grain-dealers of any sort, there was no reason why I should -move, especially since the _portier_ had invited me to do that. By that -time, also, I had traveled enough in Europe at war to know that -discretion is always the better part of valor, and that being -unperturbed was the best insurance against trouble. The German -grain-dealers were doing a good business. - -It was easy to buy, but not so easy to export. Premier Bratianu did not -like the transactions that were going on, and had passed the word to the -management of the Roumanian state railroads that the traffic was to move -as slowly as possible. There are ways and means of overcoming that sort -of instruction, and the German grain-dealers found them. Far be it from -me to run here a full record of bribery in Bucharest. I may state, -however, that money left deep scars on many a fairly good character in -those days. The influence and persuasion of the _chanteuses et -danseuses_ of the cabarets on the Calea Victoriei played often a great -rôle in cereal exports. I gained personal knowledge of a case in which a -four-karat diamond secured the immediate release of eight thousand tons -of wheat, and in that wheat was buried a large quantity of crude rubber, -the slabs of which carried the name of a large automobile-tire -manufacturer in Petrograd. Such things will happen when the ladies take -a hand in war subsistence. - -My special mission now was to study the political situation on the -Balkan peninsula and finally end up somewhere in Turkey. I did both. - -In Sofia the government was painfully neutral in those days. There was -as yet no reason why the Germans should buy grain there, but contracts -were being made for the next crop. Wool was also being bought, and many -hides moved north into Germany and Austria-Hungary. But the deals were -of an eminently respectable sort. Bribery was out of the question. - -The trouble was that the shipments secured in Bulgaria never reached -their destination unless bribes moved the trains. The Serbs held the -central reaches of the Danube, which, in addition to this, was ice-bound -just then, and all freight from Bulgaria, going north, had to be taken -through Roumania. To get them into that country was simple enough, but -to get them out took more cash, more diamonds, and considerable -champagne. In a single month the price of that beverage in Bucharest -jumped from eighteen to forty francs, and, as if to avenge themselves, -the Germans began shortly to refill the shelves with "champus" made -along the Rhine. - -With Bulgaria explored and described, I set out for Turkey, where, at -Constantinople, in July of that year, I ran into the first bread-line -formed by people "who had the price." - -The Ottoman capital gets its food-supplies normally over the waterways -that give access to the city--the Bosphorus from the north and the Black -Sea and the Dardanelles from the south and the Mediterranean. Both of -these avenues of trade and traffic were now closed. The Russians kept -the entrance to the Bosphorus well patrolled, and the French and British -saw to it that nothing entered the Dardanelles, even if they themselves -could not navigate the strait very far, as some eight months' stay with -the Turkish armed forces at the Dardanelles and on Gallipoli made very -plain to me. - -The Anatolian Railroad, together with a few unimportant tap lines, was -now the only means of reaching the agricultural districts of Asia -Minor--the Konia Vilayet and the Cilician Plain, for instance. But the -line is single-tracked and was just then very much overloaded with -military transports. The result of this was that Constantinople ate up -what stores there were, and then waited for more. - -There was more, of course. The Ottoman Empire is an agricultural state, -and would be more of one if the population could see its way clear to -doing without the goat and the fat-tailed sheep. That its capital and -only large city should be without breadstuff as early as July, 1915, was -hard to believe, yet a fact. - -In May of that year I had made a trip through Anatolia, Syria, and -Arabia. By that time the crops in Asia Minor are well advanced and wheat -is almost ripe. These crops were good, but, like the crops of the -preceding season, which had not yet been moved, owing to the war, they -were of little value to the people of Constantinople. They could not be -had. - -I hate estimates, and for that reason will not indulge in them here. But -the fact is that from Eregli, in the Cappadocian Plain, to Eski-Shehir, -on the Anatolian high plateau, I saw enough wheat rotting at the -railroad stations to supply the Central Powers for two years. Not only -was every shed filled with the grain, but the farmers who had come later -were obliged to store theirs out in the open, where it lay without -shelter of any sort. Rain and warmth had caused the grain on top to -sprout lustily, while the inside of the heap was rotting. The railroad -and the government promised relief day after day, but both were unable -to bring it over the single track, which was given over, almost -entirely, to military traffic. - -Thus it came that the shops of the _ekmekdjis_ in Constantinople were -besieged by hungry thousands, the merest fraction of whom ever got the -loaf which the ticket, issued by the police, promised. That was not all, -however. Speculators and dealers soon discerned their chance of making -money and were not slow in availing themselves of it. Prices rose until -the poor could buy nothing but corn meal. A corner in olives added to -the distress of the multitude, and the government, with that ineptness -which is typical of government in Turkey, failed to do anything that had -practical value. Though the Young Turks had for a while set their faces -against corruption, many of the party leaders had relapsed, with the -result that little was done to check the rapacity of the dealer who -hoarded for purposes of speculation and price-boosting. - -Yet those in the Constantinople bread-lines were modest in their normal -demands. Turk and Levantine manage to get along well on a diet of bread -and olives, with a little _pilaff_--a rice dish--and a small piece of -meat, generally mutton, once a day thrown in. With a little coffee for -the Turk, and a glass of red wine for the Levantine, this is a very -agreeable bill of fare, and a good one, as any expert in dietetics will -affirm. - -I had occasion to discuss the food shortage in Turkey with Halideh Edib -Hannym Effendi, Turkey's leading feminist and education promoter. - -She assigned two causes. One of them was the lack of transportation, to -which I have already referred as coming under my own observation. The -other was found in the ineptness of the Ottoman government. She was of -the opinion that there was enough food in the Bosphorus region, but that -the speculators were holding it for higher prices. This, too, was -nothing new to me. But it was interesting to hear a Turkish woman's -opinion on this nefarious practice. To the misfortune of war the greedy -were adding their lust for possession, and the men in Stamboul lacked -the courage to say them nay. That men like Enver Pasha and Talaat Bey, -who had taken upon themselves the responsibility of having Turkey enter -the lists of the European War, were now afraid to put an end to food -speculation, showed what grip the economic pirate may lay upon a -community. What the Allied fleet and military forces at the Dardanelles -and on Gallipoli had not accomplished the food sharks had done. Before -them the leaders of the Young Turks had taken to cover. - - - - -IV - -FAMINE COMES TO STAY - - -That the food question should have become acute first in a state as -distinctly agricultural as the Ottoman Empire furnishes an apt -illustration of the fact that in the production of food man-power is -all-essential. The best soil and climate lose their value when farming -must be neglected on account of a shortage of labor. The plants -providing us with breadstuff are the product of evolution. At one time -they were mere grasses, as their tendency to revert to that state, when -left to themselves, demonstrates in such climates as make natural -propagation possible. It is believed that the "oat grass" on the South -African veldt is a case of that sort. - -But apart from all that, every cropping season shows that man, in order -to have bread, must plow, sow, cultivate, and reap. When the soil is no -longer able to supply the cereal plants with the nutriment they need, -fertilizing becomes necessary. - -I have shown that bread-lines formed in Constantinople when out in the -Anatolian vilayets the wheat was rotting at the side of the railroad -track. This was due to defects and handicaps in distribution. But there -was also another side to this. I made several trips through Thrace, that -part of the Ottoman Empire which lies in Europe, and found that its rich -valleys and plains could have supplied the Turkish capital with all the -wheat it needed had the soil been cultivated. This had not been done, -however. The mobilizations had taken so many men from the -_tchiftliks_--farms--that a proper tilling of the fields was out of the -question. A shortage in grain resulted, and the food sharks were thus -enabled to exact a heavy tribute from the public. - -It is a case of hard times with the speculator when things are -plentiful. He is then unable to gather in all of the supply. There is a -leakage which he does not control and that leakage causes his defeat in -the end. It is a well-known fact that a corner in wheat is impossible, -and a dangerous undertaking, so long as from 15 to 30 per cent. of the -grain remains uncontrolled. That quantity represents the excess profit -which the speculator counts upon. Not to control it means that the -supply available to the consumer is large enough to keep the price near -its normal curves, to which the speculator must presently adhere if he -is not to lose money on his corner. - -But a great deal depends upon how corrupt the government is. The -Turk-Espaniole clique in Stamboul and Pera had cornered the Thracian -wheat crop in 1915, and the Anatolian Railroad was unable to bring in -enough breadstuff from Anatolia and Syria. The bread-lines were the -result. - -It was not much better in Austria and Hungary. Here, too, production had -fallen off about one-fifth, and the many war purveyors, who had been -driven out of business by saner systems of army purchasing, had turned -their attention to foods of any sort. In Germany the same thing happened -in a slightly less degree. - -Since in the Central states the bread ticket had meanwhile been -introduced, and the quality and price of bread fixed, one may ask the -question: Why was bread short in those countries when formerly they -produced fully 95 per cent. of their breadstuffs? - -The answer is that, firstly, production had fallen off, and, secondly, -there was much cornering by the speculators. - -It must be borne in mind that bread regulation so far consisted of -attempts by the government to provide for the multitude bread at a -reasonable price, without distribution being placed under efficient -control. The rapacity of the food shark had forced up the price of -breadstuffs, and nothing but government interference could check the -avarice of the dealers. But the population had to have cheap bread, and -attention had to be given the paucity of the supply. Fixed prices were -to make possible the former, and a limitation in consumption was to -overcome the latter. - -It will be seen that this procedure left the food shark a free hand. He -could buy as before and sell when and to whom he pleased. Thus it came -that, while the masses of Germany and Austria-Hungary had to eat -war-bread in prescribed quantities, those better off materially still -had their wheat-flour products. The authorities were not ignorant of -this, but had good reason not to interfere. The time was come when the -financial resources of the country had to be "mobilized," and this was -being done by extracting from the population all the spare coin and -concentrating it in the hands of the food speculators so that these -could be taxed and enabled to buy war loans. These men were easily dealt -with. Very often they were bankers, and kings of industry and commerce. -To provide the government with funds for the war was to them a question -of profit. - -The bread ticket did not favor an equitable distribution, nor was it -ever intended to do that. Its sole purpose at first was to tax food in -such a manner that those who were willing to buy more food than the -bread ticket prescribed had to pay heavily for this indulgence. That -this was a socio-economic injustice was plain to those who reasoned far -enough. But the patient rabble accepted the thing at its face value, as -it will accept most things that bear the stamp of authority. - -I had no difficulty anywhere in getting all the wheat bread and -farinaceous dishes I wanted. It was not even necessary to ask for them. -It was taken for granted that I belonged to the class that did not have -to eat war-bread and do without pudding and cake, and that was enough. -While I was supposed to have a bread ticket, few ever asked for it. In -the restaurants which I frequented I generally found a dinner roll -hidden under the napkin, which for that purpose was as a rule folded in -the manner known as the "bishop's miter." - -But gone for the many was the era of enough food. The bread ration in -Berlin was three hundred grams (ten and a half ounces) per day, and in -Vienna it was two hundred and ten grams (seven and two-fifths ounces). -Together with a normal supply of other eatables, flour for cooking, for -instance, these rations were not really short, and in my case they were -generous. But with most it was now a question of paying abnormally high -prices for meat and the like, so that enough bread was more of a -necessity than ever. - -It was rather odd that in Austria the bread ration should be smaller -than in Germany. That country had in the past produced more breadstuff -per capita than her ally, and would have been able to import from -Hungary had conditions been different. Hungary had in the past exported -wheat flour to many parts, due largely to the fine quality of her grain. -Now, of a sudden, it, too, faced a shortage. - -The fact is that Austria-Hungary had mobilized a large part of her male -population and had for that reason been extremely short of farm labor -during the season of 1915. The large reserve stores had been exhausted -by improvidence, and, to make things worse, the crops of that year were -not favored by the weather. Meanwhile, much of the wheat had passed into -the hands of the speculators, who were releasing it only when their -price was paid. In Austria the bread ticket was the convenient answer to -all complaints, and in Hungary, where the bread ticket was not generally -introduced as yet, the food shark had the support of the government to -such an extent that criticism of his methods was futile. Now and then an -enterprising editor would be heard from--as far as his press-room, where -the censor caused such hardihoods to be routed from the plate. - -The food outlook in Austria-Hungary was no pleasant one. Drastic -regulation would be needed to alleviate conditions. - -It was no better in Germany, as a trip to Berlin showed. Food had indeed -become a problem in the Central states of Europe. - -The same area had been put under crops in 1915; the area had even been -somewhat extended by advice of the governments that all fallow lands be -sown. But the harvest had not been good. The shortage of trained -farmers, lack of animal-power, and the paucity of fertilizers had done -exactly what was to be expected. Then, the growing season had not been -favorable. The year had been wet, and much of the grain had been ruined -even after it was ripe. - -For the purpose of investigating conditions at close range I made a few -trips into the country districts. The large landowners, the farmers, and -the villagers had the same story to tell. Not enough hands, shortage of -horses and other draft animals, little manure, and a poor season. - -One of the men with whom I discussed the aspects of farming under the -handicaps which the war was imposing was Joachim Baron von -Bredow-Wagenitz, a large landowner in the province of Brandenburg. As -owner of an estate that had been most successful under scientific -methods of farming, he was well qualified to discuss the situation. - -He had tried steam-plowing and found it wanting. The man was on the -verge of believing that Mother Earth resented being treated in that -manner. The best had been done to make steam-plowing as good as the -other form. But something seemed to have gone wrong. There was no life -in the crops. It was a question of fertilizing, my informant concluded. -The theory, which had been held, that there was enough reserve plant -nutriment in the soil to produce a good crop at least one season with -indifferent fertilization, was evidently incorrect, or correct only in -so far as certain crop plants were concerned. - -Baron Bredow had employed some threescore of Russian prisoners on his -place. Some of the men had worked well, but most of them had shown -ability only in shirking. - -The older men and the women had done their best to get something out of -the soil, but they were unable, in the first place, to stand the -physical strain, and, secondly, they lacked the necessary experience in -the departments which the men at the front had looked after. - -Elsewhere in Germany it was the same story. It simply was impossible to -discount the loss of almost four million men who had by that time been -withdrawn from the soil and were now consuming more than ever before -without producing a single thing, as yet. - -To show what that really meant let me cite a few factors that are easily -grasped. The population of the German Empire was then, roundly, -70,000,000 persons. Of this number 35,000,000 were women. Of the -35,000,000 men all individuals from birth to the age of fifteen were -virtually consumers only, while those from fifty years onward were more -or less in the same class. Accepting that the average length of life in -Central Europe is fifty-five years, we find that the male producers in -1915 numbered about 20,000,000, and of this number about one-half was -then either at the fronts or under military training. Of these -10,000,000 roughly 4,200,000 had formerly occupied themselves with the -production and distribution of food. I need not state that this army -formed quite the best element in food production for the simple reason -that it was composed of men in the prime of life. - -A survey in Austria showed not only the same conditions, but also -indicated that the worst was yet to come. Austria and Hungary had then -under the colors about 5,000,000 men, of whom, roundly, 2,225,000 came -from the fields and food industries, so that agriculture was even worse -off in the Dual Monarchy than it was in Germany. - -The large landowners in Austria and Hungary told the same story as Baron -Bredow. Experiences tallied exactly. They, too, had found it impossible -to get the necessary labor, for either love or money. It simply was not -in the country, and with many of the Austrian and Hungarian -land-operators the labor given by the Russian prisoner of war was next -thing to being nothing at all. The Russians felt that they were being -put to work against the interest of their country, and many of them -seemed to like the idleness of the prison camp better than the work that -was expected of them on the estates, though here they were almost free. - -I remember especially the experiences of Count Erdödy, a Hungarian -nobleman and owner of several big estates. After trying every sort of -available male labor, he finally decided to cultivate his lands with the -help of women. The thing was not a success by any means, but when he -came to compare notes with his neighbors he found that, after all, the -women had done much better than the men on his neighbors' estates. As a -sign of the times I should mention here that Count Erdödy, no longer a -young man, would spend weeks at a stretch doing the heaviest of farm -work, labor in which he was assisted by his American wife and two -daughters, one of whom could work a plow as well as any man. - -The war had ceased to be an affair that would affect solely the masses, -as is often the case. Men who never before had done manual labor could -now be seen following the plow, cultivating crops, operating reapers, -and threshing the grain. The farm superintendents, most of them young -and able-bodied men of education, had long ago been called to the colors -as reserve officers, so that generally the owner, who in the past had -taken it very easy, was now confronted with a total absence of -executives on his estates, in addition to being short of man-power and -animals of labor. - -But the large farm-operators were not half so poorly off as the small -farmer. I will cite a case in order to show the conditions on the small -farms and in the villages. - -The land near Linz in Austria is particularly fertile and is mostly held -by small owners who came into possession of it during the Farmer -Revolution in the 'forties. I visited a number of these men and will -give here what is a typical instance of what they had to contend with in -the crop season of 1915. - -"It is all right for the government to expect that we are to raise the -same, if not better, crops during the war," said one of them. "For the -fine gentlemen who sit in the Ministerial offices that does not mean -much. Out here it is different. Their circulars are very interesting, -but the fact is that we cannot carry out the suggestions they make. - -"They have left me my youngest son. He is a mere boy--just eighteen. -The other boys--three of them--who helped me run this place, I have -lost. One of them was killed in Galicia, and the other two have been -taken prisoners. I may never see them again. They say my two boys are -prisoners. But I have heard nothing of them. - -"My crops would have been better if I hadn't tried to follow some of the -advice in the government circulars. It was my duty to raise all I could -on my land, they said. I doubted the wisdom of putting out too much, -with nobody to help me. - -"It would have been better had I followed my own judgment and plowed -half the land and let the other lie fallow, in which case it would have -been better for the crops next year. Instead of that I planted all the -fields, used a great deal of seed, wasted much of my labor, first in -plowing, then in cultivating, and later in harvesting, and now I have -actually less return than usually I had from half the land." - -The records of the man showed that from his thirty acres he had -harvested what normally fifteen would have given him. Haste makes waste, -and in his instance haste was the equivalent of trying to do with two -pairs of weak hands what formerly three pairs of strong arms had done. -The farmer explained that for several years before the war he had done -little work, feeling that he was entitled to a rest. - -Nor had his heart been in the work. One of his sons had been killed. Two -others were in captivity, and the fourth, Franz, might be called to the -colors any day. It seemed to him futile to continue. What was the use of -anything, now that his family had been torn apart in that manner? - -[Illustration: Photograph from Brown Brothers, N. Y. - -A LEVY OF FARMER BOYS OFF FOR THE BARRACKS - -The fact that millions of food-producers of this type were taken from -the soil caused Central Europe to run short of life's necessities.] - -[Illustration: Photograph from Brown Brothers, N. Y. - -GERMAN CAVALRYMEN AT WORK PLOWING - -As food grew scarcer the German army began to cultivate the fields in -the occupied territories to lessen the burden of the food-producer at -home.] - -Taxes were higher, of course. On the other hand, he was getting a little -more for his products, but not enough to make good the loss sustained -through bad crops. While the production of his land had fallen to about -one-half of normal, he was getting on an average 15 per cent. more for -what he sold, which was now a bare third of what he had sold in other -years, seeing that from the little he had raised he had to meet the -wants of his family and the few animals that were left. - -Neighbors of the man told a similar story. Some of them had done a -little better in production, but in no instance had the crop been within -more than 80 per cent. of normal. They, too, were not satisfied with the -prices they were getting. The buyers of the commission-men were guided -by the minimum-price regulation which the government was enforcing, and -often they would class a thing inferior in order to go below that -price--as the regulations permitted. These people felt that they were -being mulcted. But redress there was none. If they refused to sell, the -authorities could compel them, and rather than face requisition they -allowed the agents of the food sharks to have their way. The thought -that the government was exploiting them was disheartening, and was -reflected in their production of food. - -This was the state of affairs almost everywhere. The able-bodied men had -been taken from the soil, just as they had been taken from other -economic spheres. Labor was not only scarce, but so high-priced that the -small farmer could not afford to buy it. - -And then, I found that in the rural districts the war looked much more -real to people. There it had truly fostered the thought that all in life -is vain. The city people were much better off in that respect. They also -had their men at the front. But they had more diversion, even if that -diversion was usually no more than meeting many people each day. They -had, moreover, the exhilarating sensation that comes from playing a game -for big stakes. When the outlook was dreary they always found some -optimist who would cheer them up; and the report of some victory, -however small and inconsequential, buoyed them up for days at a time. -Out in the country it was different. The weekly paper did its best to be -cheerful. But its sanguine guesses as to the military future were seen -by eyes accustomed to dealing with the realities of nature. - -I visited many Austrian villages and found the same psychology -everywhere. The Austrian farmer was tired of the war by December of -1914. When I occupied myself again with him a year later he was -disgusted and had come to care not a rap who governed in Budapest. Of -course, it was different should the Russians get to Vienna. In that case -they would take their pitchforks and scythes and show them. - -The Hungarian farmer was in the same mood. If the war could have been -ended with the Italians getting no farther than Vienna things would have -been well enough, but to have the Russians in Budapest--not to be -thought of; not for a minute. - -Meanwhile, the Austrian and Hungarian governments, taking now many a -leaf from the book of the Germans, were urging a greater production of -food next season. Highly technical books were being digested into the -every-day language of the farmer. It was pointed out what sorts of -plowing would be most useful, and what might be omitted in case it could -not be done. How and when to fertilize under prevailing conditions was -also explained. - -The leaflets meant well, but generally overlooked the fact that each -farm has problems of its own. But this prodding of the farmer and his -soil was not entirely without good results. It caused a rather thorough -cultivation of the fields in the fall of 1915, and also led to the -utilization of fertilizing materials which had been overlooked before. -The dung-pits were scraped, and even the earth around them was carted -into the fields. Though animal urine had already been highly valued as a -fertilizer, it was now conserved with greater care. Every speck of wood -ash was saved. The humus on the woodland floors and forests was drawn -on. The muck of rivers and ponds was spread over the near-by fields, and -in northern Germany the parent stratum of peat growth was ground up and -added to the soil as plant food. - - - - -V - -THE FOOD SHARK AND HIS WAYS - - -There were two schools of war economists in Central Europe, and they had -their following in each of the several governments that regulated -food--its production, distribution, and consumption. The two elements -opposed each other, naturally, and not a little confusion came of this -now and then. - -The military formed one of these schools--the radical. These men wanted -to spread over the entire population the discipline of the barrack-yard. -For the time being they wanted the entire state to be run on military -principles. All production was to be for the state; all distribution was -to be done in the interest of the war, and all consumption, whether that -of the rich or the poor, was to be measured by the military value of the -individual. It was proposed that every person in the several states -should get just his share of the available food and not a crumb more. -The rich man was to eat exactly, to the fraction of an ounce, what the -poor man got. He was to have no greater a share of clothing, fuel, and -light. - -That seemed very equitable to most people. It appealed even to the other -school, but it did not find the approval of those who were interested in -the perpetuation of the old system of social economy. What the military -proposed was more than the socialists had ever demanded. The enforcement -of that measure would have been the triumph absolute of the -Social-Democrats of Central Europe. - -But for that the Central European politician and capitalist was not -ready. With the capitalist it was a question of: What good would it do -to win the war if socialism was thus to become supreme? It would be far -better to go down in military defeat and preserve the profit system. - -The struggle was most interesting. I had occasion to discuss it with a -man whose name I cannot give, for the reason that it might go hard with -him--and I am not making war on individuals. At any rate, the man is now -a general in the German army. He was then a colonel and looked upon as -the ablest combination of politician, diplomatist, and soldier Germany -possessed, as he had indeed proved. - -"You are a socialist," I said to him. "But you don't seem to know it." - -"I am a socialist and do know it," said the colonel. "This war has made -me a socialist. When this affair is over, and I am spared, I will become -an active socialist." - -"And the reason?" I asked. - -That question the colonel did not answer. He could not. But I learned -indirectly what his reasons were. Little by little he unfolded them to -me. He was tired of the butchery, all the more tired since he could not -see how bloody strife of that sort added anything to the well-being of -man. - -"When war reaches the proportions it has to-day it ceases to be a -military exercise," he said on one occasion. "The peoples of Europe are -at one another's throat to-day because one set of capitalists is afraid -that it is to lose a part of its dividends to another. The only way we -have of getting even with them is to turn socialist and put the curb on -our masters." - -There would seem to be no direct connection between this sentiment and -the economic tendency of the military in food regulation. Yet there is. -The men in the trenches knew very well what they were fighting for. They -realized that, now the struggle was on, they had to continue with it, -but they had also made up their mind to be heard from later on. - -The case I have quoted is not isolated. I found another in the general -headquarters of General von Stein, then commanding a sector on the -Somme. - -In the camp of the military economists was also that governing element -which manages to drag out an existence of genteel shabbiness on the -smallest pay given an official of that class anywhere. This faction also -favored the most sweeping measures of war economy. - -But it was in the end a simple matter of holding these extremists down. -Their opponents always had the very trenchant argument that it took -money to carry on the war, and that this money could not be had if the -old system was completely overthrown. There was little to be said after -that. To do anything that would make war loans impossible would be -treason, of course, and that was considered going too far. - -Regulation thereafter resolved itself into an endeavor by the -anti-capitalists to trim their _bête noire_ as much as was possible and -safe, and the effort of the economic standpatters to come to the rescue -of their friends. Now the one, then the other, would carry off the -honors, and each time capital and public would either gain or lose. It -depended somewhat on the season. When war loans had to be made, the -anti-capitalist school would ease off a little, and when the loan had -been subscribed it would return to its old tactics, to meet, as before, -the very effective passive resistance of the standpatters. - -I may mention here that much of what has been said of the efficient -organization of the German governments is buncombe--rot pure and simple. -In the case of the Austrian and Hungarian governments this claim has -never been made, could never have been made, and no remark of mine is -necessary. The thing that has been mistaken for efficient organization -is the absolute obedience to authority which has been bred into the -German for centuries. Nor is that obedience entirely barrack bred, as -some have asserted. It is more the high regard for municipal law and -love of orderliness than the fear of the drill-sergeant that finds -expression in this obedience. How to make good use of this quality -requires organizing ability, of course. But no matter how the efficient -organization of the Germans is viewed, the fact remains that the German -people, by virtue of its love of orderliness, is highly susceptible to -the impulses of the governing class. To that all German efficiency is -due. - -There had been some modification of distribution early in 1915. That, -however, was entirely a military measure. The traffic on the German -state railroads was unusually heavy, and trackage, rolling-stock, and -motive power had to be husbanded if a breakdown of the long lines of -communication between the French and Russian fronts was to be avoided. -There was no thought of social economy. The thing aimed at was to keep -the railroads fit for military service. - -But by August of 1915 the military economists had managed to get their -hands into economic affairs. It cannot be said that their efforts were -at first particularly fortunate. But the German general staff was and is -composed of men quick to learn. These men had then acquired at least one -sound notion, and this was that, with the railroads of the several -states under military control, they could "get after" the industrial and -commercial barons whom they hated so cordially. - -"In the interest of the military establishment" a number of -socio-economic innovations were introduced. The first of them was the -distribution zone. There is no doubt that it was a clever idea. It was -so sound, at the same time, that the friends of the trade lords in the -government had to accept it. - -The arrangement worked something like this. A wholesaler of flour in -western Hanover might have a good customer in the city of Magdeburg. Up -to now he had been permitted to ship to that customer as he desired. -That was to cease. He could now ship only to that point when he could -prove that the flour was not needed nearer to where it was stored. But -to prove that was not easy--was impossible, in fact. - -Since the German state railroads had in the past provided much of the -revenue of the several governments, this was no small step to take. But -it was taken, and with most salutary effects. The trundling of freight -back and forth ceased, and the food shark was the loser. - -Ostensibly, this had been done in order to conserve the railroads. Its -actual purpose was to check the trade lords by depriving them of one of -their arguments why the price of necessities should be high. - -What was accomplished in this instance should interest any community, -and for that reason I will illustrate it with an example of "economic -waste" found in the United States. - -You may have eaten a "Kansas City" steak in San Antonio, Texas, if not -at Corpus Christi or Brownsville. (I am an adopted "native" of that -region and inordinately proud of it.) If you had investigated the -history of that steak I think you would have been somewhat surprised. -The steer which produced that steak might have been raised in the valley -of the Rio Grande. After that the animal had taken a trip to Oklahoma, -where better pasture put more meat on its back. Still later a farmer in -Missouri had fattened the steer on the very cream of his soil, and after -that it had been taken to Kansas City or Chicago to be butchered and -"storaged." - -It might then have dawned upon you that a great deal of wasted effort -was hidden in the price of that steak, though no more than in the -biscuit that was wheat in North Dakota, flour in Minneapolis, biscuit in -San Francisco, and a toothsome morsel to follow the steak. You would be -a dull person indeed if now some economic short cut had not occurred to -you. The steak might have been produced by Texas grass and North Texas -corn, and the like, and it need never have traveled farther than San -Antonio. The biscuit might have been given its form in Minneapolis. - -It was so in Germany before the military social economists took a hand -in the scheme, though the waste was by no means as great as in the cases -I have cited, seeing that all of the empire is a little smaller than the -Lone Star State. - -But the little trundling there was had to go. - -In the winter of 1915-16 this budding economic idea was still in -chrysalis, however. The several governments still looked upon it -entirely as a measure for the conservation of their railroads. What is -more, they were afraid to give the principle too wide an application. In -the first place, the extension of the scheme into the socio-economic -structure seemed difficult technically. It was realized that the -reduction of traffic on the rails was one thing, and that the -simplifying of distribution was quite another. To effect the first the -Minister of Railroads had merely to get in touch with the chiefs of the -"direction," as the districts of railroading are called. The chiefs -would forward instruction to their division heads, and after that -everything was in order. - -But distribution was another thing. In that case the several governments -did not deal with a machine attuned to obey the slightest impulse from -above, and which as readily transmitted impulses from the other end. Far -from it. Not to meddle with distribution, so long as this was not -absolutely necessary, was deemed the better course, especially since all -such meddling would have to be done along lines drawn a thousand times -by the Central European socialist. - -But the food shark had to be checked somehow. The unrest due to his -sharp practices was on the increase. The minimum-maximum price decrees -which had been issued were all very well, but so long as there was a -chance to speculate and hoard they were to the masses a detriment rather -than a benefit. - -Let me show you how the food shark operated. The case I quote is -Austrian, but I could name hundreds of similar instances in Germany. I -have selected this case because I knew the man by sight and attended -several sessions of his trial. First I will briefly outline what law he -had violated. - -To lay low what was known as chain trade throughout Central Europe, -_Kettenhandel_, the governments had decreed that foodstuffs could be -distributed only in this manner: The producer could sell to a -commission-man, but the commission-man could sell only to the -wholesaler, and the wholesaler only to the retailer. - -That appears rational enough. But neither commission-man nor wholesaler -liked to adhere to the scheme. Despite the law, they would pass the same -thing from one to another, and every temporary owner of the article -would add a profit, and no small one. To establish the needed control -the retailer was to demand from the wholesaler the bill of sale by which -the goods had passed into his hands, while the wholesaler could make the -commission-man produce documentary evidence showing how much he had paid -the producer. Under the scheme a mill, or other establishment where -commodities were collected, was a producer. - -Mr. B. had bought of the Fiume Rice Mills Company a car-load of best -rice, the car-load in Central Europe being generally ten tons. He had -brought the rice to Vienna and there was an eager market for it, as may -be imagined. But he wanted to make a large profit, and that was -impossible if he went about the sale of the rice in the manner -prescribed by the government. The wholesaler or retailer to whom he sold -might wish to see the bill of sale, and then he was sure to report him -to the authorities if the profit were greater than the maximum which the -government had provided. To overcome all this he did what many others -were doing, and in that manner made on the single car of rice which he -sold to a hunger-ridden community the neat little profit of thirty-five -hundred crowns. - -Something went wrong, however. Mr. B. was arrested and tried on the -charge of price-boosting by means of chain trade. When the rice got to -Vienna he had sold it to a dummy. The dummy sold it to another dummy, -and Mr. B. bought it again from the second dummy. In this manner he -secured the necessary figures on the bill of sale and imposed them on -the wholesaler. The court was lenient in his case. He was fined five -thousand crowns, was given six weeks in jail, and lost his license to -trade. _Preistreiberei_--to wit--price-boosting did not pay in this -instance. - -After all, that sort of work was extremely crude when compared with some -other specimens, though the more refined varieties of piracy needed -usually the connivance of some public official, generally a man -connected with the railroad management. Many of these officials were -poorly paid when the war began and the government could not see its way -clear to paying them more. The keen desire of keeping up the shabby -gentility that goes with Central European officialdom, and very often -actual want, caused these men to fall by the roadside. - -There was a little case that affected three hundred cars of wheat -flour. Though Hungary and Austria had then no wheat flour to spare for -export, the flour was actually exported through Switzerland into Italy, -though that country was then at war with the Dual Monarchy! Thirty-two -men were arrested, and two of them committed suicide before the law laid -hands on them. The odd part of it was that the flour had crossed the -Austro-Hungarian border at Marchegg, where the shipment had been -examined by the military border police. It had then gone across Austria -as a shipment of "cement in bags," had passed as such into Switzerland, -and there the agents of the food sharks in Budapest had turned it over -to an Italian buyer. Nobody would have been the wiser had it not been -that a shipment of some thirty cars was wrecked. Lo and behold, the -cement was flour! - -They had some similar cases in Germany, though most of them involved -chain trading in textiles. The unmerciful application of the law did not -deter the profiteer at all, any more than capital punishment has ever -succeeded in totally eradicating murder. There was always somebody who -would take a chance, and it was the leakage rather than the general -scheme of distribution that did all the damage. Whatever necessity and -commodity had once passed out of the channel of legitimate business had -to stay out of it if those responsible for the deflection were not to -come in conflict with the law, and there were always those who were only -too glad to buy such stores. The wholesaler received more than the -maximum price he could have asked of the retailer, and the consumer was -glad to get the merchandise at almost any price so that he could -increase his hoard. - -But the governments were loth to put the brake on too much of the -economic machinery. They depended on that machinery for money to carry -on the war, and large numbers of men would be needed to supervise a -system of distribution that thwarted the middleman's greed effectively. -These men were not available. - -The minimum-maximum price scheme had shown itself defective, moreover. -In theory this was all very well, but in food regulation it is often a -question of: The government proposes and the individual disposes. The -minimum price was the limit which any would-be buyer could offer the -seller. In the case of the farmer it meant that for a kilogram (2.205 -pounds) of potatoes he would get, let us say, five cents. Nobody could -offer him less. The maximum price was to protect the consumer, who for -the same potatoes was supposed to pay no more than six and one-half -cents. The middlemen were to fit into this scheme as best they could. -The one and one-half cents had to cover freight charges, operation cost, -and profit. The margin was ample in a farm-warehouse-store-kitchen -scheme of distribution. But it left nothing for the speculator, being -intended to stimulate production and ease the burden which the consumer -was bearing. Not the least purpose of the scheme was to keep the money -out of the hands of food-dealers, who would hoard their ill-gotten -gain. The government needed an active flow of currency. - -All of which was well enough so long as the supply of food was not -really short. But when it grew short another factor entered the arena. -Everybody began to hoard. The quantities which the authorities released -for consumption were not intended to be stored, however. Storing food by -incompetents is most wasteful, as the massacre of the pigs had shown, -and hoarding, moreover, gave more food to the rich than to the poor; so -for the time being it could not be encouraged too openly, despite the -revenues that came from it. - -But the hoarder is hard to defeat. The consumer knew and trusted the -retailer, the retailer was on the best of terms with the wholesaler, and -the rapacious commission-man knew where to get the goods. - -He made the farmer a better offer than the minimum price he usually -received. He paid six cents for the kilogram of potatoes, or even seven. -Then he sold in a manner which brought the potatoes to the consumer for -eleven cents through the "food speak-easy." The middleman and retailer -had now cleared four cents on the kilogram, instead of one and one-half -cents; their outlay deducted, they would make a net profit running from -two and one-half cents to three and one-half cents per 2.205 American -pounds of potatoes. This sort of traffic ran into the tens of thousands -of tons. The food shark was making hay while the weather was good. The -entire range of human alimentation was at his mercy, and often the -government closed an eye because the food shark would subscribe -handsomely to the next war loan. - -In the winter of 1915-16 I made several trips into the country to see -how things were getting along. On one occasion I was in Moravia. I had -heard rumors that here the food shark had found Paradise. It was a fact. -Near a freight-yard in Brünn a potato-dealer was installed. He bought -potatoes in any quantity, being in effect merely the agent of the Vienna -Bank Ring that was doing a food-commission business as a side line. I -don't know why the government permitted this, except that this -"concession" was a _quid pro quo_ for war-loan subscriptions. - -A little old Czech farmer drove up. He had some thirty bags of potatoes -on his sleigh, all well protected by straw and blankets. The food shark -looked the load over and offered the minimum price for that grade, which -on that day was eighteen hellers the kilogram, about one and -three-fourths cents American per pound avoirdupois. - -The farmer protested. "My daughter in Vienna tells me that she has to -pay thirty-six hellers a kilogram," he said. - -"Not according to the maximum price set by the government, which is -twenty-one hellers just now," was the bland remark of the agent. - -"That is all very well, sir!" returned the farmer. "But you know as well -as I do that when my daughter wants potatoes she must pay thirty-six -hellers or whatever the retailer wants. She writes me that when she -stands in the food-line she never gets anything. So she does business -with a man who always has potatoes." - -The food shark had no time to lose. Other farmers came. - -"Eighteen hellers or nothing," he said. - -The farmer thought it over for a while and then sold. - -The reader uninitiated in war-food conditions may ask: Why didn't that -farmer ship his daughter the potatoes she needed? He couldn't, of -course. The economic-zone arrangement prevented him. That zone was the -means which the government employed to regulate and restrict -distribution and consumption without giving money an opportunity to -tarnish in the hands of people who might not subscribe to war loans. The -zone "mobilized" the pennies by concentrating them in the banks and -making them available _en masse_ for the war. - -Yet the fact was that the daughter of the farmer, buying potatoes -clandestinely, may have bought the very product of her father's land. -Who in that case got the eighteen hellers difference? The middlemen, of -course. That the poor woman, in order to feed her children, might have -been able to use to good advantage two kilograms at thirty-six hellers, -instead of one, is very likely, but this consideration did not bother -the food sharks known as the Vienna Bank Ring. - -On one occasion the same group of food speculators permitted two -million eggs to spoil in a railroad yard at Vienna because the price was -not good enough. The Bank Ring was just then agitating for a better -price for eggs and hoped that the maximum would be raised. But the -government was a little slow on this occasion, and before the price went -up, "according to regulation," the eggs were an unpleasant memory to the -yard-hands. Naturally, nobody was prosecuted in this case. I understood -at the time that the Bank Ring presented to the Austrian government a -sort of ultimatum, which read: "No profits, no war loans." The -government surrendered. - -The fact that many of these speculators were of the Jewish persuasion -caused a revival of a rather mild sort of anti-Semitism. Several of the -Christian newspapers made much of this, but the government censors soon -put an end to that. This was no time for the pot to call the kettle -black. The food shark came from all classes, and the Austrian nobility -was not poorly represented. - -There was the case of the princely house of Schwarzenberg, for instance. -The family is not of German blood to any extent, as the name would seem -to imply. Nowadays it is distinctly Bohemian, and in Bohemia its vast -estates and properties are located. The managers of the Schwarzenbergs -had a corner on almost everything that was raised in the localities of -the family's domains. In the winter of 1915-16 they forced up, to -unheard-of heights, the price of prunes. The prune was a veritable -titbit then, and with most people in Central Europe it had come to be -the only fruit they could get in the winter. Its nutritive value is -great, and since every pfennig and heller had to buy a maximum in food -values the demand for prunes soon exceeded greatly the supply--so -everybody thought. - -But the trouble was not a shortage. The crop had been good, in fact. -Orchards, so far as they had not been harmed by the paucity of copper -for the manufacture of vitriol and Bordeaux mixture for the -extermination of tree parasites, had not suffered by the war. The trees -bore as usual, and fruit crops were generally what they had been before. -Nor had there been an increase in operation expenses, aside from what -little extra pay there was given those who gathered the crop. - -But the Schwarzenbergs and a few others made up their minds that they, -too, would get a little of the war profits. They also were heavy -investors in war loans. - -So long as this corner was confined to prunes and other fruits the thing -presented no great problem--as problems went then. But the activity of -this particular ring did not stop there. Its members dealt in everything -the soil produced. - -During the first months of the war there had been set aside by the -several military authorities certain agricultural districts from which -the armies were to be supplied with food, forage, and the like. The -idea was not a bad one. The armies were voracious consumers, and a -scheme which would concentrate over as small an area as possible the -supplies needed meant a great saving of time and effort when shipments -had to be made. - -That would have been very well had the several governments bought all -supplies from the producer direct through the medium of a purchasing -branch of the commissary department. Such was not the case, however. The -government continued to buy through war purveyors, who had, indeed, been -curbed a little, but only in exchange for other privileges. Standing in -well with the military, these men were able to sell out of the -commissary-supply zones what the armies did not need--poultry, butter, -fats, and eggs, for instance. These little side lines paid very well. I -remember discovering on one trip that near Prague could be bought a -whole goose for what in Vienna two pounds would cost. Since the Bohemian -geese are never small birds, and weigh from nine to twelve pounds, this -was a case of five to one. When in the cities butter was almost a thing -unknown, I was able to buy in Bohemia any quantity at the very -reasonable price of twenty-seven cents American a pound. In Vienna it -cost one dollar and thirty cents a pound after the food shark had been -satisfied. - -The military-supply-zone arrangement made exports from districts -affected to the large population centers impossible, except upon -special permit, which was not easy to get by the man who had no -"protection," as they put it in Austria. The food shark always -interfered. In doing that he had a sort of double objective. Scarcity -was forcing up the prices in the cities, and when the government had -been persuaded that the prevailing maximum price was not "fair to the -farmer" the shark had a reservoir to draw upon. - -I found a similar state of affairs in Galicia. On the very outskirts of -Cracow I ran into a veritable land of plenty. The military zone had -completely isolated this district, and while elsewhere people had not -seen butter in weeks, it was used here for cooking, and lard served as -axle-grease. Finally the zone was opened to the civilian consumer. But -this concession benefitted only the food sharks. In the population -centers prices remained what they had been. - -I found similar conditions in Germany, though the cause was not entirely -the same. - -The Mecklenburg states still have a government and public administration -scheme that has come down to our day from the Middle Ages without much -modification. They have no constitution as yet, and they would have no -railroads, I suppose, were it not that their neighbors had to get access -to one another through these principalities. The two countries are -hard-boiled eggs indeed. And the Mecklenburgers are like their -government. I understand that some enlightened ruler once offered his -people constitutional government, but had a refusal for his pains. - -Enough food had been hoarded in Mecklenburg to meet all Germany's -shortage three months. But nobody could get it out. The Imperial German -government had no say in the matter. The several German states are as -jealous of their vested rights as any American State could possibly be. -And the Mecklenburg government had little influence with its farmers. -The case was rather interesting. Here was an absolute government that -was more impotent in its dealings with its subjects than constitutional -Austria was. But the Mecklenburg farmers were of one mind, and that -quality is often stronger than a regularly established constitution--it -is stronger for the reason that it may be an unwritten constitution. - -The cellars and granaries of Mecklenburg were full to overflowing. But -there the thing ended, until one day the screws were put on by the -Imperial German government. The Mecklenburgers had been good war-loan -buyers, however. Hard-headed farmers often prefer direct methods. - -In Westphalia they had similar food islands, and from Osnabrück to the -North Sea victuals had generally to be pried loose with a crowbar. There -the farmer was the peasant of the good old type; he was generally a hard -person to deal with. It was shown that while he did not mind being -classed as low-caste--_Bauernstand_--he also had cultivated a castal -independence. He would doff his cap to the government official, and all -the time resolve the firmer not to let his crops get out of his hands -in a manner not agreeable to him. - -Passive resistance is too much for any government, no matter how -absolute and strong it may be. It can be overcome only by cajolery. - -The clandestine food-buyer had better luck, of course. He knew how to -impress and persuade the thickhead, and then made the dear general -public pay for this social accomplishment, which may be as it should be. -He also frustrated the plan of the government. Pennies so mobilized did -not always go into war loans. - -To the men in high places this was not unknown, of course. They realized -that something would have to be done soon or late to put this department -of war economics on a smooth track. Appeals not to hoard and not to -speculate in the interest of the nation were all very well, but they led -to nothing. - -Still, it would not do to undertake the major operation on the vitals of -the socio-economic organism which alone could set matters right. More -doctoring was done during the summer of 1916. Those who did it were -being misled by the will-o'-the-wisp of a good crop prospect. - -In August of that year I had an interview with Dr. Karl Helfferich, the -first German food-dictator. He was averse just then to more food -regulation. He had done wonders as it was. Everybody knew that, though -he was most modest about it. More regulation of the economic machine -seemed undesirable to him. He did not want to wholly unmake and remodel -the industrial and commercial organism of the state, and preliminary -crop reports were such that further interference seemed unnecessary at -that moment. - -As it was, the rye crop of Germany met expectations. Wheat fell short, -however, Oats were good, but the potatoes made a poor showing, as did a -number of other crops that year. - -Crop returns in Austria were disappointing on the whole. The spring had -been very wet and the summer unusually dry. When the harvesting season -came a long rainy spell ruined another 10 per cent. of the cereals. -Potatoes failed to give a good yield. In Hungary the outlook was equally -discouraging, and reports from the occupied territories in Poland, -Serbia, and Macedonia showed that what the "economic troops" and -occupation forces had raised would be needed by the armies. - -To fill the cup of anxiety to the brim, Roumania declared war. The -several governments had made arrangements to give furlough to as many -farm-workers as possible, that the crops might be brought in properly. -The entry of Roumania into the war made that impossible. And the moment -for entry had been chosen well indeed. By reason of its warmer climate, -Roumania had been able to harvest a good three-quarters of her crops by -August, and the Indian corn could be left to the older men, women, and -children to gather. But in the Central states it was different. Much of -the wheat had been harvested, and some rye had also been brought in, -but the bulk of the field produce, upon which the populations depended -for their nourishment, was still in the fields. - -I have never experienced so gloomy a time as this. There was a new -enemy, and this enemy was spreading all over Transylvania. The shortage -of labor was greater than ever before, with the weather more -unfavorable. - -What the conditions in Austria and Hungary were at that time I was able -to ascertain on several trips to the Roumanian front. Cereals that -should have been under roof long ago were standing in the fields, -spilling their kernels when rain was not rotting them. Those who were -left to reap struggled heroically with the huge task on their hands, but -were not equal to it. If ever the specter of famine had stalked through -the Central states, those were the days. - -All this left the food shark undisturbed. He laid hands on all he could -and was ready to squeeze hard when the time came. - - - - -VI - -THE HOARDERS - - -The fact that business relations in Central Europe are very often family -and friendship affairs was to prove an almost insuperable obstacle in -government food regulation. It led to the growth of what for the want of -a better term I will call: The food "speak-easy." - -The word _Kundschaft_ may be translated into English as "circle of -customers." The term "trade" will not fit, for the reason that relations -between old customers and storekeeper are usually the most intimate. The -dealer may have known the mother of the woman who buys in his shop. He -may have also known her grandmother. At any rate, it is certain that the -customer has dealt at the store ever since she moved into the district. -Loyalty in Central Europe goes so far that a customer would think twice -before changing stores, and if a change is made it becomes almost a -matter of personal affront. The storekeeper will feel that he has done -his best by the customer and has found no appreciation. - -Not versed in the ways of Europe, I had several experiences of this -peculiarity. - -While in Vienna I used to buy my smoking materials of a little woman who -kept a tobacco "_Traffic_" on the Alleestrasse. I did not show up when -at the front, of course, and, making many such trips, my custom was a -rather spasmodic affair. The woman seemed to be worried about it. - -"It is very odd, sir, that you stay away altogether at times," she said. -"Is it possible that you are not satisfied with my goods? They are the -same as those you get elsewhere, you know." - -That was true enough. In Austria trade in tobacco is a government -monopoly, and one buys the same brands at all the stores. - -"I am not always in town," I explained. - -I was to get my bringing-up supplemented presently. Those who know the -Viennese will best understand what happened. - -"You are a foreigner, sir," continued the woman, "and cannot be expected -to know the ways of this country. May I give you a little advice?" - -I said that I had never been above taking advice from anybody. - -"You will get much better service from storekeepers in this country if -you become a regular customer, and especially in these days. You see, -that is the rule here. Smoking material, as you know, is already short, -and I fear that in a little while there will not be enough to go -around." - -The tip was not lost on me, especially since I found that the woman -really meant well. She had counted on me as one of those whom she -intended to supply with smokes when the shortage became chronic, which -it soon would be. And that she proposed doing because I was such a -"pleasant fellow." After that I took pains to announce my departure -whenever I had occasion to leave the city, and I found that, long after -the "tobacco-line" was one of the facts of the time, the woman would lay -aside for me every day ten cigarettes. My small trade had come to be one -of the things which the woman counted upon--and she wanted no fickleness -from me in return for the thought she gave my welfare. - -What a food shortage would lead to under such conditions can be -imagined. The storekeeper would look out for his regular customers, -before any other person got from him so much as sight of the food. - -The government regulations were less partial, however. The several food -cards, with which would-be purchasers were provided, were intended to be -honored on sight so long as the quota they stipulated was there. - -The food "speak-easy" had its birth in this. The storekeeper would know -that such and such customer needed sundry items and would reserve them. -The customer might never get them if she stood in line, so she called -afterward at the back door, or came late of nights when the sign -"Everything Sold" hung in the window. - -Had this illicit traffic stopped there and then things would have been -well enough. But it did not. Before very long it degenerated into a wild -scramble for food for hoarding purposes. - -As yet the several governments were not greatly interested in -distribution methods that really were of service. The avenue from -wholesaler to retailer was still open. The food cards were issued to the -public to limit consumption, and the law paragraph quoted on them called -attention to the fact that infraction of the regulations would be -punished no matter by whom committed. - -Most of the little coupons were half the size of a postage stamp, and so -many of them were collected by a storekeeper in the course of a week -that an army of men would have been needed if the things were to be -counted. So the governments took a chance with the honesty of the -retailers. That was a mistake, of course, but it was the only way. - -There was at first no control of any sort over the quantities bought by -the retailer. In fact, he could buy as much as he liked so long as the -wholesaler did not have another friend retailer to keep in mind. The -other retailer was doing business along the same lines, and could not be -overlooked; otherwise there would be the danger of losing him as soon as -the war was over; in those days it was still "soon." - -The wholesaler maintained the best of relations with the retailer, -despite the fact that he was of a superior class. The two would meet now -and then in the cafés, and there the somewhat unequal business -friendship would be fostered over the marble-topped table. - -The customer of the retailer was already hoarding food. The retailer -tried to do all the business he could, of course, and in the pursuit of -this policy bought from the wholesaler all he could possibly get for -money or love. - -[Illustration: Copyright by Underwood & Underwood, N. Y. - -STREET SCENE AT EISENBACH, SOUTHERN GERMANY - -From the villages and small towns is recruited sixty per cent. of the -German army.] - -Commission-men were licensed by the government, and when food regulation -became a little more stringent they were obliged to make some sort of a -slovenly report on the quantities they handled. But the government food -commissions did not have the necessary personnel to keep close tally of -these reports. This led to partial returns by the middlemen, a practice -which entailed no particular risk so long as the government did not -actually control and direct the buying of foodstuffs in the country and -at the mills. - -Business moved smartly as the result of this combination of -circumstances. The wholesaler bought twice as much from the -commission-man, and the latter had to buy, accordingly, in the country. - -The maximum prices which the government set upon foods about to enter -into possession of the consumer were invariably accompanied by minimum -prices which the producer was to get. Reversely, the arrangement meant -that the customer could not offer less for food than the government had -decided he should pay, nor could the farmer or other producer demand -more. - -That was well enough in a way. The farmer was to get for a kilogram -(2.205 pounds) of wheat not less than four and one-half cents, and the -middleman selling to the mill could not ask more than five and one-half -cents. Labor and loss in milling taken into consideration, the mill was -to be satisfied with seven cents, while the consumer, so said the -regulations, was to get his flour for eight and one-quarter cents per -kilogram. - -That was all very well, but it came to mean little in the end. - -The customer thought he would lay in two hundred pounds of wheat flour -for the rainy day. The retailer could not see it in that way. That was -just a little too much. There were other worthy customers who might have -to go short of their regular quota if he sold in amounts of that size. -But the customer wanted the flour and was willing to pay more than the -regulation or maximum price for it. It took but little tempting to cause -the fall of the retailer. - -The wholesaler would do the same thing. The commission-man was willing, -since part of, let us say, a 20-per-cent. increase was being handed -along the line. The mill got a few crowns more per hundred kilograms, -and a little of the extra price would get as far as the farmer. - -That _l'appétit vient en mangeant_ is a notorious fact. A dangerous -practice had been launched, nor was it always inaugurated by the -consumer. No class of dealers was averse to doing business that might be -illicit, but which brought large profits. - -A first result was that the farmer was spoiled, as the consumer and the -government looked at it. While purchases from the farmer were bounded -in price by a minimum, there was no prohibition of paying him as much -more as he would take. The government's duty was to stimulate -production, and that was the purpose of the minimum price. - -The government, learning that a certain farmer had been getting six -cents for his wheat, might wonder how much the consumer paid and get -after the middlemen, but it could not hold the farmer responsible. - -As a matter of fact, the government hardly ever heard of such -transactions. They did not talk at the gate of the food "speak-easy." -When questioned the farmer would always protest that he had all he could -do to get the minimum price. - -Not only was the first excess in price passed along, but large profits -attached themselves to the article as it progressed cityward. The -commission-men got theirs, the miller did not overlook himself, the -wholesaler was remembered, naturally, and the retailer, as -factotum-general in the scheme, saw to it that he was not deprived of -his share. - -As is always the case, the consumer paid the several pipers. And the -special consumer to whom the food, thus illicitly diverted from the -regular channels, meant the assurance that he would not starve although -others might, paid cheerfully. What was the good of having money in the -bank when soon it might not buy anything? - -The lines in front of the food-shops lengthened, and many retailers -acquired the habit of keeping open but part of the day. But even that -part was usually too long. When the card in the window said, "Open from -8 to 12," it usually meant that at nine o'clock there would not be a -morsel of food on the counters and shelves. The members of the food-line -who had not managed to gain access to the store by that time would get -no food that day. - -At first the retailer would regret this very much. But he soon began to -feel his oats. Women, who had stood in line for several hours, wanted to -know why he had so small a quantity on hand. The man would often become -abusive and refuse an explanation. - -Now and then some resolute woman would complain to the police. The -retailer was arrested and fined. But the woman would never again get any -food from him. That was his way of getting even and disciplining the -good customers upon whom at other times he had waited hand and foot. - -The fine relations between customer and retailer of yore were gone by -the board. The era of hoarding and greed was on. The good-natured Vienna -and Berlin _Kleinkrämer_ grew more autocratic every time he opened his -store. People had to come to him or go hungry, and it was ever hurtful -to put the beggar on horse-back. - -Occasional visits to the lower courts proved very interesting and -entertaining, though the story that was told was always the same. The -retailer had lost his sense of proportions completely. No sergeant of -an awkward squad ever developed so fine a flow of sarcastic billingsgate -as did the butchers, bakers, and candlestick-makers of the Central -states in those days. Almost every case had its low-comedy feature, and -often I came away with the impression that the sense of humor in some -people is hard to kill, especially when some serious judge pronounced -the maximum sentence for an offense about whose quaint rascality he was -still chuckling. - -But the dear public was not as stupid as the retailers and their ilk -thought. Almost everybody had a relative, friend, or acquaintance in the -country, and when this was not the case one had a city friend who had -such a country connection. - -Sunday excursions into the country became very popular, and week-days -could not be put to better use. The many holidays called for by -religious observance, and now and then a victory over the enemy, came to -be a severe strain upon the country's food reserve. The trains coming -into the city often carried more weight in food than in passengers. - -After all, that was the best way of laying in supplies. Why go to the -retailer and stand in line when the farmers were willing to sell to the -consumer direct? - -A high tide in hoarding set in. Everybody filled garret and cellar with -the things which the farm produces. Flour was stowed away in all -possible and impossible places. Potatoes were accumulated. Butter and -eggs were salted away, and so much fruit was preserved that sugar ceased -to be obtainable in countries which had formerly exported much of it. - -The authorities knew full well what would happen if the private route -from farm to kitchen direct was not made impossible. Existing -regulations already permitted the searching of trains. When the -inspectors descended upon the hoarding holidayers there was much -surprise, gnashing of teeth, and grumbling. But that did not help. The -food illicitly brought in was confiscated, and the slightest resistance -on the part of those having it in their possession brought a liberal -fine and often a day or two in jail. - -The parcel post was used next by the private food-hoarders. The -government wanted to be easy on the population and had for this reason -closed its eyes to the packages of butter and other concentrated foods -that went through the mails. But the good consumers overreached -themselves. The result was that the postal authorities turned over all -food found in the mails to the Food Commissions and Centrals. - -Next thing was that the farmer who came to market had to be curbed. That -worthy man would enter town or city with a good load of eatables. By the -time he had gone a few blocks he had disposed of everything. It was like -taking up a drop of ink with a blotter. - -The first measures against this resulted in smuggling. Every load of -produce that came into a population center had in it packages of other -good things, especially butter and lard, and later eggs, when these fell -within the scope of regulation. - -But the hoarding that was going on would have to be stopped if the -food-supply was to last. Those who hoarded lost no chance to buy for -their current consumption in the legal market, drawing thus doubly on -the scant food-supplies. The authorities began to exercise their right -of search. The food-inspector became an unwelcome visitor of households. - -The practice of hoarding was well enough for the well-to-do. But it left -the poor entirely unprovided. The average wage-earner did not have the -means to buy food at the fancy prices that governed the illicit food -market, and the food that went to the hoarder cut short the general -supply upon which the poor depended for their daily allowance. It was -quite the regular thing for the wife of a poor man to stand in line -three hours and then be turned away. The retailer would still have food -in the cellar, but that was to go out by private delivery. The food -cards held by the women were no warrant on the quantities they -prescribed, but merely the authorization to draw so and so much if the -things were to be had. The woman had to take the retailer's word for it. -When that august person said, "Sold out," there was nothing to do but go -home and pacify the hungry children with whatever else the depleted -larder contained. - -Meanwhile much food was spoiling in the cellars and attics of the -hoarders. People who never before in their lives had attempted to -preserve food were now trying their hand at it--with unfortunate and -malodorous results. - -An acquaintance of mine in Vienna had hoarded diligently and amply. The -man had on hand wheat flour, large quantities of potatoes, butter in -salt, and eggs in lime-water, and conserved fruits and vegetables which -represented an excess consumption in sugar. He had also laid in great -quantities of honey, coffee, and other groceries. There was food enough -to last his family two years, so long as a little could be had in the -legal market each day. - -Though the store on hand was ample, the man continued to buy where and -whenever he could. One day he shipped from Agram several mattresses--not -for the sake of the comfort they would bring of nights, but for the -macaroni he had stuffed them with. I think that of all the hoarders he -was the king-pin. - -The man had three growing boys, however, and allowance has to be made -for that. He did not want those boys to be stunted in their growth by -insufficient nourishment. Obliged to choose between paternal and civic -duty, he decided in favor of the former, for which we need not blame him -too much, seeing that most of us would do precisely that thing in his -position. But to understand that fully, one must have seen hungry -children tormenting their parents for food. Description is wholly -inadequate in such cases. - -That there were others who had growing children may have occurred to the -man, but meant nothing to him. So he continued to buy and hoard. - -The storage methods employed were wrong, of course, and facilities were -very limited. The potatoes froze in the cellar and sprouted in the warm -rooms. Weevils took birth in the flour, because it was stored in a -wardrobe only some four feet away from a stove. The canned goods stood -on every shelf in the place, littered the floors and filled the corners. -Faulty preserving methods or the constant changes of temperature caused -most of them to ferment and spoil. Every now and then something about -the apartment would explode. The man had bought up almost the last of -olive-oil that could be had in Central Europe. That, too, turned rancid. - -As I remember it now, he told me that of all the food he had -bought--that he had hoarded it he never admitted--he had been able to -use about one-third, and the annoyance he had from the spoiled -two-thirds killed all the joy there was in having saved one-third. -Hoarding in this case was an utter failure. - -So it was in most cases. To preserve food is almost a science, and -suitable storage facilities play an important rôle in this. The private -hoarder had no proper facilities. That it was unlawful to hoard food -caused him to go ahead storing without asking advice of people familiar -with the requirements; and the possibility that agents of the food -authorities might come to inspect the quarters of the hoarder made -hiding imperative. Often the servants would become informers, so that -the food had to be hidden from them in barrels, trunks, and locked -chests. The result of this can be easily imagined. There was a time when -more food was spoiled in Central Europe by hoarding than there was -consumed. The thing was extremely short-sighted, but everybody was -taking care of himself and his own. - -There was no reason why food should spoil on the hands of the retailer. -He never had enough to go around. But it was different with the -wholesaler. This class was eternally holding back supplies for the -purpose of inducing the government to increase the maximum prices. As -time went on, the authorities had to do that, and the quantities then -held in the warehouses benefited. The agitation of the producers for -better minimum prices was water on the mill of the wholesaler. The -government was eternally solicitous for the welfare of the farmer, and -lent a ready ear to what he had to say. The minimum price was raised, -and with it the consumer's maximum price had to go up. All quantities -then held by the wholesalers were affected only by the increase in food -prices that was borne by the consumer, not the increase that had to be -given the farmer. It was the finest of business, especially since an -increase of 5 per cent. in legitimate business meant an increase of -another 15 per cent. in illicit traffic. - -In the spring of 1916 I made a canvass of the situation, and found that -while the farmers were getting for their products from 10 to 15 per -cent. more than they had received in 1914, food in the cities and towns -was from 80 to 150 per cent. higher than it had been normally during -five years before the war. I found that the dealers and middlemen were -reaping an extra profit of approximately 80 per cent. on the things they -bought and sold, after the greater cost of operation had been deducted. -Small wonder that jewelers in Berlin and Vienna told me that the -Christmas trade of 1915 was the best they had ever done. These good -people opined that their increase in business was due to the general war -prosperity. They were right, but forgot to mention that this prosperity -was based on the cents wrung from the starving population by the buyers -of the diamonds and precious baubles. - -Naturally, the dear farmer was not being left just then. He sold when he -pleased for a time--until the government took a hand in moving his -crops. But this interference with the affairs of the farmer was not -entirely a blessing by any means. The brave tiller of the soil began to -hoard now. Little actual loss came from this. The farmer knew his -business. No food spoiled so long as he took care of it. All would have -been well had it not been that the farmer was the very fountainhead of -the hoarding which in the cities resulted in the loss of foodstuffs. - -There were still many loose ends in the scheme of food regulation. While -the farmer was obliged to sell to the middleman, under supervision of -the government Food Centrals, all cereals and potatoes which he would -not need for his own use and seeding, the estimates made by the Food -Central agents were generally very conservative. This they had to be if -the government was not to run the risk of finding itself short after -fixing the ration that seemed permissible by the crop returns -established in this manner. The farmer got the benefit of the doubt, of -course, and that benefit he invariably salted away for illicit trading. - -But illicit trading in breadstuffs was becoming more and more difficult. -The grain had to go into a mill before it was flour. The government -began to check up closely on the millers, which was rather awkward for -all concerned in the traffic of the food "speak-easy." - -A way out was found by the farmers. They were a rather inventive lot. I -am sure that these men, as they followed the plow back and forth, -cudgeled their brains how the latest government regulation could be met -and frustrated. - -Butter and fat were very short and were almost worth their weight in -silver. They sold in the regulated market at from one dollar and sixty -to one dollar and eighty cents a pound, and in the food "speak-easy" -they cost just double that. - -Why not produce more butter? thought the farmer. He had the cows. And -why not more lard? He had the pigs. A bushel of grain sold at minimum -price brought so much, while converted into butter and lard it was worth -thrice that much. Grain was hard to sell surreptitiously, but it was -easy to dispose of the fats. - -In this manner hoarding took on a new shape--one that was to lead to -more waste. - -None of the Central European governments had reason to believe that its -food measures were popular. Much passive resistance was met. The -consumer thought of himself in a hundred different ways. To curb him, -the secret service of the police was instructed to keep its eyes on the -family larder. Under the "War" paragraphs of the constitutions the -several governments of Central Europe had that power. In Austria it was -the famous "§14," for instance, under which any and all war measures -were possible. - -Government by inspection is not only oppressive; it is also very -expensive. It is dangerous in times when authorities are face to face -with unrest; at any time it is the least desirable thing there is. It -was not long before both government and public discovered that. To -inspect households systematically was impossible, of course. The -informer had to be relied upon. Usually, discharged servants wrote -anonymous letters to the police, and often it was found that this was no -more than a bit of spite work. If a servant-girl wanted to give a former -mistress a disagreeable surprise she would write such a letter. Some -hoards were really uncovered in that manner, but the game was not worth -the candle. - -To get at the men who were hoarding _en masse_ for speculation and -price-boosting purposes, an efficient secret service was needed. But -this the Central European governments do not possess. The police of -Germany and Austria-Hungary plays an important part in the life of man. -But it does this openly. The methods employed are bureaucratic routine. -The helmet shows conspicuously. Wits have no place in the system. - -One cannot move from one house to another without being made the subject -of an entry on the police records. To move from one town to another was -quite an undertaking during the war. Several documents were required. A -servant or employee may not change jobs without notifying the police -authorities. All life is minutely regulated and recorded on the books of -the minions of the law. - -In matters of that sort the Central European police is truly efficient, -because the system employed has been perfected by the cumulative effort -and experience of generations. Detective work, on the other hand, is out -of the reach of these organizations. The German detective is as poor a -performer and as awkward as certain German diplomatists. He is always -found out. - -Why the German and Austro-Hungarian detective services did not succeed -in finding the commercial hoards I can readily understand. One could -recognize the members of the services a mile off, as it were. It seemed -to me that they were forever afraid of being detected. In the detective -that is a bad handicap. Now and then the German detective could be -heard. - -As a foreigner I received considerable attention from the German, -Austrian, and Hungarian police forces in the course of three years. My -case was simple, however. I looked outlandish, no doubt, and since I -spoke German with a foreign accent it really was not difficult to keep -track of me. In the course of time, also, I became well known to -thousands of people. That under these circumstances I should have known -it at once when detectives were on my trail can be ascribed only to the -clumsy work that was being done by the secret-service men. In Berlin I -once invited a "shadow" of mine to get into my taxicab, lest I escape -him. He refused and seemed offended. - -But there is a classic bit of German detective work that I must give in -detail, in order to show why the food speculator and his ilk were immune -in spite of all the regulations made by the government. - -I had been in Berlin several times when it happened. I knew many men in -the Foreign Office, and in the bureaus of the German general staff, -while to most of the Adlon Hotel employees I was as familiar a sight as -I well could be without belonging to their families. - -I had come over the German-Dutch border that noon, and had been -subjected to the usual frisking. There had also been a little -trouble--also as usual. - -The clerk at the desk in the Adlon did not know me. He was a new man. He -had, however, been witness to the very effusive welcome which the _chef -de réception_ gave me. - -That did not interest me until I came down from my room and approached -the desk for the purpose of leaving word for a friend of mine where I -could be found later. - -The clerk was engaged in earnest conversation with a stockily built man -of middle age. I had to wait until he would be through. - -After a second or so I heard my room number mentioned--237. Then the -sound of my name fell. I noticed that the clerk was fingering one of the -forms on which a traveler in Central Europe inscribes his name, -profession, residence, nationality, age, and what not for the -information of the police. - -"He is a newspaper correspondent?" asked the stocky one. - -"So he says," replied the clerk. - -"You are sure about that?" - -"Well, that is what it says on the form." - -"What sort of looking fellow is he?" inquired the stockily built man. - -"Rather tall, smooth shaven, dark complexion, wears eye-glasses," -replied the clerk. - -I moved around the column that marks the end of one part of the desk and -the beginning of another part that runs at right angles to the first. - -The clerk saw me and winked at the man to whom he had been talking. The -detective was in the throes of embarrassment. He blushed. - -"Can't I be of some assistance to you?" I remarked in an impersonal -manner, looking from clerk to detective. "You seem to be interested in -my identity. What do you wish to know?" - -There was a short but highly awkward pause. - -"I am not," stammered the detective. "We were talking about somebody -else." - -"I beg your pardon," said I and moved off. - -I have always taken it for granted that the detective was a new man in -the secret service. Still, I have often wondered what sort of detective -service it must be that will employ such helpless bunglers. - -It may be no more than an _idée fixe_ on my part, but ever since then I -have taken _cum grano salis_ all that has been said for and against the -efficiency of the German secret service, be it municipal or -international. At Bucharest there was maintained for a time, allegedly -by the German foreign service, a man who was known to everybody on the -Calea Victoriei as the German _Oberspion_--chief spy. The poor devil cut -a most pathetic figure. All contentions to the contrary notwithstanding, -I would say that secret service is not one of the fortes of the Germans. -They really ought to leave it alone. That takes keener wits and quicker -thinking on one's feet than can be associated with the German mind. - -The Austrians were rather more efficient, and the same can be said of -the Hungarian detective forces. In both cases the secret-service men -were usually Poles, however, and that makes a difference. There is no -mind quite so nimble, adaptive, or capable of simulation as that of the -Pole. In this the race resembles strongly the French, hence its success -in a field in which the French are justly the leaders. - -For the food sharks the German detective was no match. He might impress -a provident _Hausfrau_ and move her to tears and the promise that she -would never do it again. The commercial hoarder, who had a regular -business besides and kept his books accordingly, was too much for these -men. So long as no informer gave specific details that left no room for -thinking on the part of the detective, the food shark was perfectly -safe. The thousands of cases that came into the courts as time went on -showed that the detectives, and inspectors of the Food Authorities, were -thoroughly incorruptible. They also showed that they at least were doing -no hoarding--in brains. - - - - -VII - -IN THE HUMAN SHAMBLES - - -Somber as this picture of life is, its background was nothing less than -terrifyingly lurid. - -For some minutes I had stood before a barn in Galicia. I was expected to -go into that barn, but I did not like the idea. Some fourscore of -cholera patients lay on the straw-littered earthen floor. Every hour or -so one of them would die. Disease in their case had progressed so far -that all hope had been abandoned. If by any chance one of the sick -possessed that unusual degree of bodily and nerve vigor that would -defeat the ravages of the germ, he would recover as well in the barn as -in a hospital. - -The brave man wishes to die alone. Those in the barn were brave men, and -I did not wish to press my company upon them in the supreme hour. Still, -there was the possibility that some might question my courage if I did -not go into the barn. Cholera is highly contagious. But when with an -army one is expected to do as the army does. If reckless exposure be a -part of that, there is no help. - -I stepped into the gloom of the structure. There was snow on the ground -outside. It took a minute or two before my eyes could discern things. -Some light fell into the interior from the half-open door and a little -square opening in the wall in the rear. - -Two lines of sick men lay on the ground--heads toward the wall, feet in -the aisle that was thus formed. Some of the cholera-stricken writhed in -agony as the germ destroyed their vitals. Others lay exhausted from a -spasm of excruciating agony. Some were in the coma preceding death. Two -were delirious. - -There was an army chaplain in the barn. He thought it his duty to be of -as much comfort to the men as possible. His intentions were kind enough, -and yet he would have done the patients a favor by leaving them to -themselves. - -As I reached the corner where the chaplain stood, one of the sick -soldiers struggled into an upright position. Then he knelt, while the -chaplain began to say some prayer. The poor wretch had much difficulty -keeping upright. When the chaplain had said "Amen" he fell across the -body of the sick man next to him. - -The exertion and the mental excitement had done the man no good. Soon he -was in a paroxysm of agony. The chaplain was meanwhile preparing another -for the great journey. - -The dead had been laid under one of the eaves. A warm wind had sprung up -and the sun was shining. The snow on the roof began to melt. The -dripping water laved the faces of the dead. Out in the field several -men were digging a company grave. - -So much has been written on the hardships endured by the wounded at the -front that I will pass by this painful subject. What tortures these -unfortunates suffered is aptly epitomized by an experience I had in the -hospital of the American Red Cross in Budapest. - -The man in charge of the hospital, Dr. Charles MacDonald, of the United -States Army, had invited me to see his institution. I had come to a -small room in which operations were undertaken when urgency made this -necessary. During the day a large convoy of very bad cases had reached -Budapest. Many of them were a combination of wounds and frostbite. - -In the middle of the room stood an operation-table. On it lay a patient -who was just recovering consciousness. I saw the merciful stupor of -anesthesia leave the man's mind and wondered how he would take it. For -on the floor, near the foot end of the operation-table, stood an -enameled wash-basin, filled with blood and water. From the red fluid -protruded two feet. They were black and swollen--frostbite. One of them -had been cut off a little above the ankle, and the other immediately -below the calf of the leg. - -The amputation itself was a success, said the nurse. But there was -little hope for the patient. He had another wound in the back. That -wound itself was not serious, but it had been the cause of the man's -condition, by depriving him temporarily of the power of locomotion. -When he was shot, the man had fallen into some reeds. He was unconscious -for a time, and when he recovered his senses he found that he could no -longer move his legs. - -He was lying in a No Man's Land between the Austro-Hungarian and Russian -lines. For two days his feeble cries were unheard. Finally, some -ambulance-men came across him. By that time his feet had been frozen. -The wound in his back was given some attention at a first-aid station -behind the line. The surgeons decided that the amputation of the feet -could wait until Budapest was reached. Meanwhile the poison of gangrene -was gaining admission to the blood. - -The man's face was yellow. His whole body was yellow and emaciated. The -lips no longer served to cover the teeth. - -He was breathing pantingly--in short, quick gasps. - -Slowly his mind shook off the fetters of the ether. A long breath--a -faint sigh. The eyes opened. - -They were Slav eyes of blue-gray. I saw in them the appeal of the -helpless child, the protest of a being tortured, the prayer for relief -of a despairing soul. - -The man's lips moved. He wanted to say something. I bent over to catch -the sibilant tones. - -I had not caught them, and indicated that by a shake of the head. The -man repeated. He spoke in Polish, a language I do not know. To assure -the man that I would find means of understanding him, I patted his -cheek, and then called an orderly. - -"He says that he would like you to fetch his wife and his children," -said the orderly-interpreter, as he righted himself. "He says he is -going to die soon, and wants to see them. He says that you will have to -hurry up. He says that he will say a good word to the Lord for you if -you will do him this favor." - -"Ask him where they live," I said to the orderly. If it were at all -possible I would do the man this kindness. - -It was some village near Cracow. That was a long way off. If the man -lived for two days his wish could be met. - -"Tell the man that I will telegraph his wife to come as quickly as -possible, but that she can't be here for a day or so," I instructed the -interpreter. - -A shadow of disappointment swept over the patient's face. - -"Ask him if he knows where he is," I said. - -The man did not know. I told the orderly to make it clear to him that he -was in Budapest, and that his home in Galicia was far away. He was to be -patient. I would bring his wife and children to him, if it could be done -at all. Did the wife have the money to pay the railroad fare? - -The patient was not sure. I read in his eyes that he feared the woman -would not have the money. I eased his mind by telling him that I would -pay the fares. - -Deeper gratitude never spoke from any face. The poor fellow tried to -lift his hands, but could not. To assure him that his wish would be -granted I once more patted his cheeks and forehead and then left the -room, followed by the orderly and the wash-basin. - -"There is no use telegraphing," said Doctor MacDonald. "He won't live -longer than another hour, at the most." - -Ten minutes later the man was dead. The operation-table was being -wheeled down the corridor by the orderly. I had just stepped out of a -ward. - -The orderly stopped. - -"You won't have to bring the woman here," he said, as he lifted the end -of the sheet that covered the face. - -As reward for my readiness to help the poor man, I have still in my mind -the expression of relief that lay on the dead face. He had passed off in -gladsome anticipation of the meeting there was to be. - -I covered up the face and the orderly trundled the body away. - -Some months later I sat in a room of the big military hospital in the -Tatavla Quarter of Constantinople. On a bench against the wall opposite -me were sitting a number of men in Turkish uniform. They were blind. -Some of them had lost their eyes in hand-to-hand combat, more of them -had been robbed of their sight in hand-grenade encounters. - -Doctor Eissen, the oculist-surgeon of the hospital, was about to fit -these men with glass eyes. In the neat little case on the table were -eyes of all colors, most of them brownish tints, a few of them were -blue. - -One of the Turks was a blond--son of a Greek or Circassian, maybe. - -"These things don't help any, of course," said Doctor Eissen, as he laid -a pair of blue eyes on a spoon and held them into the boiling water for -sterilization. "But they lessen the shock to the family when the man -comes home. - -"Poor devils! I have treated them all. They are like a bunch of -children. They are going home to-day. They have been discharged. - -"Well, they are going home. Some have wives and children they will never -see again--dependents they can no longer support. Some of them are -luckier. They have nobody. The one who is to get these blue eyes used to -be a silk-weaver in Brussa. He is optimistic enough to think that he can -still weave. Maybe he can. That will depend on his fingers, I suppose. -It takes often more courage to live after a battle than to live in it." - -The dear government did not provide glass eyes. Doctor Eissen furnished -them himself, and yet the dear government insisted that a report be made -on each eye he donated. The ways of red tape are queer the world over. - -"And when the blind come home the relatives weep a little and are glad -that at least so much of the man has been returned to them." - -In the corridor there was waiting a Turkish woman. Her son was one of -those whom Doctor Eissen was just fitting with eyes. When he was through -with this, he called in the woman. The young blind _asker_ rose in the -darkness that surrounded him. - -Out of that darkness came presently the embrace of two arms and the sob: - -"_Kusum!_" ("My lamb!"). - -For a moment the woman stared into the fabricated eyes. They were not -those she had given her boy. They were glass, immobile. She closed her -own eyes and then wept on the broad chest of the son. The son, glad that -his _walideh_ was near him once more, found it easy to be the stronger -of the two. He kissed his mother and then caressed the hair under the -cap of the _yashmak_. - -When the doctor had been thanked, the mother led her boy off. - -Blind beggars are not unkindly treated in Constantinople. There is a -rule that one must never refuse them alms. The least that may be given -them are the words: - -"_Inayet ola!_" ("God will care for you!"). - -Not long after that I sat on the shambles at Suvla Bay, the particular -spot in question being known as the Kiretch Tépé--Chalk Hill. - -Sir Ian Hamilton had just thrown into the vast amphitheater to the east -of the bay some two hundred thousand men, many of them raw troops of the -Kitchener armies. - -Some three thousand of these men had been left dead on the slopes of the -hill. As usual, somebody on Gallipoli had bungled and bungled badly. A -few days before I had seen how a British division ate itself up in -futile attacks against a Turkish position west of Kütchük Anafarta. The -thing was glorious to look at, but withal very foolish. Four times the -British assailed the trenches of the Turks, and each time they were -thrown back. When General Stopford finally decided that the thing was -foolish, he called it off. The division he could not call back, because -it was no more. - -It was so on Chalk Hill. - -A hot August night lay over the peninsula. The crescent of a waning moon -gave the dense vapors that had welled in from the Mediterranean an -opalescent quality. From that vapor came also, so it seemed, the stench -of a hundred battle-fields. In reality this was not so. The Turkish -advance position, which I had invaded that night for the purpose of -seeing an attack which was to be made by the Turks shortly before dawn, -ran close to the company graves in which the Turks had buried the dead -foe. - -There is little soil on Gallipoli. It is hardly ever more than a foot -deep on any slope, and under it lies lime that is too hard to get out of -the way with pick and shovel. The company graves, therefore, were cairns -rather than ditches. The bodies had been walled in well enough, but -those walls were not airtight. The gases of decomposition escaped, -therefore, and filled the landscape with obnoxious odor. - -I had been warned against this. The warning I had disregarded for the -reason that such things are not unfamiliar to me. But I will confess -that it took a good many cigarettes and considerable will-power to keep -me in that position--so long as was absolutely necessary. - -When I returned to Constantinople everybody was speaking of the stench -in the Suvla Bay terrain. There were many such spots, and returning -soldiers were never slow in dwelling on the topic they suggested. The -war did not appear less awesome for that. - -But the shambles that came closest to the general public was the -casualty lists published by the German government as a sort of -supplement to the Berlin _Norddeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung_, the -semi-official organ of the German Imperial Government. At times this -list would contain as many as eight thousand names, each with a letter -or several after it--"t" for dead, "s v" for severely wounded, "l v" for -lightly wounded, and so on. - -It was thought at first that the public would not be able to stand this -for long. But soon it was shown that literally there was no end to the -fortitude of the Germans. - -I was to spend some time on the Somme front. I really was not anxious to -see that field of slaughter. But certain men in Berlin thought that I -ought to complete my list of fronts with their "own" front. Hospitals -and such no longer interested me. Wrecked churches I had seen by the -score--and a ruined building is a ruined building. I said that I would -visit the Somme front in case I was allowed to go wherever I wanted. -That was agreed to, after I had signed a paper relieving the German -government of all responsibility in case something should happen to me -"for myself and my heirs forever." - -The front had been in eruption three weeks and murder had reached the -climax when one fine afternoon I put up at a very unpretentious -_auberge_ in Cambrai. - -The interior of the Moloch of Carthage never was so hot as this front, -nor was Moloch ever so greedy for human life. Battalion after battalion, -division after division, was hurled into this furnace of barrage and -machine-gun fire. What was left of them trickled back in a thin stream -of wounded. - -For nine days the "drum" fire never ceased. From Le Transloy to south of -Pozières the earth rocked. From the walls and ceilings of the old -citadel at Cambrai the plaster fell, though many miles lay between it -and the front. - -Perhaps the best I could say of the Somme offensive is that none will -ever describe it adequately--as it was. The poor devils really able to -encompass its magnitude and terrors became insane. Those who later -regained their reason did so only because they had forgotten. The others -live in the Somme days yet, and there are thousands of them. - -I could tell tales of horror such as have never before been heard--of a -British cavalry charge near Hebuterne that was "stifled" by the barbed -wire before it and the German machine-guns in its rear and flanks; of -wounded men that had crawled on all-fours for long distances, resting -occasionally to push back their entrails; of men cut into little pieces -by shells and perforated like sieves by the machine-guns; and again of -steel-nerved Bavarians who, coming out of the first trenches, gathered -for a beer-drinking in an apple orchard not far from Manancourt. - -But that seems _de trop_. I will leave that to some modern Verestchagin -and his canvases. - -There is a "still-life" of death that comes to my mind. - -Not long after that I was in the Carpathians. General Brussilow was -trying out his mass tactics. - -The slaughter of man reached there aspects and proportions never before -heard of. It was not the machine murder of the West Front--that is to -say, it was not so much a factory for the conversion of live men into -dead as it was a crude, old-fashioned abattoir. - -On the slope of a massive mountain lies an old pine forest. In the -clearings stand birches, whose white trunks pierce the gloom under the -roof of dense, dark-green pine crowns. Where the clearings are, patches -of late-summer sky may be seen. Through the pale blue travel leisurely -the whitest of clouds, and into this background of soft blue and white -juts the somber pine and the autumn-tinged foliage of the birch. - -The forest is more a temple of a thousand columns than a thing that has -risen from the little seeds in the pine cones. The trunks are straight -and seem more details of a monument than something which has just grown. -There is a formal decorum about the trees and their aggregate. But the -soft light under the crowns lessens that into something severely -mournful. - -The forest is indeed a sepulcher. On its floor lie thousands of dead -Russians--first as close together as they can be packed, and then in -layers on top of one another. It would seem that these bodies had been -brought here for burial. That is not the case, however. The wounds in -the tree trunks, cut by the streams of machine-gun bullets from the red -trenches at the edge of the forest, indicate what happened. The first -wave of Russians entered the forest, was decimated, and retreated. The -second one met a similar fate. The third fared no better. The fourth -came. The fifth. The sixth--twice more the Russian artillery urged on -the Russian infantry. - -Here they lie. Their bodies are distended by progressing dissolution. -Narrow slits in the bloated faces show where once the merry and dreamy -Slav eye laughed. Most mouths are open, still eager for another breath -of air. Distended nostrils tell the same tale. From one mouth hangs a -tongue almost bitten off. A face close by is but a mask--a shell -splinter has cut off the back of the head, which now rests on the -shoulder of the man. - -To-morrow will come the Austro-Hungarian burial parties, dig holes and -bury these human relics. Meanwhile the pines sough sorrowfully, or maybe -they soughed like this before. - -Still a little later I was standing at an ancient stone bridge in the -Vörös Torony defile in the Transylvanian Alps. It was a late afternoon -in the late fall. In the defile it was still, save for an occasional -artillery detonation near the Roumanian border, where the fight was -going on. - -The red of the beeches and oaks fitted well into the narrative I heard, -and the song of the Alt River reminded that it, too, had played a part -in the drama--the complete rout of the Second Roumanian army, a few days -before. The breeze sweeping through the defile and along its wooded -flanks brought with it the odor of the dead. The underbrush on each side -of the road was still full of dead Roumanians. The gutter of the road -was strewn with dead horses. Scores of them hung in the tree forks below -the road. On a rock-ledge in the river dead men moved about under the -impulse of the current. - -The narrative: - -"Do you see that little clearing up there?" - -"The one below the pines?" - -"No. The one to the left of that--right above the rocks." - -"Yes." - -"I was stationed there with my machine-guns," continued the Bavarian -officer. "We had crept through the mountains almost on our bellies to -get there. It was hard work. But we did it. - -"At that we came a day too soon. We were entirely out of reach of -Hermannstadt, and didn't know what was going on. For all we knew the -Roumanians might have turned a trick. They are not half-bad soldiers. We -were surprised, to say the least, when, on arriving here, we found that -the road was full of traffic that showed no excitement. - -"We heard cannonading at the head of the gorge, but had no means of -learning what it was. We had been sent here to cut off the retreat of -the Roumanians, while the Ninth Army was to drive them into the defile. - -"For twenty-four hours we waited, taking care that the Roumanians did -not see us. It was very careless of them, not to patrol these forests in -sufficient force, nor to scent that there was something wrong when their -small patrols did not return. At any rate, they had no notion of what -was in store for them. - -"At last the thing started. The German artillery came nearer. We could -tell that by the fire. At noon the Roumanians began to crowd into the -defile. A little later they were here. - -"We opened up on them with the machine-guns for all we were worth. The -men had been told to sweep this bridge. Not a Roumanian was to get over -that. We wanted to catch the whole lot of them. - -"But the Roumanians couldn't see it that way, it seems. On they came in -a mad rush for safety. The artillery was shelling the road behind them, -and we were holding the bridge almost airtight. Soon the bridge was full -of dead and wounded. Others came and attempted to get over them. They -fell. Still others pressed on, driven ahead by the maddened crowd in -the rear. - -"The machine-guns continued to work. Very soon this bridge was full of -dead and wounded as high as the parapet. And still those fools would not -surrender. Nor did they have sense enough to charge us. There were heaps -of dead in front of the bridge, as far as the house over there. - -"That should have been a lesson to them. But it wasn't. On they came. -Some of them trampled over the dead and wounded. Those more considerate -tried to walk on the parapet. The machine-guns took care that they did -not get very far. - -"By that time those shot on top of the heap began to slide into the -river. Those not under fire scrambled down to the river and swam -it--those who could swim; the others are in it yet. You can see them -down there and wherever there is sand-bank or rock-ledge. But those who -swam were the only ones that escaped us. That crowd was so panicky that -it didn't have sense enough even to surrender. That's my theory. - -"It was an awful sight. Do you think this war will end soon?" - -In private life the narrator is a school-teacher in a little village in -the Bavarian highlands. - - - - -VIII - -PATRIOTISM AND A CRAVING STOMACH - - -Napoleon had a poor opinion of the hungry soldier. But it is not only -the man-at-arms who travels on his belly--the nation at war does the -same. - -I have found that patriotism at a groaning table in a warm room, and -with some other pleasant prospects added, is indeed a fine thing. The -amateur strategist and politician is never in finer mettle than when his -belt presses more or less upon a grateful stomach and when the mind has -been exhilarated by a good bottle of wine and is then being tickled by a -respectable Havana. - -But I have also sat of nights--rainy nights at that--in the trenches and -listened to what the men at the front had to say. They, too, were -reasonably optimistic when the stomach was at peace. Of course, these -men had their cares. Most of them were married and had in the past -supported their families with the proceeds of their labor. Now the -governments were feeding these families--after a fashion. What that -fashion was the men came to hear in letters from home. It made them -dissatisfied and often angry. - -I sat one night in the bombproof of an advanced position on the Sveta -Maria, near Tolmein. My host was an Austrian captain whose ancestry had -come from Scotland. A certain Banfield had thought it well to enter the -Austro-Hungarian naval service many years ago, and the captain was one -of his descendants. - -Captain Banfield was as "sore" as the proverbial wet hen. He hadn't been -home in some fourteen months, and at home things were not well. His wife -was having a hard time of it trying to keep the kiddies alive, while the -good Scotchman was keeping vigil on the Isonzo. - -That Scotchman, by the way, had a reputation in the Austrian army for -being a terrible _Draufgänger_, which means that when occasion came he -was rather hard on the Italians. He would have been just as ruthless -with the profiteers had he been able to get at them. Most -uncomplimentary things were said by him of the food sharks and the -government which did not lay them low. - -But what Captain Banfield had to complain of I had heard a thousand -times. His was not the only officer's wife who had to do the best she -could to get along. Nor was that class worse off than any other. After -all, the governments did their best by it. The real hardships fell upon -the dependents of the common soldier. - -I had made in Berlin the acquaintance of a woman who before the war had -been in very comfortable circumstances. Though a mechanical engineer of -standing, her husband had not been able to qualify for service as an -officer. He was in charge of some motor trucks in an army supply column -as a non-commissioned officer. The little allowance made by the -government for the wife and her four children did not go very far. - -But the woman was a good manager. She moved from the expensive flat they -had lived in before the mobilization. The quarters she found in the -vicinity of the Stettiner railroad station were not highly desirable. -But her genius made them so. - -The income question was more difficult to solve. A less resourceful -woman would have never solved it. But this one did. She found work in a -laundry, checking up the incoming and outgoing bundles. Somebody had to -suffer, however. In this case the children. They were small and had to -be left to themselves a great deal. - -I discussed the case with the woman. - -"My children may get some bad manners from the neighbors with whom I -have to leave them," she said. "But those I can correct later on. Right -now I must try to get them sufficient and good food, so that their -bodies will not suffer." - -In that kind of a woman patriotism is hard to kill, as I had ample -opportunity to observe. - -At Constantinople I had made the acquaintance of the Baroness -Wangenheim, widow of the late Baron Wangenheim, then ambassador at the -Sublime Porte. Hearing that I was in Berlin, the baroness invited me to -have tea with her. - -Tea is a highly socialized function, anyway, but this one was to be the -limit in that respect. The repast--I will call it that--was taken in one -of the best appointed _salons_ I ever laid eyes on. Taste and wealth -were blended into a splendid whole. - -The maid came in and placed upon the fine marquetry taboret a heavy old -silver tray. On the tray stood, in glorious array, as fine a porcelain -tea service as one would care to own. - -But we had neither milk nor lemon for the tea. We sweetened it with -saccharine. There was no butter for the war-bread, so we ate it with a -little prune jam. At the bottom of a cut-glass jar reposed a few -crackers. I surmised that they were ancient, and feared, moreover, that -the one I might be persuaded to take could not so easily be replaced. So -I declined the biscuit, and, to make the baroness understand, offered -her one of my bread coupons for the slice of bread I had eaten. This she -declined, saying that the day was yet long and that I might need the -bread voucher before it was over. - -"I am no better off than others here," the baroness explained to me in -reply to a question. "I receive from the authorities the same number of -food cards everybody gets, and my servants must stand in line like all -others. The only things I can buy now in the open market are fish and -vegetables. But that is as it should be. Why should I and my children -get more food than others get?" - -I admitted that I could not see why she should be so favored. Still, -there was something incongruous about it all. I had been the guest of -the baroness in the great ambassadorial palace on the Boulevard Ayas -Pasha in Pera, and found it hard to believe that the woman who had then -dwelt in nothing less than regal state was now reduced to the necessity -of taking war-bread with her tea--even when she had visitors. - -"If this keeps up much longer the race will suffer," she said, after a -while. "I am beginning to fear for the children. We adults can stand -this, of course. But the children...." - -The baroness has two small girls, and to change her thoughts I directed -the conversation to Oriental carpets and lace. - -Her patriotism, too, is of the lasting sort. - -But the very same evening I saw something different. The name won't -matter. - -I had accepted an invitation to dinner. It was a good dinner--war or -peace. Its _pièce de résistance_ was a whole broiled ham, which, as my -hostess admitted, had cost in the clandestine market some one hundred -and forty marks, roughly twenty-five dollars at the rate of exchange -then in force. There was bread enough and side dishes galore. It was -also a meatless day. - -The ham was one of several which had found the household in question -through the channels of illicit trade, which even the strenuous efforts -of the Prussian government had not been able to close as yet. The family -had the necessary cash, and in order to indulge in former habits as -fully as possible, it was using that cash freely. - -After living for several days in plenty at the Palads in Copenhagen, and -ascertaining that _paling_--eel--was still in favor with the Dutch of -The Hague, I returned to Vienna. Gone once more were the days of wheat -bread and butter. - -One rainy afternoon I was contemplating the leafless trees on the Ring -through the windows of the Café Sacher when two bodies of mounted police -hove into view on the bridle path, as if they were really in a great -hurry. I smelled a food riot, rushed down-stairs, caught a taxi on the -wing, and sped after the equestrian minions of the law. Police and -observer pulled up in the Josephstadt in the very center of a food -disturbance. - -The riot had already cooled down to the level of billingsgate. Several -hundred women stood about listening to the epithets which a smaller -group was flinging at a badly mussed-up storekeeper, who seemed greatly -concerned about his windows, which had been broken by somebody. - -The police mingled with the crowd. What had happened? Nothing very much, -said the storekeeper. That remark fanned the flame of indignation which -was swaying the women. Nothing much, eh? They had stood since high noon -in line for butter and fat. Up to an hour ago the door of the shop had -been closed. When finally it was opened the shopkeeper had announced -that he had supplies only for about fifty fat coupons. Those who were -nearest his door would be served and the others could go home. - -But somehow the crowd had learned that the man had received that morning -from the Food Central enough fat to serve them all with the amount -prescribed by the food cards. They refused to go away. Then the -storekeeper, in the manner which is typically Viennese, grew -sarcastically abusive. Before he had gone very far the women were upon -him. Others invaded the store, found the place empty, and then vented -their wrath on the fixtures and windows. - -I was greatly interested in what the police would do with the rioters. -But, instead of hauling the ringleaders to headquarters, they told them -to go home and refrain in future from taking the law into their own -hands. Within ten minutes the riot resolved itself into good-natured -bantering between the agents of the law and the women, and the incident -was closed, except for the shopkeeper, who in court failed to clear up -what he had done with the supplies of butter and fat that had been -assigned him for distribution. He lost his license to trade, and was -fined besides. - -Talking with several women, I discovered that none of them held the -government responsible. The "beast" of a dealer was to blame for it all. -This view was held largely because the police had gone to work in a most -considerate manner, according to the instructions issued by an anxious -government. - -In a previous food riot, in the Nineteenth Municipal District, the -gendarmes had been less prudent, with the result that the women turned -on them and disfigured with their finger-nails many a masculine face--my -visage included, because I had the misfortune of being mistaken for a -detective. A muscular _Hausmeisterin_--janitress--set upon me with much -vigor. Before I could explain, I was somewhat mussed up, though I could -have ended the offensive by proper counter measures. It is best to -attend such affairs in the Austrian equivalent for overalls. - -Some weeks before, the Austrian premier, Count Stürgkh, had been shot to -death by a radical socialist named Adler. In his statements Adler said -that he had done this because of his belief that so long as Stürgkh was -at the helm of the Austrian ship of state nothing would be done to solve -the food situation. - -There is no doubt that Adler had thoroughly surveyed the field of public -subsistence. It is also a fact that he did the Austrian government a -great service by killing the premier. The right and wrong of the case -need not occupy us here. I am merely concerned with practical effects. - -Count Stürgkh was an easy-going politician of a reactionary type. He -gave no attention of an intelligent sort to the food problem, and did -nothing to check the avarice of the food sharks, even when that avarice -went far beyond the mark put up by the war-loan scheme. His inertia led -during the first months of the war to much waste and later to -regulations that could not have been more advantageous to the private -interests of the food speculators had they been made for them expressly. -No statesman was ever carried to his grave with fewer regrets. In the -Austrian government offices a sigh of relief was heard when it became -known that Adler had shot the premier. - -A revolution could not have been averted in Austria had Stürgkh -continued at his post much longer. At first he was attacked only by the -_Wiener Arbeiter Zeitung_, a socialist daily controlled by the father of -Adler, who, in addition to being the editor-in-chief of the publication, -is a member of the Austrian Reichsrath and the leader of the Austrian -Socialist party. But later other papers began to object to Stürgkh's -_dolce far niente_ official life, among them the rather conservative -_Neue Freie Presse_. Others joined. Ultimately the premier saw himself -deserted even by the _Fremdenblatt_, the semi-official organ of the -government. - -Though charged with incompetency by some and with worse by others, Count -Stürgkh refused to resign. Emperor Francis Joseph was staying his hands -and this made futile all endeavor to remove the count from his high -office. The old emperor thought he was doing the best by his people, and -had it not been that the Austrians respected this opinion more than they -should have done, trouble would have swept the country. - -A new era dawned after Count Stürgkh's death. But his successors found -little they could put in order. The larder was empty. Premier Körber -tried hard to give the people more food. But the food was no longer to -be had. - -The loyalty of the Austrian people to their government was given the -fire test in those days. Now and then it seemed that the crisis had -come. It never came, however. - -Other trips to the fronts presented a new aspect of the food situation. -It was an odd one at that. The men who had formerly complained that -their wives and children were not getting enough to eat had in the -course of time grown indifferent to this. It was nothing unusual to have -men return to the front before their furloughs had expired. At the front -there were no food problems. The commissary solved them all. At home the -man heard nothing but complaints and usually ate up what his children -needed. Little by little the Central Power troops were infected with the -spirit of the mercenary of old. Life at the front had its risks, but it -also removed one from the sphere of daily cares. The great war-tiredness -was making room for indifference and many of the men had truly become -adventurers. So long as the _Goulaschkanone_ shot the regular meals -every day all was well. The military commissaries had succeeded by means -of the stomach in making the man at the front content with his lot. Food -conditions in the rear always offered a good argument, inarticulate but -eloquent, nevertheless, why the man in the trenches should think he was -well off. In the case of the many husbands and fathers no mean degree -of indifference and callousness was required before this frame of mind -was possible. But the war had taken care of that. War hardly ever -improves the individual. Out of sight, out of mind! - -It was the craving stomach of the civil population that caused the -several Central European governments most concern. - -In the past, newspapers had been very careful when discussing the food -question. They might hint at governmental inefficiency and -double-dealing, but they could not afford to be specific. The censors -saw to that. When the food situation was nearing its worst the several -governments, to the surprise of many, relaxed political censorship -sufficiently so that newspapers could say whatever they pleased on food -questions. First came sane criticism and then a veritable flood of -abuse. - -But that was what the authorities wanted. Hard words break no bones, and -their use is the only known antidote for revolution. Abuse was in the -first place a fine safety valve, and then it gave the authorities a -chance to defend themselves. To-day some paper would print an article in -which, to the satisfaction of the reader, it was shown that this or that -had been badly managed, and to-morrow the food authorities came back -with a refutation that usually left a balance in favor of the -government. The thing was adroitly done and served well to pull the wool -over the eyes of the public. - -Free discussion of the food problem was the order of the day. The light -was let in on many things, and for the first time since the outbreak of -the war the food shark had to take to cover. The governments let it be -known that, while it was all very convenient to blame the authorities -for everything, it would be just as well if the public began to -understand that it had a share of responsibility. Informers grew like -toadstools after a warm rain in June. The courts worked overtime and the -jails were soon filled. The food situation was such that the lesser fry -of the speculators had to be sacrificed to the wrath of the population. -The big men continued, however, and pennies were now to be mobilized -through the medium of commodities. It was no longer safe to squeeze the -public by means of its stomach if patriotism was to remain an asset of -the warring governments. The masses had been mulcted of their last by -this method. Others were to supply the money needed for the war. - -I feel justified in saying that the craving stomach of the Central -states would have served the Allied governments in good stead in the -fall of 1916 had their militaro-political objectives been less extensive -and far-reaching. The degree of hunger, however, was always counteracted -by the statements of the Allied politicians that nothing but a complete -reduction of Germany and Austria-Hungary would satisfy them. I noticed -that such announcements generally had as a result a further tightening -of the belts. Nor could anybody remain blind to the fact that the lean -man is a more dangerous adversary than the sleek citizen. Discipline of -the stomach is the first step in discipline of the mind. There is a -certain joy in asceticism and the consciousness that eating to live has -many advantages over living to eat. - -The Central Power governments did not lose sight of this truth. - - - - -IX - -SUB-SUBSTITUTING THE SUBSTITUTE - - -Much nonsense has been disseminated on the success of the Germans, -Austrians, and Hungarians in inventing substitutes for the things that -were hard to get during the war. A goodly share of that nonsense came -from the Germans and their allies themselves. But more of it was given -to the four winds of heaven by admiring friends, who were as -enthusiastic in such matters as they were ignorant of actual -achievements. - -That much was done in that field is true enough. But a great deal of -scientific effort resulted in no more than what, for instance, synthetic -rubber has been. - -The first thing the German scientists did at the outbreak of the war was -to perfect the system of a Norwegian chemist who had succeeded two years -before in condensing the nitrogen of the air into the highly tangible -form of crystals. - -Many are under the impression that the process was something entirely -new and distinctly a German invention. I have shown that this is not so. -Even the Norwegian cannot claim credit for the invention as in itself -new. His merit is that he made the process commercially possible. - -The thing was a huge success. The British blockade had made the -importation of niter from overseas impossible. There is no telling what -would have happened except for the fact that the practically -inexhaustible store of nitrogen in the air could be drawn upon. It kept -the Central Powers group of belligerents in powder, so long as there was -vegetable fiber and coal-tar enough to be nitrated. Incidentally, some -of the by-products of the nitrogen process served in good stead as -fertilizer. The quantity won was not great, however. - -I am not dealing with war as such, and for that reason I will pass by -the many minor inventions of a purely military character that were made, -nor would it be possible to do more than a cataloguing job if I were to -attempt to refer here to all the innovations and substitutions that were -undertaken as time went on. - -Science multiplied by three the store of textiles held in the Central -states at the outbreak of the war. This was done in many ways and by -various means. Take cotton, for instance. - -That almost anything could be converted into explosives by nitration has -been known ever since Noble made nitroglycerine a commercial product. -Any fat or fiber, even sugar, may be nitrated. That generally we use -glycerine and cotton for the purpose is due to the fact that these -materials are best suited for the process. - -But the fats that go into glycerine, and the cotton that becomes -trinitrocellulose, could be put to better use by the Central states. In -a general way coal-tar took the place of the former, and wood pulp that -of cotton. That meant a tremendous saving in food and clothing. - -I remember well the shiver that went through Germany when Great Britain -declared cotton to be contraband. The Entente press was jubilant for -weeks. But any chemist familiar with the manufacture of explosives could -have told Sir Kendall that he was too optimistic. It was known even then -that birch pulp and willow pulp made most excellent substitutes for -cotton, if the process, or "operation," as the thing is known -technically, is suitably modified. Coal-tar explosives were already _un -fait accompli_. - -Having attended to that little affair, the German scientists turned -their attention to the winning of new textiles. There was the nettle in -the hedges. Anciently, it had been to Europe what cotton was to the -Mexico of the Aztecs. Times being hard, the nettle, now looked upon as a -noxious weed fit only for goose fodder, was brought into its place. Very -soon it was in the market as a textile, which often aspired to as -imposing a name as "natural silk," a name the plant and its fiber well -deserve. - -The chemist had very little to do with that. The process was known and, -being in the main similar to the production of flax fiber, presented no -difficulties. The plant is cut, packed tightly under water so that the -vegetable pulp may decay, and is then dried in the sun and prepared for -spinning. - -Though the Central states were now importing annually from Turkey in -Asia some eighteen thousand bales of cotton, considerable silk and wool, -and were getting wool also in the Balkan countries, there continued to -be felt a shortage in textiles and their raw materials. The situation -was never serious. The fiber of worn materials was being used again, and -so long as enough new material was added the shoddy produced gave ample -satisfaction. - -The paucity of textiles, however, gave rise to the paper-cloth industry. -It was realized that for many purposes for which textiles were being -used the paper cloth was well suited. That applied especially to all the -uses manila and jute had been given in the past. - -Even here it was not a question of inventing something. Paper twine had -been in use in Central Europe for many years; it had, in fact, been laid -under ban by the Austrian government--I don't know for what reason. - -From paper twine to paper cloth was quite a step, however. Anybody can -twist a piece of tissue-paper into a rope, but to make a reasonably -strong thread or yarn of it is another matter. - -The pulp for paper cloth must be tough and not pack too tightly while -the stuff is being made. In this first form the product much resembles -an unbleached tissue-paper. Since the paper has to be in rolls, its -manufacture was undertaken by the mills which in the past had turned -out "news print." - -The rolls are then set into a machine, the principal feature of which is -an arrangement of sharp rotary blades that will cut the sheet into -strips or ribbons a quarter-inch wide--or wider, if that be desired. The -ribbons are gathered on spools that revolve not only about their axes, -but also about themselves, at a speed that will give the paper ribbon -the necessary twist or spinning. Raw paper yarn has now been produced. - -For many purposes the yarn can be used in the condition it is now in. -For others it must be chemically treated. The process is not dissimilar -to "parchmenting" paper. During the treatment the yarn hardens quite a -little. When intended to make bagging and other textiles of that sort, -this will not matter. The yarn must be softened again if intended for -the paper cloth that is to take the place of serge, possibly. This is -done mechanically, by means of beating. - -The yarn does not have the necessary strength to form a fabric when not -reinforced by a tougher fiber. As a rule, it becomes the warp of the -cloth, flax, cotton, and even silk being employed as the weft. When -intended for military overcoats a wool yarn is used. In this case the -cloth is given a water-proofing treatment. A warm garment that is -thoroughly water-proof without being airtight results. - -Paper cloth does not have the tensile qualities of good shoddy even, and -for that reason it is mostly used for purposes to which severe usage is -not incident. For instance, it will make splendid sweater coats for -ladies and children. It will also take the place of felt for hats. - -The endeavor to find a substitute for sole leather was not so -successful, even when finally it was decided that leather soles could be -made only of animal tissue. There was leather enough for uppers always, -and I am inclined to think that the supply of hides was large enough -also to fill all reasonable demands for soles. The trouble lay in the -nature of the hides, not in their scarcity. Horned cattle in Central -Europe are stabled almost throughout the year and in this manner -protected against the inclemency of the weather. A tender hide has been -the result of this--a hide so tender that, while it will make the finest -uppers, is next to useless as a sole. - -A very interesting solution was found in the use of wooden soles. A -thousand capable brains had been occupied with the sole-leather -substitutes, and finally they ruled that wood in its natural state was -the next best thing. So far as the rural population was concerned, that -was well enough. But wooden soles and city pavements are irreconcilable. -How to make that wooden sole bend a little at the instep was the -question. - -A sole was tried whose two halves were held together under the instep by -a sort of specially designed hinge. That seemed an improvement over the -single piece of wood, but soon it was found that it had the dangerous -tendency to break down arches, which the hinged sole left unsupported at -the very point where the support should have been. - -The experiments were continued. Inventors and cranks worked at them for -nearly two years. The best they ever did was to displace the hinge for a -flexible bit of steel plate. Common sense finally came to the rescue. -The best shoe with a wooden sole was the one that gave the foot lots of -room about the ankle, held the instep snug, and made up for the -flexibility of the leather sole by a rounding-off of the wooden sole -under the toes. A good and very serviceable wooden-sole shoe with -leather uppers had been evolved. The scientists had nothing to do with -it. - -It was the department of food substitution that was really the most -interesting. For decades food in tabloid form has interested the men in -the chemical laboratories. Some of them have asserted that man could be -fed chemically. Theoretically that may be done; in practice it is -impossible. If the intestinal tracts could be lined with platinum men -might be able to live on acids of almost any sort. Such is not the case -at present, however. - -The very wise pure-food laws of the Central states were thrown on the -rubbish-heap by the governments when stretching the food-supply became -necessary. They were first knocked into the proverbial cocked hat by the -food sharks. What these men were doing was known to the governments, -but these were not times to be particular. If it were possible to -adulterate flour with ground clover there was no reason why this should -not be done, even if the profit went into the pockets of the shark, so -long as the same individual would later subscribe to the war loans. It -was merely another way of mobilizing the pennies and their fractions. - -But to much of this an end had to be put. Too much exploitation of the -populace might cause internal trouble. It might also lead to ruining the -health of the entire nation, and that was a dangerous course. - -How to substitute flour was indeed a great and urgent problem. There -were those enthusiasts who thought that it could be done chemically. Why -leave to the slow and uncertain process of plant conversion that which -chemistry could do quickly and surely? If certain elements passing -through plant life made flour in the end, why not have them do that -without the assistance of the crop season? - -I read some very learned articles on that subject. But there was always -an _if_. If this and that could be overcome, or if this and that could -be done, the thing would be successful. - -It never was, of course. Organic life rests on Mother Earth in layers, -and the more developed this life is the farther it lies above the mere -soil--the inorganic. The baby needing milk is above the cow, the cow -needing vegetable food is above the plants, and even the plants do not -depend on inorganic elements alone, as can be learned by any farmer who -tries to raise alfalfa on soil that does not contain the cultures the -plant must have. These cultures again feed on organic life. - -This was the rock on which the efforts of the chemical-food experts were -wrecked. Soon they began to see that substitution would have to take the -place of invention and innovation. - -They used to sell in the cafés of Vienna, and other large cities, a cake -made mostly of ground clover meal, to which was added the flour of -horse-chestnuts, a little rice, some glucose, a little sugar and honey, -and chopped prunes when raisins could not be had. The thing was very -palatable, and nutritious, as an analysis would show. There were enough -food units in it to make the vehicle, which here was clover meal, really -worth while. - -I mention this case to show what are the principal requirements of food -for human consumption. There must be a vehicle if alimentation is to be -normal. This vehicle is generally known as ashes. It is to the human -alimentary system what bread is to butter and meat in the sandwich. -Through it are distributed the actual food elements, and in their -preparation for absorption it occupies the place of the sand and grit we -find in the crop of the fowl. In the toothsome cake I have described, -these factors had been duly honored, and for that reason the cake was a -success even at the price it sold for--an ounce for three cents. - -The first war-bread baked was a superior sort of rye bread, containing -in proportions 55, 25, 20, rye flour, wheat flour, and potato meal or -flakes, sugar, and fat. That was no great trick, of course. Any baker -could have thought of that. But rye and wheat flour were not always -plentiful, even when government decree insisted that they be milled to -85 per cent. flour, leaving 15 per cent, as bran--the very outer hull. -Oats, Indian corn, barley, beans, peas, and buckwheat meal had to be -added as time went on. - -That was a more difficult undertaking and afforded the scientist the -chance to do yeoman service. He was not found wanting. - -Imports of coffee had become impossible in 1916. The scant stores on -hand had been stretched and extenuated by the use of chicory and similar -supplements. I used to wonder how it was possible to make so little go -so far, despite the fact that the _demi-tasse_ was coffee mostly in -color by this time. - -A period of transition from coffee to coffee substitutes came. - -The first substitute was not a bad one. It was made mostly of roasted -barley and oats and its flavor had been well touched off by chemicals -won from coal-tar. The brew had the advantage of containing a good -percentage of nutritive elements. Taken with a little milk and sugar it -had all the advantages of coffee, minus the effect of caffeine and plus -the value of the food particles. It was palatable even when taken with -sugar only. Without this complement it was impossible, however. - -But the grain so used could be put to better purpose. This led to the -introduction of the substitute of a substitute. The next sort of -artificial coffee--_Kaffee-ersatz_--was made of roasted acorns and -beechnuts, with just enough roasted barley to build up a coffee flavor. -This product, too, was healthful. It may even be said that it was a -little better than the first substitute. It certainly was more -nourishing, but also more expensive. - -There were not acorns and beechnuts enough, however. Much of the store -had been fed to the porkers, and before long the excellent -acorn-beechnut coffee disappeared. - -A third substitute came in the market. Its principal ingredients were -carrots and yellow turnips. - -To find substitutes for tea was not difficult. The bloom of the -linden-tree, mixed with beech buds, makes an excellent beverage, and -those who dote on "oolong" can meet their taste somewhat by adding to -this a few tips of pine. If too much of the pine bud is used a very -efficacious emetic will result, however. - -The mysteries of cocoa substitutions are a little above me. I can say, -however, that roasted peas and oats have much to do with it. Some of the -materials employed were supplied by coal-tar and synthetic chemistry. - -It was really remarkable what this coal-tar would do for the Germans and -their allies. It provided them with the base for their explosives, made -their dyes, and from it were made at one period of the war, by actual -enumeration, four hundred and forty-six distinct and separate chemical -products used in medicine, sanitation, and food substitution. If there -be such a thing as an elixir of life, coal-tar may be expected to -furnish it. - -But the net gain in this casting about for substitutes was slight -indeed. The grains, nuts, and vegetables that were used as substitutes -for coffee would have had the same food value if consumed in some other -form. The advantage was that their conversion served to placate the old -eating habits of the public. To what extent these had to be placated was -made plain on every meatless, fatless, or wheatless or some other "less" -day or period. - -There was the rice "lamb" chop, for instance. The rice was boiled and -then formed into lumps resembling a chop. Into the lump a skewer of wood -was stuck to serve as a bone, and to make the illusion more complete a -little paper rosette was used to top off the "bone." All of it was very -_comme il faut_. Then the things were fried in real mutton tallow, and -when they came on the table its looks and aroma, now reinforced by green -peas and a sprig of watercress, would satisfy the most exacting. Nor -could fault be found with the taste. - -The vegetable beefsteak was another thing that gave great satisfaction, -once you had become used to the color of the thing's interior, which was -pale green--a signal in a real steak that it should not be eaten. The -steak in question was a synthetic affair, composed of cornmeal, -spinach, potatoes, and ground nuts. An egg was used to bind the mass -together, and some of the culinary lights of Berlin and Vienna succeeded -in making it cohesive enough to require the knife in real earnest. - -What I have outlined here so far may be called the private effort at -substitution. But substitution also had a governmental application. Its -purpose was to break the populace of its habit of eating highly -concentrated foods, especially fats. - -The slaughter of the porkers in 1914 had accidentally led the way to -this policy. The shortage in fats caused by this economic error was soon -to illustrate that the masses could get along very well on about a -quarter of the fat they had consumed in the past. Soon it was plain, -also, that the health of the public could be improved in this manner by -the gradual building up of a stronger physique. - -It would have been easy to again crowd the pigsties. The animal is very -prolific, and a little encouragement of the pig-raisers would have had -that result inside of a year had it been desired. But it was not done. -It was difficult to get the necessary feed for these animals, and the -small quantities that could be imported from Roumania were never a -guarantee that the farmers would not feed their pigs with home-raised -cereals and other foods that were of greater value to the state in the -form of cereal and vegetable food for the population. The prices of fats -and meats were well up. A hundred pounds of wheat converted into animal -products would bring nearly three times what the farmer could get for -the grain. Illicit trading in these articles, moreover, was easier -carried on than in breadstuffs. - -Since no animal fats, be they butter, lard, or suet, could be produced -without sacrificing a goodly share of the country's cereal supply, it -was necessary to keep the animal-product industry down to its lowest -possible level. It was easier to distribute equitably the larger masses -of cereals and vegetables than the concentrated foods into which animal -industry would convert them. To permit that would also have led to more -hardship for the lower classes at a time when money was cheap and prices -correspondingly high. - -The crux of the situation was to fill the public stomach as well as -conditions permitted, and the consumption of fats could have no place in -that scheme under the circumstances. It was decided, therefore, to have -the human stomach do what heretofore had largely been attended to by the -animal industries. An entire series of frictional waste could in that -manner be eliminated, as indeed it was. - -The same policy led to a reduction in the supply of eggs. To keep the -human stomach occupied had become as much a necessity as furnishing -nutriment to the body. - -I doubt whether without this happy idea the Central states would have -been able to carry on the war. The saving due to the policy was -immense--so stupendous, in fact, that at the same time it discounted -the impossibility of importing foodstuffs and took ample care of the -losses in food production due to the shortage of labor and fertilizers. -It was the one and only thing that stood between the Central Powers and -swift defeat. - -It is needless to say that the effect upon certain classes of population -was not so propitious. The lack of sufficient good milk caused an -increase in infant mortality. The feeble of all ages were carried off -quickly when concentrated foods could no longer be had to keep them -alive, and persons of middle age and old age suffered so much that death -was in many cases a welcome relief. While the healthy adult men and -women did not suffer by this sort of rationing--grew stronger, in -fact--those past the prime of life could not readjust themselves to the -iron food discipline that was enforced. The alimentary system in that -case had entered upon its downward curve of assimilation over -elimination, and, constitutionally modified by the ease afforded by -concentrated foods, it declined rapidly when these foods were withdrawn. -Driven by necessity, the several states practised wholesale manslaughter -of the less fit. - -I was greatly interested in these "home" casualties, and discussed them -with many, among them life-insurance men, educators, and government -officials. The first class took a strictly business view of the thing. -The life-insurance companies were heavy losers. But there was no way -out. Nothing at all could be done. It was hoped that the better -physical trim of the young adults, and the resulting longevity, would -reimburse the life-insurers. If the war did not last too long this would -indeed happen. Premiums would have to be increased, however, if it -became necessary for the government to apply further food restrictions. - -Some of the educators took a sentimental view of the thing. Others were -cynically rational. It all depended upon their viewpoint and age. Those -who believed in the theories of one Osler could see nothing wrong in -this method of killing off the unfit aged. Their opposites thought it -shameful that better provisions were not made for them. - -The attitude of the government was more interesting. It took cognizance -of the individual and social aspects involved--of sentiment and reality. -That manslaughter of the aged and unfit was the result of the food -policy was not denied. But could the state be expected to invite -dissolution because of that? - -"I understand you perfectly," said a certain food-dictator to me once. -"My own parents are in that position, or would be, were it not that they -have the means to buy the more expensive foods. That thousands of the -poor aged are going to a premature death is only too evident. But what -are we to do? We cannot for their sake lay down our arms and permit our -enemies to impose upon us whatever conditions they please. Quite apart -from the interests of the state as a political unit, there is here to be -considered the welfare of the fit individuals. Being fit, they have the -greatest claim to the benefits that come from the social and economic -institutions which political independence alone can give. That the less -fit must make sacrifices for that is to be expected, for the very good -reason that it is the fit class which is carrying on the war and -shedding its blood for the maintenance of the state. By the time we have -provided for the infants and babies there is nothing left for the aged -over and above what the adult individual gets. Of the babies we must -take care because they are the carriers of our future. Of the aged we -should take care because they have given us our past. But when it comes -to choose which class to preserve, I would say the young every time." - -For live-stock-owning governments that is indeed the proper view to -take; and since all governments belong to that class, more or less, it -seems futile to find fault with this food-dictator. The man forced to -decide whether he would give the last morsel to his old father or his -young son might select to divide that morsel evenly between them. But if -the old man was worth his salt at all he would insist that the boy be -given all the food. A social aggregate that cannot act in accordance -with this principle is shortening its own day. - - - - -X - -THE CRUMBS - - -October, 1916, marked the high water of the Central European -public-subsistence problems. Misery had reached the limits of human -endurance. For the next seven months the strain caused by it tore at the -vitals of the Central states. The measures then conceived and applied -would prove whether or no the collapse of Germany and her allies could -be averted. So serious was the situation that the several governments -felt compelled to send out peace-feelers, one or two of them being -definite propositions of a general nature. - -The crumbs and scraps had been saved for a long time even then. As far -back as November, 1914, all garbage had been carefully sorted into -rubbish and food remnants which might serve as animal feed. But that was -no longer necessary now. Food remnants no longer went into the -garbage-cans. Nor was it necessary to advise the public not to waste old -clothing and other textiles. The ragman was paying too good a price for -them. Much of the copper and brass complement of households had been -turned over to the government, and most copper roofs were being -replaced by tin. The church bells were being smelted. Old iron fetched a -fancy price. In the currency iron was taking the place of nickel. Old -paper was in keen demand. The sweepings of the street were being used as -fertilizer. During the summer and fall the hedges had been searched for -berries, and in the woodlands thousands of women and children had been -busy gathering mushrooms and nuts. To meet the ever-growing scarcity of -fuel the German government permitted the villagers to lop the dead wood -in the state forests. To ease the needs of the small live-stock-owner he -was allowed to cut grass on the fiscal woodlands and gather the dead -leaves for stable bedding. - -It was a season of saving scraps. The entire economic machinery seemed -ready for the scrap-heap. Much of the saving that was being practised -was leading to economic waste. - -The city streets were no longer as clean as they used to be. During the -summer much light-fuel had been saved by the introduction of "summer -time." The clocks were set ahead an hour, so that people rose shortly -after dawn, worked their customary ten hours in the shops and factories, -and then still had enough daylight to work in their gardens. When dusk -came they went to bed. Street traction had been limited also. The early -closing of shops, cafés, and restaurants effected further savings in -light, and, above all, eatables. - -The countryside presented a dreary picture. Nobody had time to -whitewash the buildings, and few cared about the appearance of their -homes. What is the use? they said. They could wait until better times -came. The dilapidated shutter kept fit company with the rain-streaked -wall. The untidy yard harmonized with the neglected garden in a -veritable diapason of indifference. The implements and tools of the farm -were left where they had been used last. The remaining stock had an -unkempt look about it. - -I remember how during a trip in Steiermark I once compared the -commonwealth with a lonely hen I saw scratching for food in a yard. The -rusty plumage of the bird showed that nobody had fed it in months. There -was no doubt, though, that somebody expected that hen to lay eggs. - -It was now a question, however, of saving the scraps of the state--of -the socio-economic fabric. The flood of regulation which had spilled -over Central Europe had pulled so many threads out of the socio-economic -life that, like a thin-worn shawl, it had no longer the qualities of -keeping warm those under it. The threads had been used by those in the -trenches, and the civilian population had been unable to replace them. - -It would be quite impossible to give within the confines of a single -volume a list of these regulations, together with a discussion of their -many purposes, tendencies, and effects. I would have to start with the -economic embryo of all social economy--the exchange of food between the -tiller of the soil and the fisherman--to make a good job of that. - -A little intensive reasoning will show what the processes applied in -Central Europe had been up to the fall of 1916. Regulated was then -almost everything man needs in order to live: bread, fats, meat, butter, -milk, eggs, peas, beans, potatoes, sugar, beer, fuel, clothing, shoes, -and coal-oil. These were the articles directly under control. Under the -indirect influence of regulation, however, lay everything, water and air -alone excepted. - -Now, the purpose of this regulation had been to save and to provide the -government with the funds needed for the war. That was well enough so -long as there was something to save. But the time was come in which the -governmental effort at saving was futile endeavor. There was nothing -that could be saved any more. Surpluses had ceased to be. Production no -longer equaled consumption, and when that state of things comes crumbs -and scraps disappear of themselves. - -Once I had to have a pair of heels straightened. I had no trouble -finding a cobbler. But the cobbler had no leather. - -"Surely," I said, "you can find scraps enough to fix these heels!" - -"But, I can't, sir!" replied the man. "I cannot buy scraps, even. There -is no more leather. I am allowed a small quantity each month. But what I -had has been used up long ago. If you have another old pair of shoes, -bring them around. I can use part of the soles of them to repair the -heels, and for the remainder I will pay with my labor. I won't charge -you anything for mending your shoes." - -I accepted the proposal and learned later that the cobbler had not made -so bad a bargain, after all. - -A similar policy had to be adopted to keep the Central populations in -clothes. Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria, and Turkey produce -considerable quantities of wool, flax, silk, and cotton. But what they -produce was not enough to go around, and the men at the front were -wearing out their uniforms at an alarming rate. The military authorities -felt that nothing would be gained by making the uniforms of poor cloth. -The wear and tear on the fabric was severe. Labor in the making and -distribution of the uniforms could be saved only by using the best -materials available. - -For the civilians it became necessary to wear shoddy. And to obtain -shoddy every scrap must be saved. The time came when an old all-wool -suit brought second-hand as good a price as a new suit fresh from the -mill and the tailor shop. With the addition of a little new fiber that -old suit might make two new ones. The old material was "combed" into -wool again, and to this was added some new wool, cotton, or silk, and -"new" goods appeared again on the counter. - -The "I-cash" never had done such business before. The attics and cellars -were ransacked, and since those who had most old clothing to sell bought -hardly any at all now, the pinch of the war in clothing was really -never felt very much by the poor. To prevent the spread of contagious -diseases the several governments saw to it that the shoddy was -thoroughly sterilized. - -But economies of that sort are more or less automatic and lie within the -realm of supply and demand. Unchecked, they may also become the cause of -economic waste. The time comes when shoddy is an absolute loss. When -fibers are used over and over, together with new elements, the oldest of -them finally cease to have value. That means that the fabric does not -have the wearing qualities which will give economic compensation for the -labor spent on it and the price asked from the consumer. The stuff may -be good to look upon, but in times of war that is not essential. - -The profiteer found a fine field in the manufacture of shoddy. All -first-hand shoddy he would sell as new material, and before he admitted -that a certain piece of cloth was "indifferent" in quality, it had to be -poor indeed. He would ask a good price for a suit that might fall to -pieces in the first rain, and the consumer was left to do the best he -could with the thing. When the consumer complained he would be told that -the "war" was responsible, and the consumer, knowing in a general and -superficial manner that things were indeed scarce, would decide to be -reasonable. - -But the government could not take that easy view. Labor which might have -been put to better use had been expended in the making of that shoddy, -and now the fabric served no good purpose. That had to be avoided. It -was far better to abandon fiber of this sort than to have it become the -cause of waste in labor and the reason for further discontent. Labor -that results in nothing more than this is non-productive, and the -governments of Central Europe knew only too well that they had no hands -to spare for that kind of unavailing effort. - -I ran into a case of this sort in Bohemia. A large mill had turned out a -great deal of very poor shoddy. The cloth looked well, and, since wool -fiber newly dyed makes a good appearance even long after its wearing -qualities have departed forever, the firm was doing a land-office -business. All went well until some of the fine cloth got on the backs of -people. Then trouble came. Some of the suits shrank when wet, while -others did the very opposite. The matter came to the attention of the -authorities. - -Experts in textiles examined the cloth. Some of the output was found to -contain as much as 60 per cent. old fiber, and there was no telling how -many times this old fiber had been made over. It was finally shown that, -had the manufacturer been content with a little less profit, he could -have converted the new fiber--which, by the way, he had obtained from -the government Fiber Central--into some thirty thousand yards of -first-class shoddy under a formula that called for 65 per cent. new -fiber and 35 per cent. old. As it was, he had turned the good raw -material into nearly fifty-two thousand yards of fabrics that were not -worth anything and he had wasted the labor of hundreds of men and women -besides. - -The man had been trying to make use of crumbs and scraps for his own -benefit. Personal interests had led, in this instance, to an attempt to -convert an economic negative into a positive. The useless fiber was a -minus which no effort in plus could cause to have any other value than -that which this profit-hunter saw in it. By the rational economist the -shoddy had been abandoned, and all effort to overcome the statics of -true economy, as here represented by the unserviceableness of the fiber -for the use to which it had been assigned, was bound to be an economic -waste. - -Cases such as these--and there were thousands of them--showed the -authorities that there was danger even in economy. The crumbs and scraps -themselves were useless in the end. Beyond a certain point all use of -them resulted in losses, and that point was the minimum of utility that -could be obtained with a maximum of effort. The economic structure could -not stand on so poor a sand foundation. - -But the several governments were largely responsible for this. They had -regulated so much in behalf of economy that they had virtually given the -economic shark _carte blanche_. - -There was a season when I attended a good many trials of men who had run -afoul of the law in this manner. They all had the same excuse. Nothing -had been further from their minds than to make in times such as these -excessive profits. They would not think of such a thing. If they had -used poor materials in the things they manufactured, it was due entirely -to their desire to stretch the country's resources. In doing that they -had hoped to lighten the burden of the government. Conservation had -become necessary and everybody would have to help in that. They had been -willing to do their bit, and now the authorities were unreasonable -enough to find fault with this policy. - -At first many a judge had the wool pulled over his eyes in that manner. -But in the end the scheme worked no longer. Usually the limit of -punishment fell on the offender. - -Abuses of this sort had much to do with an improvement in conservation -methods. So far as the textile industry was concerned it led to the -control by the government Raw-Material Centrals, which were established -rather loosely at the beginning of the war, of all fibers. The ragman -thereafter turned over his wares to these centrals, and when a spinner -wanted material he had to state what he wanted it for and was then given -the necessary quantities in proportions. That helped, and when the -government took a better interest in the goods manufactured this avenue -of economic waste was closed effectively. With these measures came the -clothing cards for the public. After that all seemed well. The poorer -qualities of cloth disappeared from the market overnight, and a suit of -clothing was now sure to give fair value for the price. - -I have made use of this example to illustrate what the factors in -regulation and conservation were at times, and how difficult it was to -unscramble the economic omelet which the first conservation policies had -dished up. - -There were other crumbs and scraps, however. Not the least of them was -the socio-economic organism itself. That sensitive thing had been -doctored so much that only a major operation could again put it on its -feet. Economy faddists and military horse-doctors alike had tried their -hands on the patient, and all of them had overlooked that the only thing -there was wrong with the case was malnutrition. Everybody was trying to -get the usual quantities and qualities of milk from a cow that was -starving. Poor Bossy! - -Man lives not by food alone; nor does society. It takes a whole lot of -things to run a state. While the government had already in its grasp all -the distribution and consumption of food, there were many things it did -not care to interfere with, even if they were almost as important as -food. These things were the products of industry, rather than the fruits -of the fields, though usually, as is natural, it was difficult to draw a -strong line of demarcation in the division of spheres. In social economy -that has always been so. To get the true perspective, take a dozen -pebbles, label them food, fuel, clothing, and whatever else occurs to -you, and then throw the pebbles in the pond. You will find that the -circular wavelets caused by the pebbles will soon run into and across -one another, and if by chance you have followed the waves of food you -will notice that while they have been broken by the impact of the others -they still remain discernible. - -Into the rippling pond the several governments had each thrown the -cobblestones of regulation. The food, fuel, and clothing ripples were -still there, of course, but they had been so obliterated that it was now -difficult to trace them on the regulation waves. - -But the waves, too, subsided, and on the backwash of them the -authorities read lessons which suggested saner methods--methods whose -conception and application were attended by a better regard for the -nature of the operation, be this production, distribution, or -consumption. - -The saving of crumbs and scraps had not been without its value. It -tended to make men short-sighted, however. The governments of Central -Europe wanted to limit consumption to the absolutely necessary, but -overlooked that their _modus operandi_ gave cause to serious losses. The -various authorities did not wish to interfere too much with normal -currents of economic life. That was well enough in a way, but had -disastrous consequences. A shortage in the necessities of life was the -great fact of the day. It could be met only by restricting consumption. -But the machinery of this restriction was a haphazard thing. It promoted -hoarding. - -There have been those who have condemned the hoarder in the roundest of -terms. I am not so sure that he deserves all of the anathemas that have -been hurled at him. When a government shouts day in and day out that -the worst will come to pass if everybody does not save the crumbs, the -more easily alarmed are bound to think only of themselves and of their -own. High prices will cease to be a deterrent, for the reason that war -brings only too many examples of the fact that only food and not money -will sustain life. To act in accordance with this may be a weakness, but -it is also along the lines of a natural condition, if self-preservation -be indeed the first law of nature. Soon there are found those who -promote and pamper this weakness for a profit. Food is then stored away -by the majority. Some will waste much of it in over-consumption, while -more will permit the food to spoil by improper storage methods, -especially when the food has to be secreted in cellars and attics, -wardrobes and drawers, as happens when government by inspection becomes -necessary. But of this I have spoken already in its proper place. - - - - -XI - -MOBILIZING THE PENNIES - - -Food-regulators will be wroth, I suppose, if I should state that the -consumption of life's necessities can be regulated and diminished for -its own sake, and that high prices are not necessarily the only way of -doing this. At the same time I must admit that prices are bound to rise -when demand exceeds supply. In our system of economy that is a natural -order of affairs. But this tendency, when not interfered with, would -also result in a quick and adequate betterment in wages. In Central -Europe, however, the cost of living was always about 50 per cent. ahead -of the slow increase in earnings. That 50 per cent. was the increment -which the government and its economic minions needed to keep the war -going. What regulation of prices there was kept this in mind always. In -order that every penny in the realm might be mobilized and then kept -producing, no change in these tactics could be permitted. - -The food shark and price-boosting middleman were essential in this -scheme, and when these were dropped by the government, one by one, it -was nothing but a case of: - - The Moor has done his duty, the Moor can go. - -Elimination of the middleman worked upward, much as does a disease that -has its bed in the slums. When the consumer had been subjected to the -limit of pressure, the retailer felt the heavy hand of the government. -It got to be the turn of the wholesaler and commission-man, and in -October of 1916, the period of which I speak here, only the industrial -and commercial kings and the banking monarchs were still in favor with -the government. The speculators then operating were either the agents of -these powers or closely affiliated with them. - -In the fall of 1916 the war system of national economy had taken the -shape it has to-day. Food had become the irreducible minimum. Not alone -was the quantity on hand barely sufficient to feed the population, but -its price could no longer be increased if the masses were not to starve -for lack of money instead of lack of food. The daily bread was now a -luxury. Men and women had to rise betimes and work late into the night -if they wanted to eat at all. - -Let me now speak of the sort of revision of economic regulations that -was in vogue before the adoption of the new system. - -That revision started with the farmer--the producer of food. Some -requisitioning had been done on the farms for strictly military -purposes. Horses and meat animals had been taken from the farmer for -cash at the minimum prices established by the authorities. Forage and -grain for the army had been commandeered in a like manner, and in a few -cases wagons, plows, and other implements. Further than that (taking -into account the minimum prices, which were in favor of the farmer and -intended to stimulate production), the government had not actually -interfered with the tiller of the soil. He had gone on as before, so far -as a shortage of labor, draft animals, and fertilizers permitted. He had -not prospered, of course, but on the whole he was better off than the -urbanite and industrial worker, for the reason that he could still -consume of his food as much as he liked. The government had, indeed, -prescribed what percentage of his produce he was to turn over to the -public, but often that interference went no further. - -But in the growing and crop season of 1916 the several governments went -on a new tack. Trained agriculturists, employees of the Food Commissions -and Centrals, looked over the crops and estimated what the yield would -be. From the total was then subtracted what the establishment of the -farmer would need, and the rest had to be turned over to the Food -Centrals at fixed dates. - -The farmers did not take kindly to this. But there was no help. Failure -to comply with orders meant a heavy fine, and hiding of food brought -similar punishment and imprisonment besides. - -With this done, the food authorities began to clear up a little more in -the channels of distribution. The cereals were checked into the mills -more carefully, and the smaller water-mills, which had in the past -charged for their labor by retaining the bran and a little flour, were -put on a cash basis. For every hundred pounds of grain they had to -produce so many pounds of flour, together with by-products when these -latter were allowed. - -The flour was then shipped to a Food Central, and this would later issue -it to the bakers, who had to turn out a fixed number of loaves. To each -bakery had been assigned so many consumers, and the baker was now -responsible that these got the bread which the law prescribed. - -Potatoes and other foods were handled in much the same manner. The -farmer had to deliver them to the Food Central in given quantities at -fixed dates, and the Central turned them over to the retailers for sale -to the public in prescribed allotments. Now and then small quantities of -"unrestricted" potatoes would get to the consumer through the municipal -markets. But people had to rise at three o'clock in the morning to get -them. This meant, of course, that only those willing to lose hours of -needed sleep for the sake of a little extra food got any of these -potatoes. - -The ways of the efficient food-regulator are dark and devious but -positive in their aim. - -The meat-supply was not further modified. The meatless days and -exorbitant prices had made further regulation in that department -unnecessary. Milk and fat, however, as well as eggs, were made the -subject of further attention by the Food Commissions. All three of them -were as essential to the masses as was bread, and for that reason they -passed within the domain of the food zone--_Rayon_. - -In their case, however, the authorities left the supply uncontrolled. -The farmer sold to the Food Central what milk, butter, lard, suet, -tallow, vegetable-oil, and eggs he produced, and the Central passed them -on to the retailers, who had to distribute them to a given number of -consumers. The same was done in the case of sugar. - -Such a scheme left many middlemen high and dry. Those who could not be -of some service in the new system, or found it not worth while to be -connected with it, took to other lines of industry. - -The government had left a few such lines open. That, however, was not -done in the interest of the middlemen. The better-paid working classes -still had pennies that had to be garnered, and these pennies, now that -food was surrounded by cast-iron regulations and laws, went into the -many other channels of trade. - -I made the acquaintance of a man who in the past had bought and sold on -commission almost anything under the heading of food. Now it would be a -car-load of flour, then several car-loads of potatoes, and when business -in these lines was poor he would do a legal or illicit business in -butter and eggs. Petroleum was a side line of his, and once he made a -contract with the government for remounts. I don't think there was -anything the man had not dealt in. But the same can be said of every one -of the thousands that used to do business in the quiet corners of the -Berlin and Vienna cafés. - -I should mention here that the Central European commission-man does not -generally hold forth in an office. The café is his place of -business--not a bad idea, since those with whom he trades do the same. -There are certain cafés in Vienna, Berlin, and Budapest, and the other -cities, that exist almost for that purpose. In any three of them one can -buy and sell anything from a paper of pins to a stack of hay. - -My acquaintance found that the new order of things in the food -department left him nothing but the pleasant memory of the "wad" he had -made under the old régime. He took to matches. - -Matches were uncontrolled and rather scarce. Soon he had a corner in -matches. He made contracts with the factories at a price he could not -have paid without a large increase in the selling price of the article. -But he knew how to bring that condition about. - -Before long the price of matches went up. They had been selling at about -one-quarter cent American for a box of two hundred. The fancier article -sold for a little more. - -When the price was one cent a box, my acquaintance began to unload -judiciously. Merchants did not want to be without matches again, and -bought with a will. The speculator cleared one hundred and twenty -thousand crowns on his first release, I was told. His average monthly -profit after that was something like forty thousand crowns. - -Somehow he managed to escape prosecution under the anti-high-profit -decree then in force. No doubt that was due to his connections with the -Vienna Bank Food Ring. At any rate, his name appeared as one of the -large subscribers to the fifth Austrian war loan, and, needless to say, -he paid his share of the war-profit tax. - -In this case fractions of pennies were mobilized. I suppose almost -anybody who can afford fuel can afford to light a fire with a match that -costs the two-hundredth part of a cent. No doubt the government thought -so. Why not relieve the population of that little accumulation of -economic "fat"? - -Another genius of that sort managed to get a corner in candles. How he -managed to get his stock has never been clear to me, since the food -authorities had long ago put a ban on the manufacture of candles. I -understand that some animal fats, suet and tallow, are needed to make -the paraffin "stand" up. Those animal fats were needed by the population -in the form of food. - -But the corner in candles was _un fait accompli_. The man was -far-sighted. He held his wares until the government ordered lights out -in the houses at eleven o'clock, and these candles were then welcome at -any price, especially in such houses where the janitor would at the -stroke of the hour throw off the trunk switch in the cellar. - -Here was another chance to get pennies from the many who could afford to -buy a candle once or twice a week. The government had no reason to -interfere. Those pennies, left in the pockets of the populace, would -have never formed part of a war loan or war-profit taxes. - -Sewing-thread was the subject of another corner. In fact, all the little -things people must have passed one by one into the control of some -speculator. - -Gentle criticism of that method of mulcting the public was made in the -press that depended more than ever on advertising. But that fell on deaf -ears. And usually a man had not to be a deep thinker to realize that the -government must permit that sort of thing in order to find money for the -prosecution of the war and the administration of the state. To serious -complaint, the government would reply that it had done enough by -regulating the food, and that further regulation would break down the -economic machine. That was true, of course. To take another step was to -fall into the arms of the Social Democrats, and that responsibility -nobody expected the government to take. - -The attitude of the public toward the governmentally decreed system of -social economy is not the least interesting feature of it. - -The authorities took good care to accompany every new regulation with -the explanation that it had to be taken in the interest of the state -and the armies in the field. If too much food was consumed in the -interior, the men in the trenches would go hungry. That was a good -argument, of course. Almost every family had some member of it in the -army; that food was indeed scarce was known, and not to be content with -what was issued was folly in the individual--at one time it was treason. -As an antidote against resentment at high prices, the government had -provided the minimum-maximum price schedules, and occasionally some -retailer or wholesaler was promptly dealt with by the court, whose -president was then more interested in fining the man than in putting him -in jail. The government needed the money and was not anxious to feed -prisoners. If some favorite was hit by this, the authorities had the -convenient excuse that it was "war." - -It is difficult to see how the attitude of the several governments could -have been different. The authorities of a state have no other power, -strength, and resources than what the community places at their disposal -wittingly or unwittingly. The war was here and had to be prosecuted in -the best manner possible, and the operations incident to the struggle -were so gigantic that every penny and fraction thereof had to be -mobilized. There was no way out of this so long as the enemy was to be -met and opposed. Even the more conservative faction of the Social -Democrats realized that, and for the time being the "internationalist" -socialists had no argument they could advance against this, since -elsewhere the "internationalists" had also taken to cover. The Liberals -everywhere could demand fair treatment of the masses, but that they had -been given by the government to the fullest extent possible under the -circumstances. The exploitation of the public was general and no longer -confined to any class, though it did not operate in all cases with the -same rigor. - -To have the laws hit all alike would have meant embracing the very -theories of Karl Marx and his followers. Apart from the fact that the -middle and upper classes were violently opposed to this, there was the -question whether it would have been possible in that case to continue -the war. The German, German-Austrian, and Hungarian public, however, -wanted the war continued, even when the belt had been tightened to the -last hole. What, under these circumstances, could be done by the several -governments but extract from their respective people the very last cent? -Discussion of the policy was similar to a cat chasing its tail. - -We may say the same of the motive actuating the authorities when in the -fall of 1916 they established municipal meat markets where meat could be -obtained by the poor at cost price and often below that. Whether that -was done to alleviate hunger or keep the producer in good trim is a -question which each must answer for himself. It all depends on the -attitude one takes. The meat was sold by the municipality or the Food -Commission direct, at prices from 15 to 25 per cent. below the day's -quotation, and was a veritable godsend to the poor. Whether the -difference in price represented humaneness on the part of the -authorities or design would be hard to prove. Those I questioned -invariably claimed that it was a kind interest in the masses which -caused the government to help them in that manner. Had I been willing to -do so I could have shown, of course, that the money spent in this sort -of charity had originally been in the pockets of those who bought the -cheaper meat. - -But that is a chronic ailment of social economy, and I am not idealist -enough to say how this ailment could be cured. In fact, I cannot see how -it can be cured if society is not to sink into inertia, seeing that the -scramble for a living is to most the only leaven that will count. That -does not mean, however, that I believe in the maxim, "The devil take the -hindmost"--a maxim which governed the distribution of life's necessities -in Central Europe during the first two years of the war. - -The zonification of the bread, milk, fats, and sugar supply, and the -municipal meat markets began to show that either the government had come -to fear the public or was now willing to co-operate with it more closely -than it had done in the past. At any rate, this new and better policy -had a distinctly humane aspect. Some of the food-lines disappeared, and -with them departed much of that brutality which food control by the -government had been associated with in the past. The food allowance was -scant enough, but a good part of it was now assured. It could be -claimed at any time of the day, and that very fact revived in many the -self-respect which had suffered greatly by the eternal begging for food -in the lines. - -Having made a study of the psychology of the food-liner, I can realize -what that meant. Of a sudden food riots ceased, and with them passed all -danger of a revolution. I am convinced that in the winter of 1915-16 it -was easier to start internal trouble in the Central states than it was a -year later. A more or less impartial and fairly efficient system of food -distribution had induced the majority to look at the shortage in -eatables as something for which the government was not to blame. That, -after all, was what the government wanted. Whether or no it worked -consciously toward that end I am not prepared to say. - -By that time, also, the insufferable small official had been curbed to -quite an extent. As times grew harder, and the small increases in pay -failed more and more to keep pace with the increase in the cost of -living, that class became more and more impossible. Toward its superiors -it showed more obsequiousness than before, because removal from office -meant a stay at the front, and since things in life have the habit of -balancing one another, the class became more rude and oppressive toward -the public. Finally the government caused the small official to -understand that this could not go on. He also learned in a small degree -that bureaucratism is not necessarily the only purpose of the -officeholder, though much progress in that direction was yet necessary. - -It has often been my impression that government in Central Europe would -be good if it were possible to put out of their misery the small -officials--the element which snarls at the civilian when there is no -occasion for it. It seems to me that the worst which the extremists -in the Entente group have planned for the Central Powers is still -too good for the martinet who holds forth in the Central European -_Amtsstube_--_i. e._, government office. Law and order has no greater -admirer than myself, but I resent having some former corporal take it -for granted that I had never heard of such things until he happened -along. Yet that is precisely what this class does. It has alienated -hundreds of thousands of friends of the German people. It has stifled -the social enlightenment and political liberty which was so strong in -Central Europe in the first four decades of the nineteenth century. - -It is not difficult to imagine what that class did to a population which -had been reduced to subsisting at the public crib. The bread ticket was -handed the applicant with a sort of by-the-grace-of-God mien, when rude -words did not accompany it. The slightest contravention brought a flood -of verbal abuse. Pilate never was so sure that he alone was right. -Between this official insolence, food shortage, and exploitation by the -government and its economic minions, the Central European civilian had a -merry time of it. - -But, after all, no people has a better government than it deserves, just -as it has no more food than it produces or is able to secure. The -martinets did not mend their ways until women in the food-lines had -clawed their faces and an overwhelming avalanche of complaints began to -impress the higher officials. Conditions improved rapidly after that and -stayed improved so long as the public was heard from. It may not be -entirely coincidence that acceptable official manners and better -distribution of food came at the same time. In that lies the promise -that the days of the autocratic small official in Central Europe are -numbered. - -It was futile, however, to look for a general or deep-seated resentment -against the government itself. Certain officials were hated. Before the -war that would have made little difference to the bureaucratic clans, -and even now they were often reluctant to sacrifice one of their ilk, -but there was no longer any help for it. There was never a time when a -change in the principle of government was considered as the means to -effect a bettering of conditions. The Central European prefers -monarchical to republican government. He is not inclined to do homage to -a ruler who is a commoner--a tribute he still pays his government and -its head. - -In the monarchy the ruler occupies a position which the average -republican cannot easily understand. In the constitutional monarchy, -having a responsible ministry, the king is generally little better than -what is known as a figurehead. He is hardly ever heard from, and when -he is the cause of his appearance in the spotlight may be some act that -has little or nothing to do with government itself. He may open some -hospital or attend a maneuver or review of the fleet, or convene -parliament with a speech prepared by the premier, and there his -usefulness ends--seemingly. But that is not quite so. In such a realm -the monarch stands entirely for that continuation of policy and -principle which is necessary for the guidance of the state. He becomes -the living embodiment of the constitution, as it were. He is the -non-political guardian thereof. Political parties may come and go, but -the king stays, seeing to it, theoretically at least, that the -parliamentary majority which has put its men into the ministry does not -violate the ground laws of the country. - -In his capacities of King of Prussia and German Emperor, William II. has -been more absolute than any of the other European monarchs, the Czar of -Russia alone excepted. The two constitutions under which he rules, the -Prussian and the German federative, give him a great deal of room in -which to elbow around. When a Reichstag proved intractable he had but to -dissolve it, and in the Prussian chambers of Lords and Deputies he was -as nearly absolute as any man could be--provided always he did what was -agreeable to the Junkers. They are a strong-minded crew in Prussia, and -less inclined to be at the beck and call of their king than Germans -generally are in the case of their Emperor. In Prussia the King is far -more the servant of the state than the Kaiser is in Germany. But this is -one of those little idiosyncrasies in government that can be found -anywhere. - -Three years of contact with all classes of Germans have yet to show me -the single individual, not a most radical socialist, who had anything -but kind words for the King-Emperor and his family. What the Kaiser had -to say went through the multitude like an electric impulse. No matter -how uninteresting I might find a statement, because I could not see it -from the angle of the German, the public always received it very much as -it might the word of a prophet. It was conceded that the Emperor could -make mistakes, that, indeed, he had made not a few of them; but this did -not by any means lessen the degree of receptiveness of his subjects. -Against the word of Kaiser Wilhelm all argument is futile, and will -always remain futile. - -It was this sentiment which caused the German people to accept with -wonderful patience whatever burden the war brought. Had it ever been -necessary to cast into the government's war treasury the last pfennig, -the mere word from the Kaiser would have accomplished this. What -Napoleon was to his soldiers Emperor William II. is to his people. - -And then it must not be overlooked that the Emperor possesses marked -ability as a press agent. He was always the first to conform to a -regulation in food. Long before the rich classes had so much as a -thought of eating war-bread, Emperor William would tolerate nothing else -on his table. The Empress, too, adhered to this. All wheat bread was -banished from the several palaces of the imperial _ménage_. Every court -function was abandoned, save coffee visits in the afternoon for the -friends of the Empress. - -[Illustration: Copyright by Underwood & Underwood, N. Y. - -CASTLE HOHENZOLLERN - -Ancestral seat of the Hohenzollern dynasty. The men and women in the -foreground are good types of Germany's peasantry.] - -I saw the Emperor a good many times. At the beginning of the war he was -rushed past me in the Unter den Linden in Berlin. The crowds were -cheering him. He seemed supremely happy, as he bowed to right and left -in acknowledgment of the fealty voiced. Since I am not so -extraordinarily gifted as some claim to be, I could not say that I saw -anything in his face but the expression of a man happy to see that his -people stood behind him. - -Later I saw him in Vienna. He had come to the capital of his ally to -view for the last time the face of his dead comrade-in-arms, the late -Emperor Francis Joseph. He stepped out of the railroad carriage with a -grave face and hastened toward the young Emperor of Austria to express -his condolences. The two men embraced each other. I was struck by the -apparent sincerity of the greeting. What impressed me more, perhaps, was -the alacrity of the older man. For several minutes the two monarchs -paced up and down on the station platform and conversed on some serious -subject. I noticed especially the quick movements of the German -Emperor's head, and the smart manner in which he faced about when the -two had come to the end of the platform. - -The streak of white hair, visible between ear and helmet, accentuated in -his face that expression which is not rare in old army officers, when -the inroads of years have put a damper on youthful martial enthusiasm. -The man was still every inch a soldier, and yet his face reminded me of -that of Sir Henry Irving, despite the fact that there is little -similarity to be seen when pictures of the two men are compared, as I -had shortly afterward opportunity of doing. I should say that in -civilian clothing I would take the Emperor for a retired merchant-marine -captain, in whose house I would expect to find a fairly good library -indiscriminately assembled and balanced by much bric-à-brac collected in -all parts of the world without much plan or design. - -Such a retired sea-dog would be a very human being, I take it. His crews -might have ever stood in fear of him, but his familiars would look upon -him with the respect that is brought any man who knows that friendship's -best promoter is usually a judicious degree of reserve. - -That was the picture I gained of the Emperor as he marched up and down -the station platform in a Vienna suburb. The same afternoon he was taken -over the Ring in an automobile. There was no cheering by the vast throng -which had assembled to see the mighty War Lord from the north. The old -emperor was dead. The houses were draped in black. Many of the civilians -had donned mourning. To the hats that were lifted, Kaiser William bowed -with a face that was serious. He was all monarch--King and Emperor. - -I can understand why a man of the type of Czar Nicholas should lose his -throne in a revolution brought on by the shortage of food and the -exploitation incident to war. How a similar fate could overtake a man of -the type of William II. is not clear to me. For that he is too ready to -act. His adaptiveness is almost proverbial in Germany. I have no doubt -that should the impossible really occur in Germany becoming a republic -William II. would most likely show up as its first president. - -In Germany nothing is really ever popular--the works of poets excluded. -For that reason the Emperor is not popular in the sense in which Edward -VII. could be popular. But Emperor William II. is a fact to the German, -just as life itself is that. For the time being the Emperor is the state -to the vast majority, and, incongruous as it may seem at a time when -conditions in Germany are making for equipollence between the -reactionary and the progressive, there is no doubt that no throne in -Europe is more secure than that of the Hohenzollerns. - -To understand that one must have measured in Germany the patience and -determination of those who bore the burden of the war as imposed by -scant rations on the one hand and ever-increasing expenditures in -warfare on the other. - -Since King Alfonso of Spain is better known than the German -crown-prince, I will refer to him as the ruler whom the latter -resembles most. The two men are of about the same build, with the -difference in favor of the crown-prince, who is possibly a little taller -and slightly better looking in a Teutonic fashion. Both are alike in -their unmilitariness. One looks as little the soldier as the other, -despite the fact that the interested publics have but rarely the -opportunity to see these men in mufti. - -After all, that is scant reason for the comparison I have made. The -better reason is that both are alike in their attitude toward the -public. Alfonso is no more democratic than Frederick, nor would he be -more interested in good government. - -To my friend Karl H. von Wiegand, most prominent of American -correspondents in Berlin, the German crown-prince said on one occasion: - -"I regret that not more people will talk to me in the manner you have -done. I appreciate frankness, but cannot always get it. The people from -whom I expect advice and information make it their business to first -find out what I might expect to hear and then talk accordingly. It is -very disheartening, but what can I do?" - -Those who remember the last act of "_Alt-Heidelberg_" will best -understand what the factors are that lead to this. We may pity the mind -that looks upon another human being as something infinitely superior -because accident suddenly places him in a position of great power. I am -not so sure that he who becomes the object of that sort of reverence is -not to be pitied more. Our commiseration is especially due the prince -whom the frailties of human flesh cause to thus lose all contact with -the real life by accepting _ipso facto_ that he is a superior being -because others are foolish enough to embrace such a doctrine. - -A very interesting story is told in that connection of Emperor Charles -of Austria. As heir-apparent he had always been very democratic. In -those days he was little more to his brother officers than a comrade, -and all of them, acting agreeably to a tradition in the Austro-Hungarian -army, addressed him by the familiar _Du_--thou. - -After he had become Emperor-King, Charles had occasion to visit the east -front, spending some time with the Arz army, at whose headquarters he -had stayed often and long while still crown-prince. - -The young Emperor detected a chilling reserve among the men with whom he -had formerly lived. Some of his comrades addressed him as "Your -Majesty." Charles stood this for a while, and then turned on a young -officer with whom he had been on very friendly terms. - -"I suppose you must say majesty now, but do me the favor of saying '_Du -Majestät_.' I am still in the army; or are you trying to rule me out of -it?" - -This may be considered a fair sample of the cement that has been keeping -the Central states from falling apart under the stress of the war. To us -republicans that may seem absurd. And still, who would deny that the -memory of Washington, Jefferson, and Lincoln is not a thing that binds -together much of what is Americanism? In the republic the great men of -the past are done homage, in the monarchy the important man of the hour -is the thing. Were it otherwise the monarchy would not be possible. It -is this difference which very often makes the republic seem ungrateful -as compared with the monarchy. But in the aggregate in which all men are -supposedly equal nothing else can be looked for. - -We must look to that condition for an answer to the question which the -subject treated here has suggested. And, after all, this is half a dozen -of one and six of the other. In the end we expect any aggregate to -defend its institutions, whether they be republican or monarchical. In -the republic the devotion necessary may have its foundation in the -desire to preserve liberal institutions, while in the monarchy -attunement to the great lodestar, tradition, may be the direct cause of -patriotism. In England, the ideal monarchy, we have a mixture of both -tendencies, and who would say that the mixture, from the British -national point of view, has been a bad one? - - - - -XII - -SHORTAGE SUPREME - - -A hundred and twelve million people in Central Europe were thinking in -terms of shortage as they approached the winter of 1916-17. Government -and press said daily that relief would come. The public was advised to -be patient another day, another week, another month. All would be well -if patience was exercised. That patience was exercised, but in the mind -of the populace the shortage assumed proportions that were at times hard -to understand. - -The ancestors of Emperor Francis Joseph had been buried in a rather -peculiar manner. From the body were taken the brain, heart, and viscera -in order to make embalming possible. The heart was then put away in a -silver vessel, while the other parts were placed in a copper urn. In the -funeral processions these containers were carried in a vehicle following -the imperial hearse. - -The funeral cortège of Francis Joseph was without that vehicle. The old -man had requested that he be buried without the dissection that had been -necessary in other instances. That being the case, the vehicle was not -needed. - -But its absence was misinterpreted by the populace. It gave rise to the -belief that the copper for the urn could not be spared, seeing that the -army needed all of that metal. That little copper would have been -required to fashion the urn does not seem to have occurred to them. It -was enough to know that the church bells had been melted down and that -in the entire country there was not a copper roof left. - -The phantom of shortage waxed when it became known that the lack of the -necessary chemicals had led to the embalming of the Emperor's body with -a fluid which had so discolored the body and face that the coffin had to -be closed during the lying-in-state of the dead ruler. It grew again -when it became known that, owing to a lack of horses, many changes had -to be made in the funeral arrangements, and that most of the pomp of the -Spanish court etiquette of funerals would have to be abandoned. What had -anciently been a most imposing ceremony became in the end a very quiet -affair. With one half of the world at war with the other half, there was -a dearth even in monarchs, nobility, and diplomatists to attend the -funeral. - -Somehow I gained the impression that the word "Want" was written even on -the plain coffin which they lifted upon the catafalque in St. Stefan's -Cathedral in Vienna, twenty feet away from me. To get into the church I -had passed through a throng that showed want and deprivation in clothing -and mien. It was a chilly day. Through the narrow streets leading to -the small square in which the cathedral stands a raw wind was blowing, -and I remember well how the one bright spot in that dreary picture was -the tall spire of the cathedral upon which fell the light of the setting -winter sun. The narrow streets and little square lay in the gloom that -fitted the occasion. The shadow of death seemed to have fallen on -everything--upon all except the large white cross which presently moved -up the central aisle. Under the pall which the cross divided into four -black fields lay the remains of the unhappiest of men. His last days had -been made bitter by his people's cry for bread. - -Since coal was scarce, the church had not been heated. But that night, -as if in honor of the funeral guests, a few more lights burned on the -principal thoroughfares of Vienna. Even that was reckless extravagance -under the circumstances. - -Hundreds of thousands of women and children were sitting in cold rooms -at that time. The coal-lines brought usually disappointment, but no -fuel. Even the hospitals to which many of these unfortunates had to be -taken found it difficult to get what coal they needed. The street-car -service had been curtailed to such an extent that many were unable to -reach their place of work. In Austria that was especially the fault of -the Stürgkh régime, whose mad career in burning the candle at both ends -the dead emperor had failed to check. - -To keep certain neighbors good-natured and get from them such foods as -they could spare, the Central states of Europe had in 1916 exported -roughly three million two hundred thousands tons of coal. Another -million tons had been shipped into the territories occupied by the -Centralist troops. This was no great coal business, of course, -especially when we come to consider that some of this fuel came from -Belgium. But the four million tons could have been used at home without -a lump going begging. When Christmas came coal was as scarce in Germany, -Austria, and Hungary as was food. And that is saying a great deal. - -Much economy had been already practised during the summer. "Summer time" -meant the saving each day of one hour's consumption of fuel in city -traction and lighting street, house, and shop. The saving was not great, -when compared with the fuel a population of roundly one hundred and -twelve millions will consume when given a free hand. But it was -something, anyway. - -That something was an easement of conditions in the coal market during -the summer months. It did not make available for the cold season so much -as a shovelful of coal. Whatever the mines put out was carted off there -and then. When winter came the bunkers were empty. - -The prospect of having to bear with an ever-craving stomach the -discomforts of the cold and poorly lighted rooms was not pleasant. - -The government saw this and tried a little belated regulation. - -I say belated regulation because the measures came too late to have much -value. That there would be a shortage in coal had been foreseen. Nothing -could be done, however, to ward off the _Knappheit_. - -Among my many acquaintances is the owner of several coal-mines in -Austrian Silesia. His handicaps were typical of what every mine-operator -had to contend with. - -"The coal is there, of course," he would say. "But how am I to get it -out? My best miners are at the front. Coal-mining may be done only by -men who are physically the fittest. That is the very class of man the -government needs at the front. I am trying to come somewhere near my -normal output with men that are long past the age when they can produce -what is expected of the average miner. - -"It can't be done, of course. - -"Women are no good underground. So I have tried Russian -prisoners-of-war. I went to a prison camp and picked out seventy-five of -the most likely chaps. I made willingness to work in a mine one of the -conditions of their furlough. They all were willing--so long as they did -not know what the work was. Right there the willingness of half the crew -ended. I sent them back and tried my luck with the rest. - -"To get some work out of the men, I made arrangements with the -government that I was to pay them four-fifths of the regular scale. It -isn't a question of money. It's a question of getting at the coal. To -make a long story short: Out of the seventy-five Russians seventeen -have qualified. I can't afford to repeat the experiment, for the reason -that apprentices litter up the works and interfere with the few miners I -have left." - -The man was short then nearly two hundred workers at the mine shafts. He -had underground most of his surface hands. With overtime and some other -makeshifts he was able to produce about four-fifths of his normal -output. The demand for fuel was such that he would have been able to -sell twice as much coal as formerly. - -Natural resources mean nothing to a state so long as they cannot be made -available. This was the case with Central Europe. - -More economy, more restrictions. Industries not contributing directly to -the military strength of the Central Powers were ordered to discontinue -all night work and overtime. Shops, cafés, hotels, restaurants, and -other public places had to limit the consumption of fuel for heating and -lighting purposes to one-third their usual quota. The lighting of -shop-windows was cut down to almost nothing. Stores had to close at -seven o'clock, eating- and drinking-places first at twelve and later at -eleven. No light was to be used in the hotels after twelve. All -unnecessary heating was prohibited, and the warm-water period in hotels -shrank from four to two hours per day. On each stretch of corridor and -at each stair-landing or elevator door one small light was allowed. - -In Vienna all places of amusement "not contributing to the cultivation -of art for art's sake" were closed. This hit the cheaper theaters and -every moving-picture house. - -A city of such restrictions would need no street lights at any time. But -up to eleven o'clock two lights for each block were allowed. After that -Stygian black reigned. Street traction ceased on some lines at eight -o'clock; on all lines at nine, though arrangements were made for a few -cars to run when the playing theaters closed. - -But the regulations came near spilling the baby with the bath. They were -well meant, but poorly considered. Economic waste came from them. - -The several governments did their very best to get coal to the -consumers. In Vienna, for instance, Emperor Charles took a personal -interest in the matter. He issued an order that as many miners as -possible be returned immediately from the front. For the workers at the -mines, who had been living none too well so far as food went, he -prescribed the subsistence given the men in the trenches and placed -military commissaries in charge of the kitchens. Men from the military -railroad organizations were given the running of coal-trains. For -certain hours each day the passenger service of the city street traction -systems was suspended in favor of the coal traffic, which often gave -rise to the unusual sight of seeing an electric street-car drag behind -it, over the pavement, from three to five ordinary coal-wagons, which -later were towed to their destination by army tractors. - -It was a herculean labor that would have to be done in a few days, if a -part of the population were not to perish in the cold spell that had -come over Central Europe. The work of a whole summer was now to be done -in a few days. - -From the front came whole columns of army motor trucks. These took a -hand at coal distribution. And finally Emperor Charles gave over to the -work every horse in the imperial stables. - -I will never forget the sight of the imperial coachmen in their -yellow-and-black uniforms hauling coal all over Vienna. Their cockaded -top-hats looked out of place on the coal-wagons, though no more so than -the fine black and silver-adorned harness of the full-blooded horses -that drew the wagons. - -The press was freer now. Political censorship had been reduced to a -minimum. Criticism changed with valuable tips, and one of them was that -the government had done a very foolish thing in closing the -_Kinos_--movies. It was pointed out that their closing resulted in so -small a saving of fuel for heating and lighting that, compared with the -wasteful result of the regulation, it stood as one to hundreds. - -Such was the case. The men, women, and families who had formerly spent -their evenings in the movies were now obliged to frequent the more -expensive cafés or sit home and use light and fuel. Some man with a -statistical mind figured out that the closing of a movie seating five -hundred people and giving two performances in the evening, meant an -increase in fuel consumption for heating and lighting purposes sixty -times greater than what the movie used. - -That was simple enough, and a few days later the movies and cheap -theaters resumed business. More than that followed. The government -decided that this was a fine method of co-operation. It gave the cafés -permission to use more fuel and light in return for a more liberal -treatment of patrons not able to spend much money. In harmony with this -policy the passenger service of the car lines was extended first to nine -and later to ten o'clock, so that people were not obliged to spend every -evening in the same café or other public place. - -The case was a fine example of co-operation between government and -public, with the press as the medium of thought exchange. A twelve-month -before, the reaching of such an understanding would have been next to -impossible. The editor who then mastered the courage of criticizing a -government measure had the suspension of his paper before his eyes. He -no longer had to fear this. The result was a clearing of the political -atmosphere. Government and people were in touch with one another for the -first time in two years. - -For over a year all effort of the upper classes had lain fallow. The -women who had done their utmost at the beginning of the war had not met -enough encouragement to keep their labor up. It had been found, -moreover, that charity concerts and teas "an' sich" were of little -value in times when everything had to be done on the largest of scales. -What good could come from collecting a few thousand marks or crowns, -when not money, but food, was the thing? - -The fuel conjunction offered new opportunities. Free musical recitals, -concerts, theatrical performances, and lectures were arranged for in -order that thousands might be attracted away from their homes and thus -be prevented from using coal and light. - -One of the leaders in this movement in Vienna was Princess Alexandrine -Windisch-Graetz. - -The lady is either the owner or the lessee of the Urania Theater. In the -past she had financed at her house free performances and lectures for -the people in order that they might not be without recreation. A washed -face and clean collar were the admission fee. Under her auspices many -such institutions sprang up within a few weeks. - -"We are saving coal and educating the masses at the same time," she -would say to me. "There are times when making a virtue of necessity has -its rewards." - -And rewards the scheme did have. Lectures on any conceivable subject -could be heard, and I was glad to notice that not a single one dealt -with the war. The public was tired of this subject and the promoters of -the lectures were no less so. - -Those whom lectures did not attract could go to the free concerts, and, -when the cheaper music palled, payment of twelve cents American brought -within reach the best Vienna has to offer in symphony and chamber music. - -At the same time "warming"-rooms were established in many cities. These -were for unattached women and the wives of men at the front. Care was -taken to have these places as cozy as circumstances permitted. -Entertainment was provided. Much of it took the form of timely lectures -on food conservation, care of the children, and related topics. Many of -the women heard for the first time in their lives that there were more -than two ways of cooking potatoes, and other manners of putting baby to -sleep than addling its brain by rocking it in a cradle or perambulator. - -I must say that this solution of the coal problem was an unqualified -success. - -The well-to-do also felt the pinch. Money no longer bought much of -anything. The word "wealth" had lost most of its meaning. In the open -food market it might buy an overlooked can of genuine Russian caviar or -some real _pâté de foie gras_, and if one could trust one's servants and -was willing to descend to illicit trading with some hoarding dealer, -some extra food could be had that way. In most other aspects of -subsistence rich and poor, aristocrat and commoner, fared very much -alike. But I cannot say that this "democracy of want" was relished by -the upper classes. - -By this time every automobile had been requisitioned by the government. -That was painful, but bearable so long as taxis could be had. Of a -sudden it was found that most of the taxicabs were being hired by the -day and week, often months, by those who could afford it. That was -contrary to the purpose for which the government had left the machines -in town. They were intended mainly to take officers and the public from -the railroad stations to the hotels, and _vice versa_. As an aid to -shopping they had not been considered, nor had it been borne in mind -that some war purveyor's family would wish to take the air in the park -by being wheeled through it. Regulation descended swiftly. - -Hereafter taxicab-drivers could wait for a passenger five minutes if the -trip from starting-point to destination had to be interrupted. If the -passenger thought it would take him longer he was obliged to pay his -fare and dismiss the taxi. Policemen had orders to arrest any -taxi-driver who violated this rule; and since the two do not seem to get -along well together anywhere, there was much paying of fines. - -Regulation being still somewhat piecemeal, the hacks had been -overlooked. Those who had to have wheel transportation at their beck and -call hired these now by the day and week. Another order came. The -hack-driver could wait in front of a store or any place ten minutes and -then he had to take another "fare." - -The upper classes had retained their fine equipages, of course. The -trouble was that the government had taken away every horse and had even -deprived the wheels of their rubber tires. With taxis and hacks not to -be had, especially when the government ruled later that they could be -used between railroad stations only, and not to points, even in that -case, that could be reached with the street-cars, social life of the -higher order took a fearful slump. Though a season of very quiet -dressing was at hand, one could not go calling in the evening in the -habiliment impervious to rain. Simple luncheons and teas were the best -that society could manage under the circumstances. - -The theater remained a little more accessible. Street-cars were provided -to take the spectators home. With the show over, everybody made a wild -scramble for the cars. Central Europe was having democracy forced down -its throat. The holder of a box at the Royal Opera had indeed abandoned -the evening dress and _chapeau claque_. His lady had followed his -example in a half-hearted manner. But all this did not make the ride -home easier. The gallery angel in Central Europe is well-behaved and not -inclined to be conspicuous or forward. But he takes up room, and one was -elbowed by him. When soap was scarce he also was not always washed all -over, and that made a difference. - -But the theaters did a fine business, for all that. The better -institutions were sold out three weeks ahead, and the cheaper shows were -crowded by the overflow. - -Admission to the theater was the one thing that had not gone up in price -very much. The artists had agreed to work for a little less, and those -to whom royalties were due had acted in a like public spirit. Managers -were content with being allowed to run on about a 5-per-cent.-profit -basis. I suppose they thought that half a loaf was better than none. -There would have been none had they gone up in their prices. - -The performances were up to standard. A great deal of Shakespeare was -being given. Two of the Vienna theaters played Shakespeare twice a week, -and at Berlin as many as three houses had a Shakespearian program. Oscar -Wilde and George Bernard Shaw plays were occasionally given and also -some by the older French playwrights. Modern French authors seemed to be -taboo. No changes were made in the play-lists of the operas, nor was -prejudice manifested on the concert programs. All performances were in -German, however--Hungarian in Budapest. In other parts of the Dual -Monarchy they were given in the language of the district; Italian, for -instance, in Trieste, where I heard a late Italian _opéra comique_ just -imported _via_ Switzerland. - -The stage was not fallow by any means during the war. In Berlin, Vienna, -and Budapest it was a poor week that did not have its two or three -_premières_. It is rather odd that nobody wrote plays about the war. Of -some twoscore new plays I saw in three years not a single one occupied -itself with a theme related to the struggle that was going on. It -seemed, too, that the playwrights had turned their attention to -psychological study. One of these efforts was a phenomenal success. I -refer to Franz Molnar's "_Fasching_." - -About twenty new "Viennese" operas made their _début_ during the war. -Just two of them touched upon the thing that was uppermost in the mind -of man. The others dealt with the good old days of long ago; the happy -days of our great-grandfathers, when soldiers still wore green uniforms -with broad lapels of scarlet and lapped-over swallowtails that showed -the same color; when soldiers carried a most murderous-looking sidearm -on "clayed" leather sashes hung rakishly over the shoulder. How happy -those fellows looked as they blew imaginary foam from their empty steins -in front of the inn! - -Ten operas were turned out in the three years. I give credit for much -vitality to only one of them. It is known as "_Der Heiland_"--"The -Saviour." It was voted the one addition to lasting music. - -With concert-composers also busy, there was no dearth of musical -enjoyment. The art world did yeoman service to keep the population from -going insane. As to that there can be no doubt. It was fortunate that -the Central European public can find so much mental nourishment in the -theater and concert-hall. Otherwise there would have been a lack of room -in the asylums for the insane. - -Society, however, did not go to sleep entirely. The luncheons were -simple repasts, but lasted all the longer. Usually one left in time to -reach tea somewhere else. For dinner only the closest friends of the -family were invited, and when others had to be entertained in that -manner there was the hotel. Balls and similar frivolities were under -the ban, of course. - -After listening all day long to what the people in the cafés and -restaurants had to say of the war, it was really refreshing to hear what -the aristocrats thought. Most of them were severely objective in their -opinions, some verged on neutrality, and a small number took the tragedy -of the war to heart. - -Among the latter was a princess related to Emperor Francis Joseph by -marriage. She was a motherly old woman. The very thought of warfare was -unwelcome to her. She had one expression for what she thought of the -calamity: - -"Civilization has declared itself bankrupt in this war." - -What she meant was that a civilization that could lead to such a -catastrophe had shown itself futile. She was plain-spoken for one of her -station, and the American ambassador at Vienna was her _bête noire_. -This will suffice to identify the lady to all whom her identity could -interest. - -Much of the food shortage was laid at the door of the United States -government. Why didn't the American government see to it that the -Central states civilian populations received that to which international -law and the recent The Hague and London conventions entitled them? - -I was asked that question a thousand times every week. With the male -questioners I could argue the point, but with the ladies ... it was -another matter. As many as ten at a time have nailed me down to that -question. At first that used to ruin many a day for me, but finally one -gets used to anything. - -The question was not so easily answered in Central Europe. The best -reply was that I was not running anything aside from myself, in which I -followed the ways of the diplomatist who is never responsible for the -acts of his government so long as he wishes to remain _persona grata_. - -On the whole, Central European society was leading a rather colorless -life when the war was three years old. Even their charity work had no -longer much of a sphere. It was still possible to collect money by means -of concerts, teas, and receptions--bazaars had to be abandoned because -everybody had tired of them--but there was so little that money could -buy. Government control had gradually spread over everything, and, with -everybody working hard, nobody needed much assistance, as everybody -thought. That was not the case by any means, but such was largely the -popular impression. - -The truth was that everybody was tired of working at the same old -charities. The shortage of fuel gave a new opportunity, but did not -occupy many. It was one thing to pin a paper rosette to a lapel in -return for an offering willingly made, and quite another to preside over -a co-operative dining-room or a place where the women and children could -warm themselves and pass the time with pleasure and profit to -themselves. Not many were equal to that. Few had the necessary -experience. - -The worst of it was that travel to the international summer and winter -resorts was out of the question. And to move about in one's own country -meant passes, visées, authorizations, health certificates, documents -attesting good conduct and a clean slate with the police; and if by -chance the trip should take one into an inner or outer war zone, the -home authorities had to go on record as having established that he or -she was not plagued by insects. It is remarkable what the Central -governments would do in the interest of law and order, public security, -and sanitation. But it was more remarkable that the highest nobility had -to conform to the same rules. The only persons who had the right to -sidestep any of these multifarious regulations were officers and -soldiers whose military credentials answered every purpose. Since I -traveled only on _Offene Order_--open order--the marching order of the -officer, I was one of the few civilians exempt from this annoyance. - -That and the state of the railroads kept the upper classes at home. Many -of them were thus afforded their first good chance to know where they -lived. - -Shortage had even come to rule the day for the aristocrats. It was a -bitter pill for them, but I will say that they swallowed it without -batting an eye. - - - - -XIII - -"GIVE US BREAD!" - - -The food situation in Central Europe became really desperate in the -third year of the war. The year's wheat crop had been short in quantity -and quality. Its nutritive value was about 55 per cent. of normal. The -rye crop was better, but not large enough to meet the shortage in -breadstuffs caused by the poor wheat yield. Barley was fair under the -circumstances. Oats were a success in many parts of Germany, but fell -very low in Austria and Hungary. The potato crop was a failure. The -supply of peas and beans had been augmented by garden culture, but most -people held what they had raised and but little of the crop reached the -large population centers. To make things worse, the Hungarian Indian -corn crop was very indifferent. Great losses were sustained when the -Roumanian army in September and October overran much of Transylvania, -drove off some twenty thousand head of cattle, and slaughtered about -fifty thousand pigs. Large quantities of cereals were also ruined by -them, as I was able to ascertain on my trips to the Roumanian front. - -Up to this time the war-bread of the Central states had been rather -palatable, though a steady loss in quality had been noticeable. Soon it -came to pass that the ration of bread had to be reduced to about -one-quarter of a pound per day. And the dough it was made of was no -longer good. - -The 55-25-20 war-bread was good to eat and very nutritious. The stuff -now passing for bread was anything but that, so far as Austria was -concerned. Its quality fluctuated from one week to another. I was unable -to keep track of it. Indian corn was already used in the loaf, and -before long ground clover hay was to form one of its constituents. Worst -of all, the bread was not always to be had. At the beginning of November -the three slices of bread into which the ration was divided, as a rule, -fell to two, so that the daily allowance of bread was not quite four -ounces. On one occasion Vienna had hardly any bread for four days. - -In Hungary conditions were a little better, for the reason that the -Hungarian government had closed the border against wheat and cereal -exports. But the large population centers were also poorly provided with -flour. - -Germany, on the other hand, was better off than either Austria or -Hungary. The rye crop had been fairly good, and food regulation was -further advanced there. It was, in fact, close to the point of being -perfect. But the quantity allotted the individual was inadequate, of -course. - -Throughout Central Europe the cry was heard: - -"Give us bread!" - -So far the several populations had borne all hardships in patience and -stoical indifference. The limit of endurance was reached, however. -Colder weather called for a greater number of calories to heat the body. -The vegetable season was over. The hoardings of the poorer classes had -been eaten up. The cattle were no longer on pasture, and, fed with hay -only, gave now less milk than ever. - -It was a mournful season. - -All food was now regulated. While there had been no meat cards in -Austria and Hungary as yet, there were two, and at times three, meatless -days; though when on three days no beef, veal, or pork could be eaten, -it was permitted to consume mutton and fowl on one of them. - -But the consumption of meat regulated itself, as it were. Meat has -always been proportionately expensive in Central Europe, and but a small -percentage of people ever ate it more than once a day. The majority, in -fact, ate meat only three times a week, as was especially the case in -the rural districts, where fresh meat was eaten only on Sundays. There -was no inherent craving for this food, on this account, and beef at -seventy cents American a pound was something that few could afford. - -Animal fat had in the past taken the place of meat. In the summer not -much was needed of this, for the reason that the warm weather called for -less body heat, to supply which is the special mission of fats. But with -clothing worn thin, shoes leaking, and rooms poorly heated, the demand -for heat-producing food grew apace. - -This was reflected by the longer potato-lines. - -On one occasion I occupied myself with a potato-line in the Second -Municipal District of Vienna. It was ten o'clock in the morning. -Distribution was going on. Those then served had been standing in that -line since six o'clock. The first who had received their quota of the -eight pounds of potatoes, which was to last for three days, had appeared -in front of the shop at three o'clock in the morning. It had rained most -of that time and a cold wind was blowing. - -I engaged one of the women in conversation. - -She had arrived at the store at about seven o'clock. There were three -children she had to take care of. She had given them a breakfast of -coffee and bread for the oldest, and milk for the two others. - -"I have nobody with whom I could leave the children," she said. "My -neighbors also have to stand in the food-line. So I keep them from the -stove by placing the table on its side in front of it. Against one end -of the table I move the couch. The children can't move that, and against -the other end I push my dresser." - -It appears that the woman had come home once from the food-line and had -found her rooms on the verge of going up in a blaze. One of the children -had opened the door of the stove and the live coals had fallen out. They -had set fire to some kindlings and a chair. The children thought that -great fun. - -I complimented the woman on her resourcefulness. - -Her husband, a Bohemian, was then at the front in Galicia. For the -support of the family the woman received from the government monthly for -herself 60 crowns ($12) and for each child 30 crowns, making a total of -150, of which amount she paid 48 crowns for rent every month. I could -not see how, with prevailing prices, she managed to keep herself alive. -Coal just then was from 3 to 5 crowns per hundredweight ($12 to $20 per -ton), and with only one stove going the woman needed at least five -hundred pounds of coal a month. After that, food and a little clothing -had to be provided. How did she manage it? - -"During the summer I worked in an ammunition factory near here," she -said. "I earned about twenty-six crowns a week, and some of the money I -was able to save. I am using that now. I really don't know what I am -going to do when it is gone. There is work enough to be had. But what is -to become of the children? To get food for them I must stand in line -here and waste half of my time every day." - -The line moved very slowly, I noticed. I concluded that the woman would -get her potatoes in about an hour, if by that time there were any left. - -Since I used to meet the same people in the same lines, I was able to -keep myself informed on what food conditions were from one week to -another. They were gradually growing worse. Now and then no bread could -be had, and the potatoes were often bad or frozen. - -The cry for food became louder, although it was not heard in the hotels -and restaurants where I ate. My waiters undertook to supply me with all -the bread I wanted, card or no card--but who would eat the concoction -they were serving? I was able to buy all the meat I needed and generally -ate no other flour products than those in the pastry and puddings. - -It was a peculiar experience, then, to eat in a well-appointed -dining-room of supplies that were rather plentiful because the poor, who -really needed those things, could not afford to buy them. The patrons of -the place would come in, produce such cards as they had to have, and -then order as before, with all the cares left to the management--which -cares were comparatively slight, seeing that the establishment dealt -with wholesalers and usually did much of its buying clandestinely. - -Somewhere the less fortunate were eating what the luck of the food-line -had brought that day, which might be nothing for those who had come late -and had no neighbors who would lend a little bread and a few potatoes. -Suicides and crime, due to lack of food, increased alarmingly. - -There was a shocking gauntness about the food-lines. Every face showed -want. The eyes under the threadbare shawls cried for bread. But how -could that bread be had? It simply was not there. And such things as a -few ounces of fats and a few eggs every week meant very little in the -end. - -Perhaps it was just as well that those in the food-lines did not know -that a large number of co-citizens were yet living in plenty. There were -some who feared that such knowledge might lead to riots of a serious -nature. But I had come to understand the food-lines and their psychology -better. With the men home, trouble might have come--could not have been -averted, in fact. But the women besieging the food-shops were timid and -far from hysterical. Most of them were more concerned with the welfare -of their children than with their own troubles, as I had many an -occasion to learn. Not a few of them sold their bodies to get money -enough to feed their offspring. Others pawned or sold the last thing of -value they had. The necessity of obtaining food at any price was such -that many a "business" hoard entered the channels of illicit trade and -exacted from the unfortunate poor the very last thing they had to give. -The price of a pound of flour or some fat would in some cases be 800 per -cent. of what these things normally cost. - -The several governments were not ignorant of these things. But for a -while they were powerless, though now they had abandoned largely their -policy of "mobilizing" the pennies of the poor. To apply the law to -every violator of the food regulations was quite impossible. There were -not jails enough to hold a tenth of them, and a law that cannot be -equitably enforced should not be enforced at all. The very fact that its -enforcement is impossible shows that it is contrary to the interest of -the social aggregate. - -In Germany a fine disregard for social station and wealth had marked -almost every food-regulation decree of the government from the very -first. The several state governments were concerned with keeping their -civil population in as good a physical condition as the food situation -permitted. The financial needs of the government had to be considered, -but it was forever the object to make the ration of the poor as good as -possible, and to do that meant that he or she who had in the past lived -on the fat of the land would now have to be content with less. As the -war dragged on, pauper and millionaire received the same quantity of -food. If the latter was minded to eat that from expensive porcelain he -could do so, nor did anybody mind if he drank champagne with it, for in -doing so he did not diminish unnecessarily the natural resources of the -nation. - -Food regulation in Austria had been less efficacious. In Hungary it was -little short of being a farce. In both countries special privilege is -still enthroned so high that even the exigencies of the war did not -assail it until much damage had been done. - -It was not until toward the end of December that the two governments -proceeded vigorously to attack the terrible mixture of food shortage and -chaotic regulation that confronted them. - -The new ruler of the Dual Monarchy, Emperor-King Charles, was -responsible for the change. - -While Emperor Francis Joseph lived, the heir-apparent had not occupied -much of a place in government. The camarilla surrounding the old man -saw to that. But by depriving the young archduke of his rightful place, -which the incapacity of the Emperor should have assigned him, the court -clique gave him the very opportunities he needed to understand the food -situation he was to cope with presently--had to cope with if he wanted -to see the government continued. - -The removal of Premier Stürgkh by the hand of the assassin had been -timely; the death of Francis Joseph was timelier yet. The old monarch -had ceased to live in the times that were. He came from an age which is -as much related to our era as is the rule of the original patriarch, one -Abraham of Chaldea. Food conditions might be brought to his attention, -but the effort served no purpose. The old man was incapable of -understanding why the interests of the privileged classes should be -sacrificed for the sake of the many. - -At the several fronts, at points of troop concentration, and in the very -food-lines, the young Emperor had heard and seen what the ailments and -shortcomings of public subsistence were. One of the first things he did -when he came into power was to take a keen and active interest in food -questions. For one thing, he decided to regulate consumption downward. -It was a great shock to the privileged class when it heard that the -Emperor would cut down the supply of those on top in order that more be -left for those beneath. - -To do that was not easy, however. The young man thought of the force of -example. He prohibited the eating at court of any meals not in accord -with the food regulations. Wheat bread and rolls were banished. Every -servant not actually needed was dismissed so that he might do some -useful work. Several of the imperial and royal establishments were -closed altogether. The _ménage_ at Castle Schönbrunn was disbanded. The -personnel of the Hofburg in Vienna was reduced to actual needs. It was -ordered that only one suite in the palace be lighted and heated--a very -simple apartment which the Emperor and his family occupied. - -Some very amusing stories are told in connection with the policy the -Emperor had decided to apply. I will give here a few of them--those I -have been able to verify or which for some other reason I may not doubt. - -They had been leading a rather easy life at the Austro-Hungarian general -headquarters. The chief of staff, Field-Marshal Conrad von Hötzendorff, -was rather indulgent with his subordinates, and had never discouraged -certain extravagances the officers of the establishment were fond of. -One of them was to have wheat dinner-rolls. - -A few days after the new Emperor's ascension of the Austrian throne he -happened to be at Baden, near Vienna, which was then the seat of the -general headquarters. After a conference he intimated that he would stay -for dinner at the general mess of the staff. That was a great honor, of -course, though formerly the influence of the archducal party had made -the heir-apparent more tolerated than respected in that very group. - -After a round of introductions Emperor Charles sat down at the head of -the table. On each napkin lay a roll and in a basket there were more. -The Emperor laid his roll to one side and ate the soup without any -bread. When the next dish was being served, and those at table had made -good inroads upon their rolls, the Emperor called the orderly. - -"You may bring me a slice of war-bread, and mind you I do not want a -whole loaf, but just the third of a daily ration, such as the law -entitles me to. No more, no less!" - -Some of the officers almost choked on the morsel of wheat roll they were -about to swallow. The Emperor said no more, however, and his -conversation continued with all the _bonhomie_ for which he is known. -But henceforth no more wheat bread in any form was to be seen in any -officers' mess. A few days later came an order from the civil -authorities that all patrons of hotels and restaurants were to bring -their bread, issued to them in the morning, to their meals if they were -not to go without it. The eating-house manager who gave bread to patrons -would be fined heavily once or twice and after that would lose his -license to do business. - -A few days after that I saw a rather interesting thing in the cloak-room -of the Court Opera. A well-dressed couple came in. The lady was attired -in quite the latest thing made by some able _couturier_, and the man -was in evening dress, a rare sight nowadays. As he pushed his fur coat -across the counter a small white parcel fell to the floor. The paper -wrapping parted and two slices of very black war-bread rolled among the -feet of the throng. - -"There goes our supper bread!" cried the woman. - -"So it seems," remarked the man. "But what is the use of picking it up -now? It's been rolling about on the floor." - -"But somebody can still eat it," said the woman. - -Just then two men handed back the bread. Its owner wrapped it up again -and put the parcel into a pocket. I suppose the servants of the -household ate next day more bread than usual. - -Shortly after that I had tea at the residence of Mrs. Penfield, wife of -the American ambassador at Vienna. Among other guests was a princess of -the house of Parma. There are several such princesses and I have -forgotten which one it was, nor could I say whether she was a sister or -a cousin of Empress Zita. - -At any rate, the young woman had a son of an age when good milk is the -best food. She said that the recent regulations of the government were -such that not even she could transgress upon them, though that does not -seem to have been her intention. - -How to get enough milk for her boy was a great problem, or had been. The -problem had on that very day been solved by her, however. - -"I bought a good cow two weeks ago," said the princess. - -"That was certainly the best way of getting good milk," commented the -American ambassadrice. - -"Yes, it was," remarked the Princess Parma. "But it did not end my -troubles. I had the milk shipped here, and found that the food -authorities would not allow it to be delivered to me, except that -portion which the law prescribes for children and adults. That much I -got. The remainder was turned over to the Food Central, and I got a -letter saying that I would be paid for the milk at the end of the -month." - -"But the allowance is too small, your Highness," suggested somebody, -sympathetically. - -"That is the trouble, of course," returned the princess. "It is too -small for a growing child. But what could I do? The authorities say that -the law is the law. I spoke to the Emperor about it. He says that he is -not the government and has nothing to do with it. Nor can he intercede -for me, he says, because he does not want to set a bad example." - -"Then the buying of the cow did not solve the problem," I ventured to -remark. "The solution is only a partial one, your Highness!" - -The princess smiled in the manner of those who are satisfied with -something they have done. - -"The problem is solved, monsieur!" she said. "This morning I shipped my -boy to where the cow is." - -There was no longer any doubt that food regulation was on in real -earnest. When a woman allied to the imperial house was unable to get for -her child more milk than some other mother could get, things were indeed -on the plane of equity. That every person should thereafter get his or -her share of the available store of bread is almost an unnecessary -statement. - -The Austrian civil authorities had not made a good job of food -administration. They were too fond of the normal socio-economic -institutions to do what under the circumstances had to be done, and were -forever afraid that they would adopt some measure that might bring down -the entire economic structure. And that fear was not unwarranted, by any -means. The drain of the war had sapped the vitality of the state. Though -Austria was for the time being a dead tree, the civil administrators -thought that a dead tree was still better upright than prostrate. - -Emperor Charles had surrounded himself with young men, who were -enterprising, rather than attached to the interests of the privileged. -Among them was a man known as the "Red Prince." It was not the color of -hair that gave this name to Prince Alois Lichtenstein. Odd as it may -sound, this scion of one of the most prominent families in Europe is an -ardent socialist in theory and to some extent in practice, though not -anxious to be known as one. He holds that the chief promoters of -socialism the world over are professional politicians who have seized -upon a very valuable socio-economic idea for the purpose of personal -promotion, and that under these circumstances he cannot support them. - -His influence with the new Emperor was great, and led to a rather -"unsocialist" result--the appointment of a military food-dictator, -General Höfer, a member of the Austro-Hungarian general staff. - -It was argued that equity in food distribution could be effected only by -placing it in charge of a man who would treat all classes of the -population as the drill-sergeant does his men. The military -food-dictator had no favors to grant and none to expect. General Höfer -acted on this principle, and despite the fact that he was handicapped by -a top-heavy regulation machine and a shortage in all food essentials, he -was shortly able to do for Austria what Dr. Karl Helfferich had done for -Germany. - -In speaking here particularly of Austrian regulations when the crisis -came I have a special objective. I am able to give in this manner a -better picture of what was done throughout Central Europe. The necessity -for a certain step in food regulation and the _modus operandi_ move in a -narrower sphere. In Germany the situation had been met more or less as -its phases developed; in Austria and Hungary this had not been done. -There had been much neglect, with the result that all problems were -permitted to reach that concrete form which extremity was bound to give -them. So many threads had been pulled from the socio-economic fabric -that holes could be seen, while the Germans had always managed in time -to prevent more than the thinness of the thing showing. - -The profit system of distribution manages to overlook the actual -time-and-place values of commodities. Under it things are not sold where -and when they are most needed, but where and when they will give the -largest profit. That the two conditions referred to are closely related -must be admitted, since supply and demand are involved. But the -profit-maker is ever more interested in promoting demand than he is in -easing supply. He must see to it that the consumer is as eager to buy as -the farmer is anxious to sell, if business is to be good. This state of -affairs has its shortcomings even in time of peace. What it was to be in -war I have sufficiently shown already. - -The regulations to which the food crisis of the fall of 1916 gave -justification laid the ax to the middleman system of distribution. The -several governments empowered their Food Commissions and Centrals to -establish shortcuts from farm to kitchen that were entirely in the hands -of the authorities. Though the Purchasing Central was even then not -unknown, it came now to supplant the middleman entirely. - -The grain was bought from the farmer and turned over to the mills, where -it was converted into flour at a fixed price. The miller was no longer -able to buy grain for the purpose of holding the flour afterward until -some commission-man or wholesaler made him a good offer. He was given -the grain and had to account for every pound of it to the Food -Commissioners. - -Nor was the flour turned loose after that. The Food Centrals held it and -gave it directly to the bakers, who meanwhile had been licensed to act -as distributors of bread. From so many bags of flour they had to produce -so many loaves of bread, and since control by means of the bread-card -coupon would have been as impossible as it was before, the Food -Commissions assigned to each bakeshop so many consumers. The bread cards -were issued in colored and numbered series. The color indicated the week -in which they were valid, while the number indicated the bakeshop at -which the consumer had to get his bread--had to get it in the sense that -the baker was responsible for the amount the card called for. The Food -Central had given the baker the necessary flour, and he had no excuse -before the law when a consumer had cause for complaint. If there were -one thousand consumers assigned to a bakeshop the authorities saw to it -that the baker got one thousand pounds of flour, and from this one -thousand loaves of bread had to be made and distributed. - -The system worked like the proverbial charm. It was known as -_Rayonierung_--zonification. Within a few days everybody managed to get -the ration of bread allowed by the government. The bread-lines -disappeared of a sudden. It made no difference now whether a woman -called for her bread at eight in the morning or at four in the -afternoon. Her bread card called for a certain quantity of bread and -the baker was responsible for that amount. It was his duty to see that -the consumer did not go hungry. - -Much of the socio-economic machine was running again--not on its old -track, but on a new one which the government had laid for it. And the -thing was so simple that everybody wondered why it had not been done -before. - -But the greed of the profiteer was not yet entirely foiled. Bakers -started to stretch the flour into more loaves than the law allowed, and -some of them even went so far as to still turn consumers away. These -were to feel the iron hand of the government, however. - -I remember the case of a baker who had been in business for thirty -years. His conduct under the new regulations had led to the charge that -he was diverting flour, turned over to him by the Food Centrals, into -illicit trading channels. The man was found guilty. Despite the fact -that he had always been a very good citizen and had been reasonable in -prices even when he had the chance to mulct an unprotected public, he -lost his license. The judge who tried the case admitted that there were -many extenuating circumstances. - -"But the time has come when the law must be applied in all its -severity," he said. "That you have led an honorable life in the past -will not influence me in the least. You have obviously failed to grasp -that these are times in which the individual must not do anything that -will cause suffering. There is enough of that as it is. I sentence you -to a fine of five thousand crowns and the loss of your license to -operate a bakery. Were it not for your gray hairs I would add -confinement in prison with hard labor for one year. I wish the press to -announce that the next offender, regardless of age and reputation, will -get this limit." - -The baker paid enough for the ten loaves he had embezzled. His fate had -a most salutary effect upon others. - -What bread is for the adult milk is for the baby. It, too, was zonified. -The milk-line disappeared. A card similar to that governing the -distribution of bread was adopted, and dealers were responsible for the -quantities assigned them. The time which mothers had formerly wasted -standing in line could now be given to the care of the household, and -baby was benefited not a little by that. - -Simple and effective as these measures were, they could not be extended -to every branch of distribution. In the consumption of bread, milk, and -fats known quantities could be dealt with. What the supply on hand was -could be more or less accurately established, and the ration issued was -the very minimum in all cases. Waste from needless consumption was out -of the question. - -It was different in other lines. The governments wanted to save as much -food as was possible, and this could best be done by means of the -food-line. The line had boosted prices into the unreasonable for the -profiteer, but was now used by the several governments to limit -consumption to the strictly necessary. To issue potatoes and other foods -in given quantities was well enough, but not all that could be done. In -some cases half a pound of potatoes per capita each day was too little; -in others it was too much, though taken by and large it was a safe -average ration. The same was true of cooking-flour and other foods. -Those able to buy meat and fish stood in no need of what the government -had to allow those who could not include these things in their bill of -fare. On the other hand, it was impossible to divide consumers into -classes and allow one class a quarter of a pound and another half a -pound of potatoes each day. That would have led to confusion and waste. - -A scheme of equalization that would leave unneeded food in the control -of the government became necessary. The food-line provided that in a -thorough manner. The woman not needing food supplies on a certain day -was not likely to stand in a food-line, especially when the weather was -bad. She would do with what she had, so long as she knew that when her -supply was exhausted she could get more. The cards she had would not be -good next week, so that she was unable to demand what otherwise would -have been an arrear. The green card was good for nothing during a week -of red cards. Nor was there anything to be gained by keeping the green -card in the hope that some time green cards would again be issued and -honored. By the time all the color shades were exhausted the government -changed the shape of the card and later printed on its head the number -of the week. - -Hoarding was out of the question now. In fact, the remaining private -hoard began to return to the channels of the legitimate scheme of -distribution. Those who had stores of food drew upon them, now that the -future seemed reasonably assured, leaving to others what they would have -called for had the food-line been abolished altogether and supplies -guaranteed, as in the case of bread, milk, and fats. - -It must not be accepted, however, that the war-tax and war-loan policy -was abandoned in favor of this new scheme. The state was still exacting -its pound of flesh and the officials were too bureaucratic to always do -the best that could be done. To illustrate the point with a story, I -will give here another instance of how Emperor Charles interfered now -and then. - -He is an early riser and fond of civilian clothing--two things which -made much of his work possible. - -He was looking over the food-lines in the Nineteenth Municipal District -of Vienna one fine morning in December of 1916. Finally he came to a -shop where petroleum was being issued. The line was long and moved -slowly. Charles and the "Red Prince" wondered what the trouble could be. -They soon found out. - -At first the shopkeeper resented the interest the two men were showing -in his business. He wanted to see their authority in black on white. - -"That is all right, my dear man!" said the "Red Prince." "This man -happens to be the Emperor." - -The storekeeper grew very humble of a sudden. - -"It is this way, your Majesty," he explained. "The authorities have -limited the allowance of coal-oil for each household to one and one-half -liters [2.14 pints] per week. This measuring apparatus [a pump on the -petroleum-tank whose descending piston drives the liquid into a -measuring container] does not show half-liters, only one, two, three, -four, and five whole liters. The customers want all they are entitled -to, and usually think that I am not giving them the proper measure when -I guess at the half-liter between the lines showing one and two liters. -To overcome the grumbling and avoid being reported to the authorities I -am measuring the petroleum in the old way by means of this half-liter -measure. That takes time, of course. While I am serving one in this -manner I could serve three if I could use the pump." - -"Do these people have the necessary containers for a larger quantity -than a liter and a half?" asked the Emperor. - -"Yes, your Majesty," replied the storekeeper. "Nearly all of them have -cans that hold five liters. Before the war petroleum was always bought -in that quantity." - -An hour afterward the burgomaster of Vienna, Dr. Weisskirchner, to whose -province the fuel and light supply belonged, was called up by the -Emperor on the telephone. - -The conversation was somewhat emphatic. The mayor felt that he was -elected by the people of Vienna and did not have to take very much from -the young man whom accident had made Emperor. He offered to resign if he -could not be left a free hand in his own sphere. - -"You can do that any time you are ready!" said the young man at the -other end of the wire. "But meanwhile see to it that petroleum in the -city of Vienna is issued in lots of three liters every two weeks. The -food-line is necessary as a disciplinary measure to prevent waste, but I -do not want people to stand in line when it is unnecessary. I understand -that nearly every shop selling petroleum uses these pumps. Kindly see to -it that they can be used. Three liters in two weeks will do that." -Thereafter petroleum was so issued. - -The case led to a general clean-up in every department of food -administration and regulation. In a single week more than eight hundred -men connected with it were dismissed and replaced. And within a month -food distribution in Austria and Hungary was on a par with that of -Germany. - -The question has often been asked, To what extent is the scarcity of -food in Central Europe the cause of the ruthless submarine warfare? - -Dr. Arthur Zimmermann, the former German Secretary of State for Foreign -Affairs, discussed that subject with me several times while I was -interviewing him. - -On one occasion he was very insistent that Germany would have to shorten -the war. Though there was no reason why in 1916 that statement should -have seemed unusual to me, since the Central European public was -thoroughly tired of the war and all it gave rise to, I was nevertheless -struck by the insistence which the Secretary of State put into his -remarks. I framed a question designed to give me the information I -needed to throw light on this. - -"England has been trying to starve us," said Mr. Zimmermann. "She has -not succeeded so far. In the submarine we have an arm which, as our -naval experts maintain, is capable of letting England feel the war a -little more in food matters. I am not so sure that it is a good idea to -use this weapon for that purpose, seeing that the measures incident to -its use would have to be sweeping. So far as I am concerned, I am not -for a policy that would make us more enemies. We have enough of them, -God knows." - -I may say that this was in a general way the policy of the Chancellor, -von Bethmann-Hollweg. I have been reliably informed that even Emperor -William was at first an opponent of the ruthless-submarine-warfare idea. -Much of his gray hair is due to criticism heaped upon Germany for acts -which were thought justified, but which others found nothing short of -outlawry. He had always been very sensitive in matters of honor -affecting his person and the nation, and, like so many of those around -him, had come to believe that Germany and the Germans could do no wrong. - -Emperor Francis Joseph had been a consistent opponent of the ruthless -submarine war. The _Ancona_ and _Persia_ cases, with which I occupied -myself especially, convinced the old man and those near him that a -recourse to the submarine, even if it were to end the war more rapidly, -was a double-edged sword. The old monarch, moreover, did not like the -inhuman aspects of that sort of war, whether they were avoidable or not. -He came from an age in which armies still fought with chivalry--when a -truce could be had for the asking. From his familiars I learned that -nothing pained the old man more than when a civilian population had to -be evacuated or was otherwise subjected to hardship due to the war. - -His successor, Emperor Charles, held the same view. One has to know him -to feel that he would not give willingly his consent to such a measure -as the ruthless submarine war. His sympathies are nothing short of -boyish in their warmth and sincerity. When he ascended the throne, he -was an easy-going, smart lieutenant of cavalry rather than a ruler, -though the load he was to shoulder has ripened him in a few months into -an earnest man. - -In January of 1917 Emperor Charles went for a long visit to the German -general headquarters in France. He was gone three days, despite the fact -that he had lots of work to do at home in connection with the -public-subsistence problems. - -Connections informed me that the submarine warfare was the business -which had taken him into the German general headquarters. Count Ottokar -Czernin, I learned, had also quietly slipped out of town, as had a -number of Austro-Hungarian naval staff men and experts. - -It was Count Czernin who, a few weeks later, gave me an all-sufficient -insight into the relations between the ruthless submarine warfare and -the food question. - -It would not have been proper, under the circumstances, to publish -without some words of comment even so detailed a statement as that -contained in the joint German-Austro-Hungarian note announcing the -advent of the ruthless submarine war. Something had to be said to show -the public why the risks involved were being taken. - -The German public was taken into the confidence of the government in a -speech made by Chancellor von Bethmann-Hollweg in the Reichstag. That -was a convenient method. In Austria-Hungary that way was not open. The -Reichsrath was not in session. Count Czernin decided that I should be -the medium of bringing before the world why the Austro-Hungarian -government had decided to adhere to Germany's new submarine policy. - -Although knowing what was coming, the actual announcement that the -crisis was here was somewhat of a shock to me. - -Count Czernin was seated at his big mahogany roll-top desk as I entered -the room. He rose to meet me. I noticed that there was a very serious -expression on his face. - -"We have notified the neutral governments, and through them our enemies, -that the submarine war zone has been extended and shipping to Great -Britain and her allies laid under new restrictions," said the Foreign -Minister, after I had taken a seat. - -With that he handed me a copy of the _note diplomatique_ with the -request that I read it. This done, he placed before me a statement which -he wished me to publish. - -"I should like you to publish that," he said. "If you don't care for the -text the way it is written change it, but be sure that you get into your -own version what I say there. At any rate, you will have to translate -the thing. Be kind enough to let me see it before you telegraph it." - -I found that the remarks of the Foreign Minister were a little too -formal and academic, and said so. So long as he could afford to take the -public of the world into his confidence through my efforts, I could -venture to suggest to him how to best present his case. - -"I will use the entire statement," I said. "But there is every reason -why it should be supplemented by a better picture of the food situation -here in Austria." - -Count Czernin rose and walked toward a corner of the room, where on a -large table were spread out several maps executed in red and blue. I -followed him. - -"These are the charts the note refers to," he said. "This white lane has -been left open for the Greeks and this for the Americans. What is your -opinion?" - -My opinion does not matter here. - -"Well, if the worst comes to pass, we can't help it," said Count -Czernin, returning to his desk. "We have to use the submarine to -shorten the war. There is such a thing as being victorious at the front -and defeated at home. The food situation here is most pressing. Our -people are half starved all the time. Babies perish by the thousands -because we cannot give them enough milk. Unless this war comes to an end -soon, the effects of this chronic food shortage will impair the health -of the entire nation. We must try to prevent that. It is our duty to -prevent that by all means. - -"I grant that there are certain technicalities of international law -involved here. But we can no longer regard them. It is all very well for -some men to set themselves up as sole arbiters of international law, nor -would we have any objection against that if these arbiters dealt as -fairly with one side as they have dealt with the other. But they have -not. The Central governments could not do anything right for some of -their friends--the American government included, by the way--if they -stood on their heads. - -"We have made peace offers. I have told you several times that we do not -want any of our enemies' territory. We have never let it be understood -that we wanted so much as a shovelful of earth that does not belong to -us. At the same time, we do not want to lose territory, nor do we want -to pay a war indemnity, since this war is not of our making. - -"We have been willing to make peace and our offer has been spurned. The -food question, as you know, is acute. We simply cannot raise the food -we need so long as we must keep in the field millions of our best -farmers. That leaves but one avenue open. We must shorten the war. We -believe that it will be shortened by the use of the submarine. For that -reason we have decided to use the arm for that purpose. - -"I hope that our calculations are correct. I am no expert in that field. -I also realize that a whole flood of declarations of war may follow our -step. All that has been considered, however--even the possibility of the -United States joining our enemies. At any rate, there was no way out. It -is all very well for some to say what we are to do and are not to do, -but we are fighting for our very existence. To that fight has been added -the food shortage, whose aspects have never been graver than now. - -"I feel that I must address myself especially to the American public. -The American government has condemned us out of court. I would like to -have an American jury hear this case. The American government has denied -us the right of self-defense by taking the stand that we must not use -the submarine as a means against the enemy merchant fleet and such -neutral shipping as supplies Great Britain and her allies with -foodstuffs." - -Count Czernin grew more bitter as he progressed. He is an able speaker -even in the English tongue. - -That afternoon I had on the wires one of the greatest newspaper stories, -in point of importance, that have ever been despatched. - -I spoke to Count Stefan Tisza on the food question and its bearing upon -the submarine warfare. We discussed the subject for almost two hours. -When the interview ended I asked the Hungarian Premier how much of it I -could use. - -"Just say this much for me," he remarked. "For the United States to -enter the European War would be a crime against humanity." - -That is the shortest interview I ever made out of so long a session. As -a matter of fact, Count Tisza said enough for a book. - -I may say, however, that Count Tisza found in the food question whatever -justification there would be needed for anything the Central governments -might do. - -In Constantinople I had made the acquaintance of Dr. Richard von -Kühlmann, the present German Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs. -Doctor von Kühlmann was then the _conseiller_ of the German embassy at -that point. He was somewhat of an admirer of the British and their ways, -a fact which later caused his promotion to minister at The Hague. In all -things he was delightfully objective--one of the few people I have met -who did not mistake their wishes and desires for the fact. - -I met Doctor von Kühlmann again in Vienna, while he was ambassador at -Constantinople. But ambassadors are not supposed to talk for -publication. Be that as it may, Doctor von Kühlmann had not even then -made up his mind that recourse to the submarine warfare was the proper -thing under the circumstances, no matter how great the prospect of -success might appear. I had found him in Constantinople, as well as in -The Hague, a consistent opponent of the submarine as a means against -merchantmen. He was wholly opposed to the ruthless submarine warfare, -but had no say in the decision finally reached. - -The British _Aushungerungspolitik_--policy of starvation--was well in -the limelight in those days. It had been discussed in the Central -European press _ad nauseam_ before. Now, however, it was discussed from -the angle of actual achievement. Shocking conditions were revealed--they -were shocking to the better classes, not to me, for I had spent many an -hour keeping in touch with public-subsistence matters. - -After all, this was but a new counter-irritant. The Austrian and -Hungarian public, especially, did not fancy having the United States as -an enemy. Though newspaper writers would belittle the military -importance of the United States, many of the calmer heads in the -population did not swallow that so easily. In the course of almost three -years of warfare the public had come to understand that often the -newspapers were woefully mistaken, and that some of them were in the -habit of purposely misleading their readers, a natural result of a -drastic censorship. There is no greater liar than the censor--nor a more -dangerous one. By systematically suppressing one side of an issue or -thing, the unpleasant one, he fosters a deception in the public mind -that is as pitiful to behold as it is stupendous. - -Now the conjuncture was such, however, that a discussion in the -newspapers of the hardship suffered and the damage done by Great -Britain's starvation blockade could not but fan the Central states -population into a veritable frenzy. The British were to experience -themselves what it was to go hungry day after day. That thought -overshadowed the possibility that the United States might soon be among -the open enemies of the Central states. A secret enemy the United States -had long been regarded. - - - - -XIV - -SUBSISTING AT THE PUBLIC CRIB - - -To eat under government supervision is not pleasant. It is almost like -taking the medicine which a physician has prescribed. You go to the food -authorities of your district, prove that you are really the person you -pretend to be, and thereby establish your claim to food, and after that -you do your best to get that food. - -Living at hotels, I was able to let others do the worrying. Each morning -I would find at my door--provided nobody had stolen it--my daily ration -of bread, of varying size--300 grams (10.5 ounces) in Germany, 240 grams -(8.4 ounces) in Budapest, and 210 grams (7.3 ounces) in Vienna. At the -front I fared better, for there my allowance was 400 grams (14 ounces) -and often more if I cared to take it. - -For the other eatables I also let the manager worry. That worry was not -great, though, so long as the food "speak-easy" was in operation. The -hotel could afford to pay good prices, and the patrons did not mind if -the dishes were from 150 to 300 per cent. dearer than the law allowed. -The law, on the other hand, saw no reason why it should protect people -who live in hotels--until it was seen that this policy was not wise on -account of the heavy drafts it made on the scant stores. Whether a small -steak costs 8 marks or 20 makes no difference to people who can afford -to eat steak at 8 marks and lamb cutlets at 15. And to these people it -also makes no difference whether they consume their legal ration or two -such rations. - -[Illustration: ONE OF THE BREAD CARDS USED IN VIENNA AND LOWER AUSTRIA -(transciption follows)] - - Niederösterreich. - Tages-Ausweis über den Verbrauch von 210 _g_ Brot - Gültig nur am ---- 1915 - - Verkauf nur nach Gewicht gegen Vorlegung der Ausweiskarte und - Abtrennung eines entsprechenden Abschnittes zulässig. - - Nicht übertragbar! - Sorgfältig aufbewahren! - Nachdruck verboten! - - Strafbestimmungen. Zuwiderhandlungen werden an dem Verkäufer wie - an dem Käufer mit Geldstrafen bis zu 5000 K oder mit Arrest bis - zu 6 Monaten geahndet. Bei einer Verurteilung kann auf den - Verlust einer Gewerbeberechtigung erkannt werden. Fälschung der - Ausweiskarte wird nach dem Strafgesetze bestraft. - - K. k. n. ö. Statthalterei. - -Many months of war passed before that element began to feel the war at -all. But it had to come to that in the end. - -Two people feeling the same degree of hunger are far better company than -two who form opposite poles in that respect. Magnetic positive and -negative never could be so repellent. Nor is this all one-sided. One -would naturally expect that in such a case the underfed would harbor -hard feelings toward the overfed. That is not always the case, however. - -One day a lady belonging to Central Europe's old nobility said to me: - -"Well, it is getting worse every day. First they took my automobiles. -Now they have taken my last horses. Taxis and cabs are hard to get. I -have to travel on the street-cars now. It is most annoying." - -[Illustration: THE BREAD CARD ISSUED BY THE FOOD AUTHORITIES OF BERLIN -(transciption follows)] - - Nicht Nicht - übertragbar übertragbar - - Berlin und Nachbarorte. - - Tages-Brotkarte - - Nur gültig für den - ---- 1916 - - Ohne Ausfüllung des Datums - ungültig. - - Rückseite beachten! - -I ventured the opinion that street-car travel was a tribulation. The -cars were always overcrowded. - -"It is not that," explained the lady. "It is the smell." - -"Of the unwashed multitude?" - -"Yes! And--" - -"And, madame?" - -"Something else," said the woman, with some embarrassment. - -"I take it that you refer to the odor that comes from underfed bodies," -I remarked. - -"Precisely," assented the noble lady. "Have you also noticed it?" - -"Have you observed it recently?" I asked. - -"A few days ago. The smell was new to me." - -"Reminded you, perhaps, of the faint odor of a cadaver far off?" - -The light of complete understanding came into the woman's eyes. - -"Exactly, that is it. Do you know, I have been trying ever since then to -identify the odor. But that is too shocking to think of. And yet you are -right. It is exactly that. How do you account for it?" - -"Malnutrition! The waste of tissue due to that is a process not wholly -dissimilar to the dissolution which sets in at death," I explained. - -I complimented the woman on her fine powers of discernment. The smell -was not generally identified. I was familiar with it for the reason that -I had my attention drawn to it first in South Africa among some underfed -Indian coolies, and later I had detected it again in Mexico among -starving peons. - -"Good God!" exclaimed the lady, after a period of serious thought. "Have -we come to that?" - -I assured her that the situation was not as alarming as it looked. In -the end the healthy constitution would adjust itself to the shortage in -alimentation. No fit adult would perish by it, though it would be hard -on persons over fifty years of age. There could be no doubt that many of -them would die of malnutrition before the war was over. Babies, also, -would cease to live in large numbers if their diet had to be similarly -restricted. - -The smell had a repellent effect upon the woman. I met her many times -after that and learned that it was haunting her. Her desire to keep it -out of her palatial residence caused her to pay particular attention to -the food of her servants. The case was most interesting to me. I had sat -for days and nights in the trenches on Gallipoli, among thousands of -unburied dead, and there was little that could offend my olfactory -nerves after that, if indeed it had been possible before, seeing that I -had for many weary months followed the revolutions in Mexico. Thus -immune to the effects of the condition in question, I was able to watch -closely a very interesting psychological phenomenon. - -I found that it was torture for the woman to get near a crowd of -underfed people. She began to shrink at their very sight. - -"I take it that you fear death very much, madame," I said, one day. - -"I dread the very thought of it," was the frank reply. - -"But why should you?" I asked. "It is a perfectly natural condition." - -"But an unjust one," came the indignant answer. - -"Nothing in nature is unjust," I said. "Nature knows neither right nor -wrong. If she did, she would either cease to produce food altogether for -your people and state, or she would produce all the more--if war can be -laid at the door of nature in arguments of right and wrong." - -"But that has nothing to do with the smell--that awful smell," insisted -the woman. - -"It has not, to be sure. Our conversation was side-tracked by your -remark that death was an unjust natural condition. Your words show that -you are living in illusions. You have an inherent loathing for the -underfed, because your instincts associate the smell of their bodies -with dissolution itself. But you are not the only one so affected. -Thousands of others feel the same discomfiture." - -The long and short of the discussion was that I proved to my own -satisfaction that the woman was one of those self-centered creatures to -whom pity is merely known as a noun. I suggested discreetly that a -little more sympathy for the afflicted, a little more love for her kind, -would prove a first-class deodorant. - -Let us examine what the diet of the Central states population then was. -In doing this, it must be borne in mind that the rural population, -always at the fountainhead of food, fared much better. The conditions -pictured are essentially those of the industrial classes in the towns -and cities. - -The adult, after rising in the morning, would drink a cup or two of some -substitute for coffee, or very bad tea, without milk, if there were -children, and with very little sugar. With this would be eaten a third -of the day's ration of bread, about two and one-half ounces. That meal -had to suffice until noon, when a plate of soup, a slice of bread, two -ounces of meat, and two ounces of vegetables were taken, to be -supplemented by a small quantity of farinaceous food in the form of some -pudding or cake. A cup of coffee substitute would go with this meal. At -four in the afternoon another cup of substitute coffee or poor tea would -be taken by those who could afford it, usually together with cake equal -to a half-ounce of wheat flour and a quarter-ounce of sugar. The evening -meal would be the same as dinner, without soup and pudding, a little -cheese and the remaining seventy grams of bread taking their place. As a -rule, a glass of beer was drunk with this. But the nutritive value of -that was small now. It was more a chemical than a malt product, and -contained at best but 4 per cent. of alcohol. - -That was the meal allowed by the government. Those who had the -opportunity never allowed themselves to be satisfied with it. But the -vast majority of people received that and nothing more, especially later -when fish and fruit had soared skyward in price. - -A chemical analysis of this bill of fare would probably show that it was -ample to sustain human life. Some American food crank might even -discover that there was a little to spare. But the trouble is that often -the scientific ration is compounded by persons who lead an inactive life -and who at best make exercise the purpose of special study and effort. -The bulk of any population, however, must work hard, and must eat more -if elimination is not to exceed assimilation. - -The food scientist has his value. But he generally overestimates that -value himself. Thus it happened that the Central states governments were -soon obliged to allow a larger ration of bread, sugar, and fat to all -persons engaged in heavy labor. At first this was overlooked here and -there, and, bureaucratism being still strong then, strikes were -necessary to persuade the governments to meet the reasonable demands of -the hard-labor classes. - -[Illustration: THE BUTTER AND FAT CARD OF DRESDEN -(transciption follows)] - - Der Rat zu Dresden. - - Bezugskarte für ¼ kg (½ Pfd.) - Butter oder Margarine - oder Speisefett oder - Kunstspeisefett - in der Zeit vom 30.11. bis 27.12.15. - -Scant as this daily fare was, it was not everybody who could add to it -the allowance of meat. The unskilled laborer, for instance, did not earn -enough to buy beef at from sixty to seventy-five cents American a pound, -the cheapest cut being sold at that price. As a rule, he tried to get -the small quantity of animal fat, lard, suet, or tallow which the -authorities allowed him. But often he failed to get it. Potato soup and -bread, and maybe a little pudding, would in that case make up the meal. -If luck had been good there might also be a little jam or some dried -fruit to go into the "pudding," which otherwise would be just plain -wheat flour, of which each family was then given five ounces daily. If -there were children to take care of, the wheat flour had to be left to -them, for the reason that the quantity of milk allowed them was entirely -too small, amounting in the case of children from three to four years to -seven-eighths of a pint daily, with 1.76 pints the limit for any infant. - -[Illustration: MILK CARD ISSUED TO NURSING MOTHERS AND THE SICK AT -NEUKOLLN, A SUBURB OF BERLIN (transciption follows)] - - Lfd. Nr. - - Vor-u. Zuname: Straße Nr. - - Milchkarte für stillende Mütter und Kranke - Giltig für den Monat November 1915 - - Der Inhaber dieser Karte ist während der Gültigkeitsdauer - berechtigt, aus einem der auf der Rückseite bezeichneten - Geschäfte der - - Meierei J. Schmidt Söhne - zum Preise von 28 Pf. täglich 1 Liter Vollmilch zu beziehen. - - Die Karte ist an jedem Tage beim Kauf der Milch vorzulegen und - wird nach erfolgter Ausgabe der Milch durchlocht. - - Am letzten Gültigkeitstage ist die Karte gegen Umtausch einer - neuen Karte in den Milchgeschäften zurückzugeben. Sind die - Voraussetzungen für die Berechtigung der Milchentnahme - fortgefallen, wird die Karte eingezogen. - - Neukölln, den ---- 1915 Der Magistrat - -Even this fare might have been bearable had it been supplemented by the -usual amount of sugar. In the past this had been as much as six pounds -per month and person; now the regulations permitted the consumption of -only 2.205 pounds per month and capita for the urban and 1.65 pounds -for the rural population, while persons engaged at hard labor were -allowed 2.75 pounds. Parents who were willing to surrender all to their -children went without sugar entirely. - -How these victuals were obtained by the woman of the household has -already been indicated. Heretofore it had been necessary to stand in -line for bread, fat, and milk, the latter two being usually obtained -simultaneously at the Fat Central. The establishing of food -zones--_Rayons_--had obviated that. The measure was a great relief, but -since it governed no more than the distribution of these articles, much -standing in line was still necessary. The disciplinary value of the -food-line was still kept in mind in the distribution of potatoes, beets -(_Wrucken_), wheat flour; now and then other cereal products, such as -macaroni, biscuits, buckwheat flour, and oatmeal; meat when the city -distributed it at or below cost price; fuel, coal-oil, sugar, and all -groceries; soap and washing-powder; shoes, clothing, textiles of any -sort, thread, and tobacco. Now and then dried fruits would be -distributed, and occasionally jam, though with the ever-increasing -shortage in sugar little fruit was being preserved in that manner. Once -a week the solitary egg per capita would have to be waited for. One egg -was not much to waste hours for, and usually people did not deem it -worth while to claim it, if they had no children. The woman who had -children was glad, however, to get the four, five, or six eggs to which -her family was entitled. It might mean that the youngest would be able -to get an egg every other day. Such, indeed, was the intention of the -government, and such was the purpose of the food-line. It would happen -now and then that there were so many who did not claim their weekly egg -that the woman with children got a double ration! - -For many of these things certain days had been set aside. Potatoes could -be drawn every other day, for instance, while wheat flour was issued -every fourth day, meat on all "meat" days, fuel once a week, petroleum -every two weeks, and sugar once a month. Shoes and clothing were issued -only after the Clothing Central had been satisfied that they were -needed. It was the same with thread, except silk thread, and with -tobacco one took a chance. Other articles were distributed when they -were available, a notice of the date being posted near some shop where -the food-liners could see it. The arrival of "municipal" beef and pork -was generally advertised in the newspapers. - -In this manner, then, was the government ration obtained. To it could be -added fresh, salted, and dried fish, when available, and all the green -vegetables and salads one wanted--peas and beans in season; in their dry -form they were hard to get at any time. For a while, also, sausage could -be bought without a ticket. The government put a stop to that when it -was found that much illicit trading was done with that class of food. - -Many hours were wasted by the women of the household in the course of a -month by standing in line. The newspapers conducted campaigns against -this seemingly heartless policy of the food authorities, but without -result. The food-line was looked upon as essential in food conservation, -as indeed it was. In the course of time it had been shown that people -would call for food allotted them by their tickets, whether they needed -it or not, and would then sell it again with a profit. To assure -everybody of a supply in that manner would also lead to waste in -consumption. Those who did not absolutely need all of their ration did -not go to the trouble of standing in a food-line for hours in all sorts -of weather. - -Subsisting at the public crib was unpleasant business under such -conditions, but there was no way out. The food "speak-easy" was almost -as much a thing of the past as was the groaning board of ante-bellum -times, though it was by no means entirely eradicated, as the trial of a -small ring of food sharks in Berlin on October 10, 1917, demonstrated. -How hard it was for the several governments to really eradicate the -illicit trading in food, once this had been decided upon, was shown in -this case, which involved one of the largest caches ever discovered. -There were hidden in this cache 27,000 pounds of wheat flour, 300 pounds -of chocolate, 15,000 pounds of honey, 40,000 cigars, and 52,000 pounds -of copper, tin, and brass. The odd part of the case was that to this -hoard belonged also 24 head of cattle and 9 pigs. - -On the same day there was tried in a Berlin jury court a baker who had -"saved" 6,500 pounds of flour from the amounts which the food -authorities had turned over to him. It was shown that the baker had sold -the loaves of bread he was expected to bake from the flour. Of course he -had adulterated the dough to make the loaves weigh what the law required -and what the bread tickets called for. A fine profit had been made on -the flour. The food authorities had assigned him the supply at $9 for -each 200-pound bag. Some of it he sold illicitly at $55 per sack to a -man who had again sold it for $68 to another chain-trader, who later -disposed of it to a consumer for $80 a bag. There can be no doubt that -this flour made expensive bread, but it seems that there were people -willing to pay the price. - -But forty cents for a pound of wheat flour was something which only a -millionaire war purveyor could afford. All others below that class, -materially, ate the government ration and stood in line. - -Sad in the extreme was the spectacle which the food-lines in the workman -quarters of Berlin, Vienna, and Budapest presented. Upon the women of -the households the war was being visited hardest. To see a pair of good -shoes on a woman came to be a rare sight. Skirts were worn as long as -the fabric would keep together, and little could be said of the shawls -that draped pinched faces, sloping shoulders, and flat breasts. There -were children in those food-lines. Thin feet stuck in the torn shoes, -and mother's shawl served to supplement the hard-worn dress or patched -suit. Everything had to go for food, and prices of apparel were so high -that buying it was out of the question. - -Once I set out for the purpose of finding in these food-lines a face -that did not show the ravages of hunger. That was in Berlin. Four long -lines were inspected with the closest scrutiny. But among the three -hundred applicants for food there was not one who had had enough to eat -in weeks. In the case of the younger women and the children the skin was -drawn hard to the bones and bloodless. Eyes had fallen deeper into the -sockets. From the lips all color was gone, and the tufts of hair that -fell over parchmented foreheads seemed dull and famished--sign that the -nervous vigor of the body was departing with the physical strength. - -I do not think sentimentalism of any sort can be laid at my door. But I -must confess that these food-lines often came near getting the best of -me. In the end they began to haunt me, and generally a great feeling of -relief came over me when I saw that even the last of a line received -what they had come for. - -The poorer working classes were not getting enough food under the -system, nor were they always able to prepare the little they got in the -most advantageous manner. While the effort had been made to instruct -women how to get the maximum of nutriment from any article, and how to -combine the allowances into a well-balanced ration, results in that -direction were not satisfying. Many of the women would spend too much -money on vegetable foods that filled the stomach but did not nourish. -Others again, when a few extra cents came into their hands, would buy -such costly things as geese and other fowl. Cast adrift upon an ocean of -food scarcity and high prices, these poor souls were utterly unable to -depart from their cooking methods, which had tastiness rather than -greatest utility for their purpose. The consequence was that the ration, -which according to food experts was ample, proved to be anything but -that. - -In Berlin the so-called war kitchens were introduced. A wheeled boiler, -such as used by the army, was the principal equipment of these kitchens. -Very palatable stews were cooked in them and then distributed from house -to house against the requisite number of food-card checks. The -innovation would have been a success but for the fact that most people -believed they were not getting enough for the coupons they had -surrendered. The stew could not be weighed, and often there would be a -little more meat in one dipperful than in another. There was grumbling, -and finally the women who were giving their time and labor to the war -kitchens were accused of partiality. The kitchens were continued a while -longer. They finally disappeared because nobody cared to patronize them -any more. It is possible, also, that people had grown tired of the stew -eternal. - -The _Volksküchen_--people's kitchens--and those war kitchens which were -established when the war began, operated with more success. The public -was used to them. They were located in buildings, so that one could eat -the food there and then, and their bill of fare was not limited to -stews. Being managed by trained people, these kitchens rendered splendid -service to both the public and the food-regulators. I have eaten in -several of them and found that the food was invariably good. - -A class that had been hit hard by the war was that of the small -office-holders and the less successful professionals, artists included. -They were a proud lot--rather starve than eat at a war kitchen or accept -favors from any one. The hardships they suffered are almost -indescribable. While the several governments had made their small -officials a war allowance, the addition to the income which that gave -was almost negligible. At an average it represented an increase in -salary of 20 per cent., while food, and the decencies of life, which -this class found as indispensable as the necessities themselves, had -gone up to an average of 180 per cent. The effect of this rise was -catastrophic in these households. Before the war their life had been the -shabby genteel; it was now polite misery. Yet the class was one of the -most essential and deserved a better fate. In it could be found some of -the best men and women in Central Europe. - -Devoted to the régime with heart and soul, this class had never joined -in any numbers the co-operative consumption societies of Germany and -Austria-Hungary, because of their socialistic tendencies. This delivered -them now into the hands of the food shark. Finally, the several -governments, realizing that the small official--_Beamte_--had to be -given some thought, established purchasing centrals for them, where food -could be had at cost and now and then below cost. Nothing of the sort -was done for the small professionals, however. - -[Illustration: Photograph from Henry Ruschin - -TRAVELING-KITCHEN IN BERLIN - -A food-conservation measure that failed, because the people grew tired -of the stew dispensed by the "Food Transport Wagon."] - -[Illustration: Photograph from Henry Ruschin - -STREET TRAM AS FREIGHT CARRIER - -As horses and motor fuel became scarce the street traction systems were -given over part of each day to transporting merchandise.] - - -Men and women of means came to the rescue of that class in the very nick -of time. But a great deal of tact had to be used before these war -sufferers could be induced to accept help. It was not even easy to -succor them privately, as Mrs. Frederick C. Penfield, wife of the -American ambassador at Vienna, had occasion enough to learn. To -alleviate their condition en masse, as would have to be done if the -means available were to be given their greatest value, was almost -impossible. Shabby gentility is nine-tenths false pride, and nothing is -so hard to get rid of as the things that are false. - -But there were those who understand the class. Among them I must name -Frau Doctor Schwarzwald, of Vienna, whose co-operative dining-room was a -great success, so long as she could get the necessary victuals, -something that was not always easy. - -I had taken a mild interest in the charities and institutions of Frau -Schwarzwald, and once came _near_ getting a barrel of flour and a -hundred pounds of sugar for the co-operative dining-room and its frayed -patrons. I announced the fact prematurely at a gathering of the patron -angels of the dining-room, among whom was Frau Cary-Michaelis, the -Danish novelist and poetess. Before I knew what was going on the -enthusiastic patron angels had each kissed me--on the cheek, of course. -Then they danced for joy, and next day I was forced to announce that, -after all, there would be no flour and no sugar. The owner of the -goods--not a food shark, but an American diplomatist--had disposed of -them to another American diplomatist. I thought it best to do penance -for this. So I visited a friend of mine and held him up for one thousand -crowns for the co-operative dining-room. That saved me. I was very -careful thereafter not to make rash promises. After all, I was sure of -the flour and sugar, and so happy over my capture that I had a hard time -keeping to myself the glad news as long as I did, which was one whole -day. In that dining-room ate a good percentage of Vienna's true -intellectuals--painters, sculptors, architects, poets, and writers all -unable just then to earn a living. - -I was not always so unsuccessful, however. For another circle of -down-at-the-heels I smuggled out of the food zone of the Ninth German -Army in Roumania the smoked half of a pig, fifty pounds of real wheat -flour, and thirty pounds of lard. Falkenhayn might command that army at -the front, but for several days I was its only hero, nevertheless. But -in food matters I had proved a good _buscalero_ before. - -The food craze was on. Women who never before in their lives had talked -of food now spoke of that instead of fashions. The gossip of the _salon_ -was abandoned in favor of the dining-room scandals. So-and-so had eaten -meat on a meatless day, and this or that person was having wheat bread -and rolls baked by the cook. The interesting part of it was that usually -the very people who found fault with such trespass did the same thing, -but were careful enough not to have guests on that day. - -In the same winter I was to see at Budapest an incident that fitted well -into the times. - -I was one of the few non-Magyars who attended the coronation dinner of -King Charles and Queen Zita. - -The lord chief steward brought in a huge fish on a golden platter and -set it down before the royal couple. The King and Queen bowed to the -gorgeously attired functionary, who thereupon withdrew, taking the fish -with him. - -We all got the smell of it. I had eaten breakfast at four in the -morning. Now it was two in the afternoon and a morsel of something would -have been very much in order. Since seven I had been in the coronation -church. It was none too well heated and I remember how the cold went -through my dress shirt. But the fish disappeared--to be given to the -poor, as King Stefan had ordained in the year A.D. 1001. - -In a few minutes the lord chief steward--I think that is the man's -title--reappeared. This time he carried before him a huge roast. -(Business as before.) For a third, fourth, fifth, and sixth time the -high functionary paraded enticing victuals through the hall without -coming down to business. It was a lonesome affair, that dinner, and -everybody was glad when the King had taken a sip of wine and the cries -of, "_Eljen a kiralyi_," put a period to that phase of the coronation. - -How well that ceremony fitted into the times! - -King Charles wanted to be impartial, and a few days later he inspected -the dining-car attached to the train that was to take his brother -Maximilian to Constantinople. In the kitchen of the car he found some -rolls and some wheat flour. He had them removed. - -"I know, Max, that you didn't order these things," he said to his -brother. "The dining-car management has not yet come to understand that -no favors must be shown anybody. If the steward of the car should by any -chance buy flour in Bulgaria or Turkey, do me the favor to pitch him out -of the window when the car is running, so that he will fall real hard. -That is the only way in which we can make a dent into special eating -privileges." - -By the way, there was a time when the present Emperor-King of -Austria-Hungary and his Empress-Queen had to live on a sort of sandwich -income, and were glad when the monthly allowance from the archducal -exchequer was increased a little when the present crown-prince was born. - -But that is another story. - - - - -XV - -THE WEAR AND TEAR OF WAR - - -It never rains but it pours. - -It was so in Central Europe. Not alone had the production of food by the -soil been hamstrung by the never-ending mobilizations of labor for -military purposes, but the means of communication began to fail from the -same cause. - -If it takes a stitch in time to save nine in ordinary walks of life, it -takes a stitch in time to save ninety, and often all, in railroading. -The improperly ballasted tie means too great a strain in the fish-plate. -It may also mean a fractured rail. Both may lead to costly train wrecks. - -But the makeshifts employed in Central Europe averted much of this. -Where the regular track gangs had been depleted by the mobilizations, -women and Russian prisoners-of-war took their places. But the labor of -these was not as good as that given by the old hands. There is a knack -even in pushing crushed rock under a railroad tie. Under one tie too -much may be placed and not enough under another, so that the very work -that is to keep the rail-bed evenly supported may result in an entirely -different state of affairs. Two ties lifted up too much by the -ballasting may cause the entire rail to be unevenly supported, so that -it would have been better to leave the work undone altogether. - -Thus it came that all railroad traffic had to be reduced in speed. -Expresses were discontinued on all lines except the trunk routes that -were kept in fairly good condition for that very purpose. -Passenger-trains ran 20 miles an hour instead of 40 and 45, and -freight-trains had their schedules reduced to 12. That meant, of course, -that with the same motive power and rolling stock about half the normal -traffic could be maintained. - -But that was not all. The maintenance departments of rolling stock and -motive power had also been obliged to furnish their quota of men for -service in the field. At first the several governments did not draw -heavily on the mechanicians in the railroad service, but ultimately they -had to do this. The repair work was done by men less fitted, and -cleaning had to be left to the women and prisoners-of-war. - -Soon the "flat" wheels were many on the air-braked passenger-cars. It -came to be a blessing that the freight-trains were still being braked by -hand, for otherwise freight traffic would have suffered more than it -did. - -I took some interest in railroading, and a rather superficial course in -it at the military academy had made me acquainted with a few of its -essentials. Close attention to the question in the fall of 1916 gave me -the impression that it would not be long before the only thing of value -of most Central European railroads would be the right of way and its -embankments, bridges, cuts, and tunnels--the things known collectively -as _Bahnkörper_--line body. - -When I first made the acquaintance of Central Europe's railroads, I -found them in a high state of efficiency. The rail-bed was good, the -rolling stock showed the best of care--repairs were made in time, and -paint was not stinted--and the motive power was of the very best. -Efficiency had been aimed at and obtained. To be sure, there was nothing -that could compare with the best railroading in the United States. The -American train _de luxe_ was unknown. But if its comforts could not be -had, the communities, on the other hand, did not have to bear the waste -that comes from it. Passenger travel, moreover, on most lines, moved in -so small a radius that the American "Limited" was not called for, though -the speed of express-trains running between the principal cities was no -mean performance at that. - -It was not long before all this was to vanish. The shortage in labor -began to be seriously felt. There were times, in fact, when the railroad -schedules showed the initiated exactly what labor-supply conditions -were. When an hour was added to the time of transit from Berlin to -Vienna I knew that the pinch in labor was beginning to be badly felt. -When one of the expresses running between the two capitals was taken -off altogether, I surmised that things were in bad shape, and when -ultimately the number of passenger-trains running between Vienna and -Budapest was reduced from twelve each day to four, it was plain enough -that railroading in Austria-Hungary was down to one-third of what it had -been heretofore--lower than that, even, since the government tried to -keep up as good a front as possible. - -In Germany things were a little better, owing to the close husbanding of -resources which had been done at the very outbreak of the war. But to -Germany the railroads were also more essential than to Austria-Hungary, -so that, by and large, there really was little difference. - -The neatly kept freight-cars degenerated into weather-beaten boxes on -wheels. The oil that would have been needed to paint them was now an -article of food and was required also in the manufacture of certain -explosives. So long as the car body would stand on the chassis it was -not repaired. Wood being plentiful, it was thought better economy to -replace the old body by a new one when finally it became dangerous to -pull it about any longer. - -It was the same with the passenger-cars. The immaculate cleanliness -which I had learned to associate with them was replaced by the most -slovenly sweeping. Dusting was hardly ever attempted. From the -toilet-rooms disappeared soap and towel, and usually there was no water -in the tank. The air-brakes acted with a jar, as the shoes gripped the -flat surface of the wheels, and soon the little doll trains were an -abomination, especially when, for the sake of economy, all draperies -were removed from the doors and windows. - -The motive power was in no better condition. The engines leaked at every -steam and water joint, and to get within 60 per cent. of the normal -efficiency for the amount of coal consumed was a remarkable performance. -It meant that the engineer, who was getting an allowance on all coal -saved, had to spend his free time repairing the "nag" he ran. - -Constantly traveling from one capital to another, and from one front to -the other, I was able to gauge the rapid deterioration of the railroads. -To see in cold weather one of the locomotives hidden entirely in clouds -of steam that was intended for the cylinders caused one to wonder how -the thing moved at all. The closed-in passenger stations reminded me of -laundries, so thick were the vapors of escaping steam. - -Despite the reduction in running-time, wrecks multiplied alarmingly. It -seemed difficult to keep anything on the rails at more than a snail's -pace. - -To the freight movement this was disastrous. Its volume had to be -reduced to a quarter of what it had been. This caused great hardship, -despite the fact that the distribution and consumption zones had put an -end to all unnecessary trundling about of merchandise. In the winter the -poor freight service led to the exposure of foodstuffs to the cold. It -was nothing unusual to find that a whole train-load of potatoes had -frozen in transit and become unfit for human consumption. Other -shipments suffered similarly. - -In countries that were forced to count on every crumb that was a great -loss. It could not be overcome under the circumstances. - -In the winter the lame railroads were unable to bring the needed -quantities of coal into the population centers. This was especially true -of the winter of 1916-17. Everybody having lived from hand to mouth -throughout the summer, and the government having unwisely put a ban on -the laying-in of fuel-supplies, there was little coal on hand when the -cold weather came. Inside of three weeks the available stores were -consumed. The insistent demand for fuel led to a rush upon the lines -tapping the coal-fields. Congestion resulted, and when the tangle was -worst heavy snows began to fall. The railroads failed utterly. - -Electric street traction shared the fate of the railroads. To save fuel -the service was limited to the absolutely necessary. Heretofore most -lines had not permitted passengers to stand in the cars. Now standing -was the rule. When one half of the rolling stock had been run into the -ground, the other half was put on the streets, and that, too, was -shortly ruined. - -The traction-service corporations, private and municipal alike, had been -shown scant mercy by the several governments when men were needed. Soon -they were without the hands to keep their rolling stock in good repair. -Most of the car manufacturers had meanwhile gone into the ammunition -business, so that it was impossible to get new rolling stock. Further -drafts on the employees of the systems led to the employment of women -conductors, and, in some cases, drivers. While these women did their -best, it could not be said that this was any too good on lines that were -much frequented. Travel on the street cars became a trial. People who -never before had walked did so now. - -As was to be expected, the country roads were neglected. Soon the fine -macadamized surfaces were full of holes, and after that it was a -question of days usually when the road changed places with a ditch of -deep mire. The farmer, bringing food to the railroad station or town, -moved now about half of what was formerly a load. He was short of draft -animals. Levy after levy was made by the military authorities. By the -end of 1916 the farms in Central Europe had been deprived of half their -horses. - -It has been said that a man may be known by his clothing. That is not -always true. There is no doubt, however, that a community may well be -recognized by its means of transportation. Travel in every civilized -country has proved that to my full satisfaction. I once met a man who -insisted that if taken blindfolded from one country into another he -would be able to tell among what people he found himself, or what sort -of gentry they were, merely by traveling on their railroads. To which I -would add that he could also very easily determine what sort of -government they had, if he had an ear for all the "_Es ist Verboten_," -"_C'est défendu_," and "It is not allowed" which usually grace the -interiors of stations and car. - -Travel was the hardest sort of labor in the Central European states. I -was obliged to do much of it. And most of it I did standing. I have made -the following all-afoot trips: Berlin-Bentheim, Berlin-Dresden, -Berlin-Cologne, Vienna-Budapest, and Vienna-Trieste, and this at a time -when the regular running-time had become 80 to 150 per cent. longer. - -The means of communication of Central Europe had sunk to the level of -the nag before the ragman's cart. The shay was not good-looking, either. - -But the wear and tear of war did not affect the means of communication -alone. Every building in Central Europe suffered heavily from it. -Materials and labor for upkeep were hard to get at any time and were -costly. Real property, moreover, suffered under the moratorium, while -the constantly increasing taxes left little in the pocket of the owner -to pay for repairs. As already stated, paint was hard to get. Exposed to -the weather, the naked wood decayed. Nor were varnishes to be had for -the protection of interior woodwork. - -Many manufacturing plants had to be closed, first of all those which -before the war had depended upon the foreign market. The entire doll -industry, for instance, suspended work. In other branches of manufacture -the closing-down was partial, as in the case of the textile-mills. Not -alone had the buildings to be neglected in this instance, but a great -deal of valuable machinery was abandoned to rust. As the stock of -copper, tin, and brass declined the several governments requisitioned -the metals of this sort that were found in idle plants and turned them -over to the manufacturers of ammunition. While the owners were paid the -price which these metals cost in the form of machinery parts and the -like, the economic loss to the community was, nevertheless, heavy. - -Farm implements and equipment also suffered much from inattention. Tens -of thousands of horses perished at the fronts and almost every one of -them meant a loss to some farm. The money that had been paid for them -had usually been given back to the government in the form of taxes, so -that now the farmer had lost his horse or horses in much the same manner -as if some epidemic had been at work. Valuable draft and milk animals -were requisitioned to provide meat for the armies. In certain districts -the lack of vitriol had resulted in the destruction of vineyards and -orchards. - -To give a better picture of what this meant, I will cite the case of an -acquaintance who is somewhat of a gentleman farmer near Coblentz, on the -Rhine. - -When the war broke out this man had in live stock: Five horses, eight -cows, forty sheep, and a large stock of poultry. He also had several -small vineyards and a fine apple orchard. In the winter of 1916-17 his -stock had shrunk to two horses, two cows, no sheep, very little poultry, -and no vineyard. The apple orchard was also dying from lack of Bordeaux -mixture. - -In January, 1917, I obtained some figures dealing with the wear and tear -of war in the kingdom of Saxony. Applying them on a per-capita basis to -all of the German Empire, I established that so far the war had caused -deterioration amounting to $8,950,000,000, or $128 for each man, woman, -and child. In Austria-Hungary the damage done was then estimated at -$6,800,000,000. - -These losses were due to absence from their proper spheres in the -economic scheme of some 14,000,000 able-bodied men who had been -mobilized for service in connection with the war. This vast army -consumed at a frightful rate and produced very little now. To -non-productive consumption had to be added the rapid deterioration due -to all abandonment of upkeep. The Central states were living from hand -to mouth and had no opportunity of engaging in that thorough maintenance -which had been given so much attention before. All material progress had -been arrested, and this meant that decay and rust got the upper hand. - - - - -XVI - -THE ARMY TILLS - - -Men getting much physical exercise in the open air consume much more -food than those confined. In cold weather such food must contain the -heat which is usually supplied by fuel. All of which is true of the -soldier in a greater degree. This, and the fact that in army -subsistence, transportation and distribution are usually coupled with -great difficulty, made it necessary for the Central Powers to provide -their forces chiefly with food staples. - -Before the war about 35 per cent. of the men mobilized had lived largely -on cereals and vegetables. Little meat is consumed by the rural -population of Central Europe. For the reasons already given, that diet -had to make room for one composed of more concentrated and more -heat-producing elements. Bread, meat, fats, and potatoes were its -principal constituents. Beans, peas, and lentils were added as the -supply permitted. In the winter larger quantities of animal fats were -required to keep the men warm, and in times of great physical exertion -the allowance of sugar had to be increased. - -Since at first the army produced no food at all, the civil population -had to produce what was needed. With, roughly, 42 per cent. of the -soldiers coming from the food-producing classes, this was no small task, -especially since the more fitted had been called to the colors. - -The governments of Central Europe realized as early as in the spring of -1915 that the army would have to produce at least a share of the food it -needed. Steps were taken to bring that about. The war had shown that -cavalry was, for the time being, useless. On the other hand, it was not -good military policy to disband the cavalry organizations and turn them -into artillery and infantry. These troops might be needed again sooner -or later. That being the case, it was decided to employ mounted troops -in the production of food. Fully 65 per cent. of the men in that branch -of the military establishments of Central Europe came from the farm and -were familiar with the handling of horses. That element was put to work -behind the fronts producing food. - -No totals of this production have ever been published, to my knowledge, -so that I can deal only with what I actually saw. I must state, however, -that the result cannot have been negligible, though on the whole it was -not what some enthusiasts have claimed for it. - -I saw the first farming of this sort in Galicia. There some -Austro-Hungarian cavalry organizations had tilled, roughly, sixty -thousand acres, putting the fields under wheat, rye, oats, and -potatoes. When I saw the crops they were in a fair state of prosperity, -though I understand that later a drought damaged them much. The colonel -in charge of the work told me that he expected to raise food enough for -a division, which should not have been difficult, seeing that three -acres ought to produce food enough for any man, even if tilled in a -slovenly way. - -Throughout Poland and the parts of Russia then occupied the Germans were -doing the same thing. What the quality of their effort was I have no -means of knowing, but if they are to be measured by what I saw in -France, during the Somme offensive in 1916, the results obtained must -have been very satisfying. - -One of the organizations then lying in the Bapaume sector -was the German Second Guards Substitute-Reserve Division-- -_Garde-Ersatz-Reserve-Division_. I think that the palm for war -economy must be due that organization. In my many trips to various -fronts (I have been on every front in Central Europe, the Balkan, -Turkey, and Asia) and during my long stays there I have never seen a -crowd that had made itself so much at home in the enemy country. - -The body in question had then under cultivation some sixteen hundred -acres of very good soil, on which it was raising wheat, rye, barley, -oats, beans, peas, lentils, sugar-beets, roots of various sorts, and -potatoes. It had made hay enough for its own draft animals and had sold -a large quantity to neighboring divisions. - -At Gommecourt the division operated a well-equipped modern dairy, able -to convert into butter and cheese the milk of about six hundred cows. -Its output was large enough to supply the men in the trenches with all -the butter and cheese they could reasonably expect. A large herd of pigs -was kept by the division, and as General von Stein, the commander of the -sector, now Prussian Minister of War, informed me at a table that -offered the products of the division at a luncheon, the organization was -then operating, somewhere near the actual firing-line, two water-mills, -a large sugar-plant, and even a brewery. Coffee, salt, and a few other -trifles were all the division received from the rear. - -It was then the middle of August, so that I was able to see the results -of what had been done by these soldier-farmers. I can state that soil -was never put to better use. Cultivation had been efficiently carried -out and the crops were exceedingly good. - -One of the most vivid pictures I retain from that week in "Hell" shows -several German soldiers plowing a field east of Bucquoi into which -British shells were dropping at the time. The shells tore large craters -in the plowed field, but with an indifference that was baffling the men -continued their work. I have not yet been able to explain what was the -purpose of this plowing in August, except to lay the knife at the root -of the weeds; nor can I quite believe that this end justified exposing -men and valuable animals. At any rate, the thing was done. - -The case cited represents the maximum that was achieved in food -production by any army organization, so far as I know. But that maximum -was no mean thing. That division, at least, did not depend on the civil -population for food. - -Several trips through Serbia and Macedonia in the same year showed me -what the German "economic" and occupation troops had done in those -parts. - -On the whole, the efforts at food production of the "economic" -troops--organization of older men barely fit for service in the -firing-line--had not been fortunate. The plan had been to put as much -soil under crops as was possible. For this purpose traction plows had -been brought along and whole country sites had been torn up. Though the -soil of the valleys of Serbia is generally very rich, and the climate -one of the best for farming, the crops raised in that year were far from -good. Some held that it was due to the seed, which had been brought from -Germany. Others were of the opinion that the plowing had been carelessly -done, leaving too much leeway to the weeds. Be that as it may, the work -of the economic companies was not a success. - -The occupation troops did much better, however. Together with the -Serbian women they had cultivated the fields on the intensive principle. -Yields had been good, I was told. - -In Macedonia the fields had also been put to use by the Germans, -Austro-Hungarians, and Bulgars. The last named, familiar with the -cultivation of the tobacco plant, were exchanging with the others -tobacco for grain. Food production was also attempted by the -Austro-Hungarians on the Isonzo front. But since they were fighting on -their own territory in districts which still had their civil population, -there was little opportunity, all the less since the soil of the -Carso and Bainsizza plateaus, and the mountainous regions north -of them, is not suited for agriculture on a large scale. Every -_doline_--funnel-shaped depression--of the Carso had its garden, -however, whence the army drew most of the vegetables it consumed. - -The food that was being raised for the army never reached the interior, -of course. If an organization produced more than what it consumed, and -such cases were extremely rare, it sold the surplus to the army -commissaries. It took men and time to cultivate the fields, and these -could not always be spared, especially when the losses in men were -beginning to be severely felt and when the opponent engaged in -offensives. It had meanwhile become necessary to throw, several times a -year, divisions from one front to another, and that, too, began to -interfere with the scheme, since the men no longer took the interest in -the crops they had taken when they were established in a position. - -I spent considerable time with the Ninth German Army operating against -the Roumanians late in the fall of 1916. Much booty in food fell into -the hands of that organization, among it some eleven hundred thousand -tons of wheat and other grains. - -Bread was bad and scarce in the Central states. When it became known -that so large a quantity of breadstuff had fallen in the hands of the -Centralist troops, people in Berlin and Vienna already saw some of it on -their tables--but only in their minds. Falkenhayn and Mackensen issued -orders that not a pound of breadstuff was to be taken from the war zone -they had established, which comprised all of Roumania occupied, -Transylvania, and the Dobrudja district. Nor could other food be -exported to the Central civilian population. Whatever was found in the -conquered territory was reserved for the use of the troops that had been -employed, and the surplus was assigned to the German, Austro-Hungarian, -and Bulgarian commissaries-general. - -The quantities taken, however, were large, and six months later, when -all needs of the armed forces had been met, the civilian populations -were remembered so far as it was prudent to do so. To give that -population too much might have resulted in a lessening of production at -home, and that was something which could not be invited. - -This policy was followed always. I know of no instance in which it was -abandoned, even when the clamor for bread at home was loudest. The army -came first in all things, much in the manner of the driver of a team of -mules. - -But it was not selfishness alone that gave rise to this policy. It -served no good purpose to ship into the interior food that would later -be needed by the troops. That merely increased the burden of the -railroads, first by the transport of the booty homeward, and later by -shipping back food as the troops needed it. Keeping the food where it -was found obviated this traffic entirely. - -On the whole, the Centralist troops never fared poorly in subsistence. -It had become necessary to reduce the bread ration from 500 grams (18 -ounces) to 400 grams (14 ounces) per day, but this was made good by -increasing the meat and fat ration. Enough to eat was the surest way of -keeping the war popular with the soldiers. - -Since it is very easy to exaggerate the value of food production due to -the army, I will state here specifically that this production took care -of little more than what the men consumed in excess over their former -diet. Their normal consumption was still borne by the civilian -population, and, as the losses on the battle-field increased, and the -reserves had to be employed oftener, food production in the army fell -rapidly, though at present this condition appears to be discounted by -the food produced in Roumania, Serbia, and Poland. The area involved is -large, of course, but the surplus actually available is not great. The -population of these territories has dwindled to old men, boys, and -women, and their production is barely able to meet actual needs. The -little that can be extracted from these people does not go very far in -the subsistence of Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Bulgaria. These -countries have together a population of, roundly, one hundred and -fifteen millions to-day, of which not less than ten million of the best -producers are under the colors, thereby causing a consumption in food -and _matériel_ that is at least one-third greater than normal--munitions -and ammunition not included. - -But the army had much to do with food in other directions. It controlled -inter-allied exports and imports and was a power even in trade with the -neutrals of Europe. - -The relations between Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria, and Turkey -were essentially military. They were this to such an extent that -they almost overshadowed even the diplomatic services of these -countries. For the time being, the _Militärbevollmächtigte_--military -plenipotentiary--as the chief communication officer was known, eclipsed -often the diplomatic plenipotentiary. Militarism was absolute. The civil -government and population had no right which the military authorities -need respect. - -All commercial exchange passed into the hands of these military -plenipotentiaries. The diplomatic service might reach an agreement for -the exchange of food against manufactured articles, but finally the -military saw to it that it was carried out. They bought and shipped, and -received in turn the factory products that were the _quid pro quo_ for -the food and raw material thus secured. - -In Roumania, so long as she was neutral, the _Einkaufstelle_--purchasing -bureau--was indeed in the hands of civilians. As a neutral, Roumania -could not permit German and Austro-Hungarian officers to be seen in the -streets in their uniforms. They were, for all that, members of the -army. For the time being, they wore mufti, nor did their transactions -show that they were working directly for the army. The food that was -bought was intended for the civilian population, naturally. But it has -always been hard to keep from any army that which it may need. The same -sack of wheat may not go to the military commissaries, but what -difference will it make so long as it releases for consumption by the -army a like quantity of home-grown cereals? - -The German and Austro-Hungarian purchasing bureaus in Switzerland, -Holland, Denmark, Norway, and Sweden are similarly organized. Many -members of their staffs are indeed civilians, but that does not change -anything, since all shipments of food entering Central Europe fall -immediately under the control of the government Food Commissions, if not -under that of the military commissaries direct. - -To the military, then, the Central states civilian population had to -look for such food as could be imported. - -There was the case of Bulgaria. That country is still essentially an -agricultural state. Of the five and a half million inhabitants fully 90 -per cent. engage in farming and animal industry. The products of the -soil constitute the major portion of Bulgaria's exports. That meant that -she could ease to some extent the food shortage in Germany and -Austria-Hungary. - -An acquaintance of mine, a Captain Westerhagen, formerly a banker in -Wall Street, was in charge of the German purchasing bureau in Sofia. He -bought whatever was edible--wheat, rye, barley, peas, beans, potatoes, -butter, eggs, lard, pork, and mutton. His side lines were hides, wool, -flax, mohair, hay, and animal feed-stuffs. - -Indirectly, he was also an importer. Under his surveillance were brought -into Bulgaria the manufactured goods Bulgaria needed, such as iron and -steel products in the form of farm implements, farm machinery, building -hardware, small hardware, and general machinery, glassware, paper -products, instruments, surgical supplies, railroad equipment, medicines, -and chemicals generally. - -When the German army needed none of the food Captain Westerhagen bought, -the civilian population was the beneficiary of his efforts. The fact is -that my acquaintance bought whatever he could lay hands on. Now and then -he bought so much that the Bulgarians began to feel the pinch. In that -event the Bulgarian general staff might close down on the purchasing -central for a little while, with the result that the Germans would shut -down on their exports. It was a case of no food, no factory products. -This sort of reciprocity led often to hard feeling--situations which -Colonel von Massow, the German military plenipotentiary at Sofia, found -pretty hard to untangle. But, on the whole, the arrangement worked -smoothly enough. - -It was so in Turkey. - -The Germans had in Constantinople one of their most remarkable men--and -here I must throw a little light on German-Ottoman relations. The name -of this remarkable man--remarkable in capacity, energy, industry, and -far-sightedness--is Corvette-Captain Humann, son of the famous -archeologist who excavated Pergamum and other ancient cities and -settlements in Asia Minor. - -Captain Humann was born in Smyrna and had early in life made the -acquaintance of Enver Pasha, now Ottoman Minister of War and -vice-generalissimo of the Ottoman army. Raised in the Orient, Humann -knew the people with whom he was to deal. The viewpoint of the Orient -and the Turk was an open book to him. He had the advantage of being -looked upon as half a Turk, for the reason that he was born in Turkey. -To these qualifications Captain Humann added great natural ability and a -perseverance without equal. - -Officially, Captain Humann was known as the commander of the German -naval base in Constantinople and as naval attaché. Actually, he was the -alpha and omega of German-Ottoman relations. - -There always was a great deal of friction between the Turks and the -Germans. The Turk often could not see the need for speed, while the -German was eternally in a hurry, from the Oriental point of view. The -Turk was inclined to do things in a slovenly manner. The German insisted -upon everything, in matters economic, military, and diplomatic, being -in its place. German officers who had a great deal to do with these -things had not always the tact and forbearance necessary. Bad blood -would come of this. To make matters worse, the Turk was forever under -the impression that he was being exploited. The Germans, also, refused -to _bakshish_ the officials of their ally, and more trouble came from -that. - -It is hard to say what the general result of this would have been had -not Captain Humann been on the spot. He was on _du_--thou--terms with -Enver Pasha, and when things refused to move at all he would call on his -friend in the Harbiyeh Nasaret in Stamboul and set them into motion -again. That Turk and German did not come to blows during the first year -of the war is largely due to the genius of Captain Humann. So great was -the man's influence in Constantinople that the successor of Ambassador -Baron von Wangenheim, Prince Metternich, grew jealous of him and had him -removed to Berlin, where in the Imperial Naval Office Captain Humann -chewed pencils until conditions in Constantinople were so bad that the -German Emperor had to send him back, despite the prejudices he held -against him. Captain Humann is not a noble, and in those days the powers -that be in Prussia and Germany were not yet ready to have a commoner, no -matter how able, take away glamour from the aristocratic class. - -Though purchasing in Turkey was not one of the duties of Captain Humann, -he was often obliged to take charge of it. I knew of one hundred and -twenty thousand pounds of wool which the Germans had bought, but which -the Turks were not willing to surrender because they were not satisfied -with the price after the bargain had been closed. The case was ticklish -in the extreme. Everybody had gone as far as safety permitted and the -Turks had meanwhile grown more obdurate. In the end the matter had to be -brought to the attention of the ambassador. He, too, decided that -nothing could be done. Captain Humann was appealed to and succeeded in -securing delivery of the wool. - -I have quoted this case to show that very often the exchange of -commodities between the Central allies was attended with much friction -and difficulty. More merchandise moved over and across the Danube as -personal favors done than by virtue of the commercial treaties that had -been made. Personal equation was everything in the scheme, especially at -times when Germany's allies were in no pressing need for arms and -ammunition. The very fact that Germany was the "king-pin" in the Central -European scheme caused the lesser members of the combination to be -sticklers in matters affecting their rights and sovereignty. - -On one occasion the predecessor of Captain Westerhagen in Sofia was said -to have boastfully made the statement that what he could not get from -the Bulgarians voluntarily he would find means to get, anyhow. General -Jekoff, the chief of the Bulgarian general staff, heard of this, and -promptly shut down on all exports. For two weeks not a thing moved out -of Bulgaria, and when the two weeks were over there was a new man in -charge of the German purchasing bureau in Sofia. The methods of the -Prussian barrack-yard would not do south of the Danube. It took many a -lesson to bring this home. - -Austria and Hungary were two separate economic units in the war. When -food was scarce in Austria it did not necessarily follow that the -Hungarians would make good the deficiency. It took a special permit to -export and import from and into Hungary, and the same rules were -enforced by Austria, Germany, Bulgaria, and Turkey in the case of all -shipments made by civilians, so long as these had a hand in this -inter-allied exchange of necessities and commodities. - -Little need be said of the German purchasing centrals in Austria and -Hungary. The war was not very old before these countries had nothing to -spare. Thereafter, exchange was limited entirely to materials needed in -the manufacture of arms and ammunition. Austria and Hungary continued to -exchange medical supplies, chemicals, and machinery for food and the -like, respectively. They also managed now and then to get a little of -the food in Bulgaria and Turkey, though the latter country could sell -food only on rare occasions. Constantinople continued to live on -Roumanian wheat, until the total cessation of activity by the Russian -Black Sea fleet made navigation in those waters possible for the Turks -and brought wheat and other food from northern Anatolia. - -The food secured by Germany in other markets was also under military -control, as I have stated before. Exchange in this case depended even -more upon reciprocity in kind than in the instances already cited. At -one time the Swiss government was ready to close its borders against the -export of food to Central Europe entirely. Nothing came of the -intention. The German government informed the government at Bern that -this would lead to an embargo on coal along the Swiss borders. France -and Italy had no coal themselves, and Switzerland had to have fuel. - -It has been said that the incident in question was staged for the -purpose of illustrating what the position of the Swiss actually was. At -any rate, they would have no coal, not so much as a shovelful, if -to-morrow they refused to export to the Germans and Austrians dairy -products and animal fats. The same is true of iron products and -chemicals. - -Holland is in the same position. Great Britain needs all the coal she -can mine, and the Germans refuse to supply the little they can spare -without getting something in exchange--dairy products, animal fats, -vegetables, and fresh and preserved fish. Holland also gets her coal-oil -and gasolene in that manner. Iron and steel and chemicals are other -strong arguments in this scheme. Denmark is in exactly the same -position, and when German gasolene and benzine are not available the -Norwegian fishermen have to stay at home. For each gallon of these -fuels, which Germany exports from the Galician and Roumanian oil-fields, -the Norwegians are obliged to turn over so many pounds of fish. Sweden -has no food to give for the coal and liquid fuel she gets from Germany, -but exchanges them for wood pulp, certain specialty ores, and on rare -occasions reindeer meat. - -That this commerce is strictly military those interested know, of -course. But they have given up splitting hairs over it, because there is -no way out. Coal and iron products, to say nothing of chemicals and -medicines, are things which the European neutrals must have, and this -need warring Central Europe has held over them as a whip. Incidentally, -this traffic has done much toward keeping up the rate of the German -mark. Central Europe would have been bankrupted long ago were it not -that the neutrals must buy what these states have for sale and must buy -it at prices fixed by monopoly. - -The need of coal and iron has been a far more efficacious discipline for -the European neutrals than the German armies that have lain along their -borders. That these countries have never combined for the purpose of -throwing off this yoke is due to the influence of racial affinity--the -sentiment upon which in the past has thriven Pan-Germanism. Switzerland, -Holland, Denmark, Norway, and Sweden, rising simultaneously, could -overnight cause the defeat of the Germans and their allies. But the ties -of blood and kinship militate against that step, despite the dislike -felt in these countries for certain aspects of German political life. - - - - -XVII - -WOMAN AND LABOR IN WAR - - -To the plow was yoked an ox and harnessed a horse. A tall and muscular -woman was guiding it, while a small boy carried the whip. From the -Isonzo front, not more than ten miles away, came the crash of heavy -artillery. - -Neither the woman nor the boy seemed to mind that war was so near. I -concluded that they were from the village which I had just come through, -bound for the front named. The inhabitants of that place had listened to -the noise of battle for eighteen months and it was possible that now the -crash of guns meant less to them than the sound of the vesper bell. - -There was a tire blow-out. While the soldier-chauffeur was attending to -that, I watched the woman draw furrows. Being somewhat of a farmer, I -was interested in the quality of her work. It was good average plowing. - -The plow continued to cut down one side of the field and up the other. -The automobile did not interest the woman. She had serious business to -attend to. War must have seemed to her a sort of folly, and fools all -those connected with it--myself included. She was tilling the land to -get something to eat for her brood and to raise the money for taxes -which those idiots at the front would waste in powder and the like. Her -"hees" and "haws" punctuated the rumble of artillery like words of -command for the oxen in the trenches. - -The woman behind the plow was a superb figure--the embodiment of nature -herself. - -I went on. - -Toward evening I returned over the same road. The woman was still -plowing, but now she had a little girl holding the whip. The sirocco had -blown a heavy mist in from the Adriatic. Where the woman was plowing the -vapors floated in layers of uneven density--the veils of evening. The -plowers passed into them and out again, loomed now and then dwindled in -the mist as the moods of light pleased. - -It struck me that it would be worth while to have a few words with this -woman. She was so close to the war and yet, seemingly, so far from it -that almost anything she could say promised to have an unusual color. - -"These people here are Slovenes, sir!" remarked my soldier-chauffeur -when I had sought his advice. "They do not speak German, as a rule. But -we can try." - -It was love's labor lost. The woman spoke some Slovene words in greeting -and I replied in Bulgarian, of which language I know a few words. The -chauffeur was no better off. - -I dug into a furrow with the tip of my shoe and said: - -"_Dobro!_" - -She nodded recognition of both my "remark" and appreciation of her work. - -To show the woman that I knew what I was talking about, I took the plow -out of her hands and drew a furrow myself. It was her turn to say: - -"_Dobro!_" - -The fact that she limited her conversation to this word, as I was -obliged to do, showed that she was a woman of understanding. - -When I was back at the road I shook hands with the woman and her child -and hurried off to Adelsberg, where General Boreovic, commander of the -Austro-Hungarian Fifth Army, expected me for dinner. - -"Ah, she is a worker," said the old veteran, as I mentioned the incident -to him. "Her husband is dead, you know. Was killed in the war. She is a -remarkable woman. I have talked to her several times. She is worth a -dozen of anything in skirts you can find in Vienna, or anywhere else, -for that matter." - -I thought so, too, and think so yet, and, _Deo volente_, I will picture -the plow-woman better some other time. - -In the Manfred Weiss works at Budapest thousands of women are engaged in -the manufacture of ammunition. The little girls and older women who -watched the infantry-ammunition machines did not greatly interest me. -They were all neatly dressed and did no more than watch the mechanical -contrivances that made cartridge-cases out of sheets of brass and -bullet-casings out of sheets of nickel-steel. - -In the shell department of the establishment I saw quite another class -of women. - -They were large and brawny and strong enough to handle the huge -white-hot steel nuggets with ease. By means of a crane two of them would -seize one of the incandescent ingots, swing it under the trip-hammer, -and then leave the fate of the shell in the making to two others, who -would turn the thing from side to side, while a fifth operated the -hammer itself. - -At the far end of the shed, in flame-raked gloom, other women of the -same type were engaged in casting. The ladle was operated by them with a -dexterity that showed that neither strength nor skill were lacking. - -These daughters of Vulcan were stripped to the waist. Their labor seemed -to be the only dress they needed. In fact, it never struck me that there -was anything unconventional about this costume--the whole and total of -which was a large leather apron and skirt of something that resembled -burlap. Nor did they seem to mind me. - -It is impossible to say to what extent man's place in labor was taken by -woman in Central Europe during the war. On the farms the women had -always done much of the hard work. They had been employed in large -numbers in the factories, stores, and offices, so that it was generally -a case of employing more women instead of surrendering to them -departments which heretofore had been entirely in the hands of men. It -is true that women were working on street-car lines as conductors, and -in a few cases as drivers, and that more of them found employment in the -railroad and postal service, but the work they did was well within the -capacity of any healthy woman. Woman's work during the war was to have -results quite foreign to those immediately in prospect. - -[Illustration: Photograph from Henry Ruschin - -WOMEN CARRYING BRICKS AT BUDAPEST - -A pathetic aspect of the policy "Business as Usual" inaugurated at the -outbreak of the European War. Central European women worked hard before -the war, however.] - -[Illustration: Photograph from Henry Ruschin - -VILLAGE SCENE IN HUNGARY - -These women and children struggled to keep food production close to -normal, but failed.] - -The fact that women were employed in foundries and steel-works, in the -manner stated above, is chiefly remarkable for the evidence furnished -that woman is able to do much of the work for which in the past she has -been thought unsuited, especially if her deficiency in bodily strength -is discounted by the use of machinery. At the Weiss works I was told -that the women doing heavy work with the aid of mechanical energy were -in every respect the equal of the men who had done the same thing before -the war. - -The war, then, has demonstrated in Central Europe that the woman is far -less the inferior of man than was held formerly. To that extent the -status of women has been bettered. When a man has seen members of the -frail sex fashion steel into shells he is thereafter less inclined to -look upon that sex as a plaything which an indulgent Scheme provided for -him. Over his mind may then flash the thought that woman is, after all, -the other half of humanity--not only the mother of men, but their equal, -not a mere complement of the human race, but a full-fledged member of -it. - -A little later I was the guest of Halideh Edib Hannym Effendi at her -private school in the Awret Basar quarter of Stamboul, Constantinople. -The Turkish feminist and promoter of education had asked me to take a -look at the establishment in which she was training Turkish girls and -boys along the lines adhered to in the Occident. She had arrived at the -conclusion that the _medressi_--Koran school system--was all wrong, for -the reason that it sacrificed the essential to the non-essential. Though -her influence with the Young Turk government and the Sheik-ul-Islam was -great, she had not asked that her experiments with Western education be -undertaken at the expense of the public. Her father is wealthy. - -Several teachers had been invited to the tea. Like Halideh Hannym they -were "Young Turk" women, despite the fact that most of them still -preferred the non-transparent veil--_yashmak_--to the transparent silk -_büründshük_. - -I commented upon this fact. - -"The _yashmak_ does indeed typify the Old Turkey," said Halideh Hannym. -"But is it necessary to discard it because one takes an interest in the -things identified as progress? To the _yashmak_ are attached some of the -best traditions of our race; it comes from a period when the Turk was -really great, when he was still the master of a goodly share of -Europe--when he ruled, instead of being ruled." - -All of which was true enough. - -I pointed out that the _büründshük_, however, was the promise that the -Turkish woman would soon be able to look into the world--that seclusion -would before long be an unpleasant memory. To that my hostess and her -other guests agreed. - -"The war has been a good thing for the Turkish woman," I ventured to -remark. - -"It has been," admitted Halideh Hannym. "As an example, the university -has been opened to women. Three years ago nobody would have thought that -possible. To-day it is _un fait accompli_. The world does move--even -here." - -Halideh Hannym did not mention that she was largely responsible for the -opening of the Constantinople University to women. Modesty is one of her -jewels. Nor would she admit that her novels and her trenchant articles -in the _Tanin_ had much to do with the progress made in the emancipation -of the Turkish woman. - -"If Turkey is to be regenerated, her women must do it," said Halideh -Hannym, when we had come to speak of the necessity of better government -in the Ottoman Empire. - -That one sentence comprises at once the field of endeavor and the motive -of the woman. She believes that there is much good in her race, but that -its old-time position of conqueror and ruler over subject races had been -fraught with all the dangers of ease and idleness. - -"We must work--work--work," she said. "The race that lies fallow for too -long a time gives the weeds too much chance. Our weaknesses and -shortcomings are deep-rooted now. But I believe that the plowing which -the race had during the present war will again make it a fertile field -for the seeds of progress." - -Not long before that Sultan Mahmed Réchad Khan V. had told me the same -thing. - -"We of the Orient are known to you Westerners as fatalists," remarked -the old monarch in the course of the audience. "The fatalist is accepted -to be a person who lets things drift along. This means that any fatalist -may be no more than a lazy and shiftless individual. In our case that is -not true. Our belief in the Fates--Kismet and Kadar--is to blame for -what backwardness there is in the Ottoman Empire. But it will be -different in the future. It is all very well to trust in God, but we -must work." - -I told Halideh Hannym that probably his Majesty had read some of her -writings. My reason for doing this was largely the fact that as yet this -gospel of work was little known in Turkey. - -"That is not impossible," thought the woman. "At any rate, we must work, -and it is the women of Turkey who must set the example. When the Turks -have more generally embraced the idea that all there is worth while in -life is labor, they will come to understand their non-Osmanli -fellow-citizens better. I look upon that as the solution of the Ottoman -race problems. Labor is the one platform upon which all men can meet. My -objective is to have the races in the empire meet upon it. Turk, Greek, -Armenian, and Arab will get along together only when they come to heed -that old and beautiful saying of the Persians, 'How pleasantly dwell -together those who do not want the ox at the same time.' That means that -each of us must have his own ox--work ourselves, in other words." - -And Halideh Hannym applies this to herself. There is no reason why she -should write novels and articles to make money--she does not need it, so -far as I know, if town houses and a country seat on the island of -Prinkipo mean anything at all. Halideh Hannym works for the satisfaction -there is in knowing that duty is done and done to the limit of one's -ability, and within that limit lies the seizing of one's opportunity. -Hers came with the war, and while others stood by and lamented she set -to work and wrung from ungenerous man that which under the pressure of -the times he thought unimportant. Halideh Hannym and her friends and -co-workers gathered these crumbs, one by one, and then made a loaf of -them, and that loaf is not small. Some future historian may say that the -emancipation of the Turkish woman was due to the Great War. I hope that -he will not overlook Halideh Edib Hannym Effendi. - -The women of Central Europe have always worked hard, but at best they -have been kept at drudgery. They have done what man would not do, as -deeming it below his masculine dignity, or what he could not do. The -result of this has not been a happy one for the women. The "lord of the -household" has in the course of time come to look upon his wife as a -sort of inferior creature, fit indeed to be the first servant in the -house, but unfit to be elevated above that sphere. The rights of -equality which he takes from his mate he generally bestows upon his -daughters, and later he is inconsistent enough to have them enter the -servitude of his wife. Thus it came that the majority of all women in -Central Europe thought of nothing but the stomach of the lord and -master, and when this was attended to they would put in their spare -moments knitting socks. - -The picture of the German _Hausfrau_ may appeal to many. It does not to -me. Nothing can be so disheartening as to spend an evening with a family -whose women will talk to the accompaniment of the clicking of the -knitting-needles. The making of socks should be left to machinery, even -if they are intended to warm the "Trilbys" of the lord and master. - -I am glad to report that a large crevasse was torn into this _Hausfrau_ -notion by the war. With millions of men at the front, the women had to -stand on their feet, as it were. The clinging ivy became a tree. Though -the ubiquitous knitting-needle was not entirely dispensed with, it came -to be used for the sake of economy, not as the symbol of immolation on -the altar of the _Herr im Hause_. - -The woman who has fought for bread in the food-line is not likely to -ever again look upon the breadwinner of the family with that awe which -once swayed her when she thought of "his" magnanimity in giving her -good-naturedly what she had earned by unceasing effort and unswerving -devotion. - -Thus has come in Central Europe a change that is no less great and -sweeping than what has taken place in Turkey. All concerned should be -truly thankful. The nation that does not give its women the opportunity -to do their best in the socio-economic sphere which nature has assigned -them handicaps itself badly. Not to do that results in woman being -little more than the plaything of man, or at best his drudge, and, since -man is the son of woman, no good can come of this. The cowed woman -cannot but have servile offspring, and to this we must look for the -explanation why the European in general is still ruled by classes that -look upon their subjects as chattels. A social aggregate in which the -families are ruled by autocratic husbands and fathers could have no -other than an autocratic government. I believe that a pine forest is -composed of pines, despite the fact that here and there some other trees -may live in it. - -The war has upset that scheme in Central Europe. While the labor of -woman was valuable to the state, through its contributions to the -economic and military resources of the nation, it also fostered in the -woman that self-reliance which is the first step toward independence. -Of this the plow-woman and the women in the steel-works are the factors -and Halideh Hannym the sum. While the plow-woman and steel-workers were -unconsciously active for that purpose, the Turkish feminist had already -made it the objective of a spreading social policy. - -What poor pets those women in the steel-mill would make! - - - - -XVIII - -WAR AND MASS PSYCHOLOGY - - -Harassed by the shortage in everything needed to sustain life, plagued -by the length of the war and the great sacrifices in life and limb that -had to be made, and stunned by the realization that Germany had not a -friend, anywhere, aside from her allies and certain weak neutrals, the -German people began to take stock of their household and its management. -It seemed to many that, after all, something was wrong. - -I ran into this quite often in 1916. - -During the Somme offensive in August of that year I was talking to a -German general--his name won't matter. The man could not understand why -almost the entire world should be the enemy of Germany. I had just -returned to Central Europe from a trip that took me through Holland, -Denmark, and parts of Norway; I had read the English, French, and -American newspapers, with those of Latin Europe and Latin America thrown -in, and I was not in a position to paint for the soldier the picture he -may have been looking for. I told him that the outlook was bad--the -worst possible. - -He wanted to know why this should be so. I gave him my opinion. - -Not far from us was going on a drumfire which at times reached an -unprecedented intensity. The general looked reflectively across the -shell-raked, fume-ridden terrain. He seemed to be as blue as indigo. - -"Tell me, Mr. Schreiner, are we really as bad as they make us out to -be?" he said, after a while. - -The question was frankly put. It deserved a frank reply. - -"No," I said, "you are not. Slander has been an incident to all wars. It -is that now. The fact is that your government has made too many -mistakes. War is the proof that might is right. Your government has been -too brutally frank in admitting that and suiting its action accordingly. -Belgium was a mistake and the sinking of the _Lusitania_ was a mistake. -You are now reaping the harvest you sowed then." - -My questioner wished to know if _sans_ Belgium, _sans Lusitania_ the -position of Germany would be better. - -That question was highly hypothetical. I replied that an opinion in that -direction would not be worth much in view of the fact that it could not -cover the actual causes of the war and its present aspects, of which the -case of Belgium and the work of the submarine were but mere incidents. - -"Seen objectively, I should say that the invasion of Belgium and the use -of the submarine against merchantmen has merely intensified the world's -dislike of much that is German. I doubt that much would have been -different without Belgium and without the _Lusitania_," was my reply. -"This war started as a struggle between gluttons. One set of them wanted -to keep what it had, and the other set wanted to take more than what it -had already taken." - -Not very long afterward General Falkenhayn, the former German chief of -staff, then commander of the Ninth German Army against the Roumanians, -asked a similar question at dinner in Kronstadt, Transylvania. He, too, -failed to understand why the entire world should have turned down its -thumb against the Germans. My reply to him was more or less the same. - -A regular epidemic of introspective reasoning seemed to be on. At the -Roumanian end of the Törzburger Pass I lunched a few days later with -Gen. Elster von Elstermann. He also wanted to know why the Germans were -so cordially hated. Gen. Krafft von Delmansingen, whose guest I was at -Heltau, at the head of the Vörös Torony gorge, showed the same interest. - -"It seems that there is nothing we can do but make ourselves respected," -he said, tersely. "I am one of those Germans who would like to be loved. -But that seems to be impossible. Very well! We will see! We will see -what the sword can do. When a race has come to be so thoroughly detested -as we seem to be, there is nothing left it but to make itself respected. -I fear that in the future that must be our policy." - -I made the remark that possibly it was not the race that was being -detested. The general is a Bavarian--at least, he was commanding -Bavarian troops. - -"So long as these shouters can make common cause with autocratic Russia, -they have no reason to fasten upon the Prussians every sin they can -think of. I am not one of those who think that everything in Germany is -perfect. Far from it. We have more faults than a dog has fleas. Never -mind, though! To lie down and beseech mercy on our knees is not one of -these faults." - -I believe that Gen. Krafft von Delmansingen spoke for the army on that -occasion without knowing it. What he said was the attitude of the vast -majority of officers and men. - -Shortly before I had interviewed Baron Burian, then Austro-Hungarian -Minister of Foreign Affairs, on that and related subjects. I will state -here that he was the most professorly foreign minister I have met. His -voice never rose above the conversational tone. Though a Magyar, he was -evenness of temper personified. - -"I suppose there is nothing we can do in that direction," he said, -slowly. "What the world wishes to believe it will believe. We cannot -change that. Whether it is true or not has nothing to do with the cause -and the outcome of this war. And what difference will it make in the end -whether we are called barbarians or not? I know that a good many people -resent what they say in the Entente newspapers, and I suppose the -Entente public resents a great deal of what is being said in our -newspapers. That is a small matter. There is nothing to be done, for -what we could do would be a waste of effort. Let them talk. No! There is -nothing I wish to say in connection with that. Our position is quite -defensible. But to defend it would merely stir up more talk. By the time -the hostile American newspapers have taken care of all that is being -said against us, they must have used so much paper that it would be a -shame to get them to use more on refutation." - -Dr. Arthur Zimmermann, at that time Under-Secretary of State for Foreign -Affairs, was more aggressive when I suggested the subject for the -substance of an interview. Backing his position with certain documents -that were found in the Belgian state archives, according to which there -was some understanding between the British, French, and Belgians for the -contingency of a German invasion, he held that Germany was entirely -right in demanding access to France through Belgian territory. He was -not sure, however, that doing this had been a good move politically. The -military necessity for the step was something he could not judge, he -said. - -Doctor Zimmermann said that the sinking of the _Lusitania_ was a bad -blunder. Responsibility for the act he would not fix, however. The thing -was not within his province. So far as he knew, it had not been the -intention to torpedo the ship in a manner that would cause her immediate -sinking. If a ship was torpedoed in the fore or aft holds she would -float for hours and might even be able to reach port under her own -steam. - -"There is a great deal of mania in this Germanophobe sentiment that is -sweeping the world," he said. "For the time being, we are everybody's -_bête noire_. The world must have somebody on whom it can pick. Right -now we are that somebody. Quite recently, during the Boer War, it was -Great Britain. During the Japanese War the entire world, Germany -excepted, made common cause with the Japs against the Russians, -forgetting somehow that this was a war of the yellow race against the -white. To-day we are it. To-morrow it will be somebody else. It is -always fashionable to hate somebody." - -That was the cool, diplomatic view of it. - -But the Central European public was more inclined to take the view of -the officer I had met on the Somme front. It was chagrined, -disappointed, grieved, stunned. - -The question was asked whether the invasion of Belgium had been really -necessary. Many held that the German general staff should have -concentrated a large force on the Belgian border, with orders not to -invade the country until the French had done so. - -There can be no doubt that this would have been the better policy. The -contention of the German government that the French contemplated going -through Belgium and had for the act the consent of the Belgian -government and the acquiescence of the British government will not -invalidate my assertion in the least. Granted that such an agreement had -been really made for the purpose of giving the French army certain -tactical advantages, it would be the policy of any wise and calm -government to wait for the execution of the plan. There would be no -Belgian question at all to-day if the Germans had given the French the -chance they are said to have sought. That the French reached out for the -German border _via_ Belgium would not have made the least difference in -the sum of military operations, since it was first a question of keeping -the French army out of Germany, and, secondly, of defeating the French -forces wherever met. - -The few days gained, and the slight military advantages alleged to have -been procured, were certainly not worth what Belgium was in the end to -cost the Germans. This is all the more true when it is considered that -the reduction of Liège and other Belgian fortifications might have never -become a necessity, in view of the fact that the documents found in -Brussels have never convinced me that the Belgian government was acting -in bad faith. - -It seems that many have overlooked the fact that, between tentative -arrangements made by the Belgian general staff and the allied -governments and an authorization by the Belgian parliament that war -should be declared against Germany, there is a great difference. The -former existed; the latter had yet to be obtained. In case it had been -obtained, in order to give the French troops marching through Belgium -the status they needed, there was still time for the Germans to do what -they did, under martial conditions that would have declared the French -troops in Belgium mere raiders, on the one hand, and Belgium a violator -of her neutral status, on the other. Belgium permitting the use of her -territory by French troops about to fall upon Germany would have been -obliged to also admit German troops, or declare war against Germany. -That case is so simple that few can understand it, as a rule. - -That such might have been the initial events of the war began finally to -dawn upon all thinking Germans. It occurred to many now that there was -ample front in Alsace-Lorraine; so much, in fact, that the French -succeeded in taking and holding quite a little of it. There was, also, -Luxembourg. - -Though mobilizations are like the avalanche that starts at the -mountain-top and thereafter obeys but one law, gravity, it was not -impossible for the German general staff to divert south-ward the troops -bound for the Belgian border. A day might have been lost. But even that -seems uncertain, since troops were needed along the Belgian border, -anyway, in view of what Berlin claims to have known. No matter how the -thing is looked at, in the end it resolves itself into the question -whether or not there was a difference in meeting French troops in -Belgium or on their own soil. It was the objective of the Germans to -defeat the French army. Whether that was done in the line of the French -fortifications along the Franco-Belgian border, as came to pass, or -whether that was done in the line of the fortifications along the -German-Belgian border, could make little difference to a government and -general staff able to think on its feet. - -Since governments at war must of necessity take it for granted that only -the men at the head of affairs have the right to think, this aspect of -the invasion of Belgium has been but rarely treated in public print in -Germany. I will say, however, that several military writers have -attempted to speak on the subject, and have usually been called to task -for their hardihood. - -To-day the average German is not at all sure that "Belgium" was -necessary. He has no interest in Belgium, differing in this from his -industrial and commercial lords. Most men and women with whom I -discussed the subject were of the opinion that "one Alsace-Lorraine is -enough." - -The greatest shock the German public received was the news that the -_Lusitania_ had been sunk. For a day or two a minority held that the -action was eminently correct. But even that minority dwindled rapidly. - -For many weeks the German public was in doubt as to what it all meant. -The thinking element was groping about in the dark. What was the purpose -of picking out a ship with so many passengers aboard? Then the news came -that the passengers had been warned not to travel on the steamer. That -removed all doubt that the vessel had not been singled out for attack. - -The government remained silent. It had nothing to say. The press, -standing in fear of the censor and his power to suspend publication, was -mute. Little by little it became known that there had been an accident. -The commander of the submarine sent out to torpedo the ship had been -instructed to fire at the foreward hold so that the passengers could get -off before the vessel sank. Somehow that plan had miscarried. Either a -boiler of the ship or an ammunition cargo had given unlooked-for -assistance to the torpedo. The ship had gone down. - -The defense made by the German government was based largely on points in -international law that govern the conduct of raiding cruisers. But the -submarine was not a cruiser. It could not save many lives under any -circumstances. - -People shook their heads and said nothing. It was best to say nothing, -since to speak was treasonable. - -Nothing weaned the German public so much away from the old order of -government as did the _Lusitania_ affair. The act seemed useless, -wanton, ill-considered. The doctrine of governmental infallibility came -near being wrecked. The Germans began to lose confidence in the wisdom -of the men who had been credited in the past with being the very -quintessence of all knowledge, mundane and celestial. Admiral Tirpitz -had to go. Germany's allies, too, were not pleased. In Austria and -Hungary the act was severely criticized, and in Turkey I found much -disapproval of the thing. - -While the greater part of the Central European public accepted that -there had been some necessity for the sinking of the ship, seeing that -she carried freight of a military character, there were many who thought -that in such cases politics and not military necessity should govern -conduct. These people were better politicians than those in the -government. But the others were better militarists and militarism was in -control, being seated more firmly as each day brought more enemies, open -and potential. The case was much like that of a family that may have -difficulties within, but which would set in concerted action upon any -outsider who might think it well to intervene. - -This was to be the fundamental quality of German public sentiment -throughout the course of the war. As the ring of enemies grew stronger -and tightened more upon the military resources of the empire, the public -grew harder and harder. The pressure exerted being concentric, it -grouped the German public closer and harder to its center--the -government. It was no longer the absolute devotion of other years which -the Germans brought their government--hardly that. It was the -determination to win the war despite the government and despite what -others thought and held of that government. The fact that government -there must be is too clear to the German to make him act toward his -_Obrigkeit_ with the impetuousness that has characterized events in -Russia, where this was possible only because for decades many there have -held the view that the time of anarchical society was at hand. - -This state of mind made possible the acceptance of the heavy sacrifices -which were demanded by the war. The very private in the trenches felt -that he would have to risk all against a world of enemies. - -Self-pity in the individual leads usually to maudlinism. The trait is -not foreign to German temperament. Self-pity in the aggregate is a -totally different thing. It is the quality that makes martyrs of men, so -long as there is an audience. It is sentiment minus all sickly -self-indulgence, and that is fortitude--the thing that will cause men to -adhere to an idea or principle even in the face of the stake at the -_auto da fé_. - -It was this spirit, also, that caused the German multitude to bear with -patience the many deprivations and burdens due to the war. - -In Austria things were slightly different. The Austrian-German is -probably more of Celtic than of Germanic blood. He is more volatile. -Great issues do not hold his attention long. He becomes easily a slave -to habit. - -To the Austrian-German the war was never more than a nuisance. It -interfered with his business; above all, his enjoyments; it drove him -from his favorite café and his clandestine lady-love. It upset life for -him thoroughly. What was the preservation of the Austrian Empire to a -man who shared that empire with Czech, Pole, Ruthene, Slovene, Croat, -Italian, Bosniak Mussulman, and in a sense with the Magyar and -Roumanian? The feeling of race interest would have to remain foreign to -such a man, just as it was a stranger to all the others who fought at -his side. Of the ten races in the Dual Monarchy only the Slav group -could understand one another without special study of the other's -language. Czech, Pole, Ruthene, Slovene, Croat, and Bosniak could with -little difficulty master one another's language. German, so far as it -was not familiar in the form of military commands, was unknown to most -of them. Magyar was a total stranger to Slav and German alike, and -Italian and Roumanian meant nothing to any of these. - -I remember philosophizing a bit at the execution wall of the -fortress of Peterwardein in Hungary. To the left of me stood -a little gallows--one of those peculiar strangulation implements they -use in Austria-Hungary--descendant of the Spanish _garrote_, I believe. -On the ancient brick wall were the marks left there by chipping steel -bullets. Many a Serb seditionist had seen the light of day for the last -time in that old moat. More of them were behind the grilled peepholes -of the casemate. That morning two or three had died where I stood. - -In that there was nothing unusual, perhaps. But on my right was a large -poster, framed with the Hungarian national colors, red, white, and -green. The poster drew attention to a certain paragraph of the treason -laws. It defined treason poignantly, precisely. - -I read the paragraph in German, concluded that the Hungarian said the -same, surmised that the Slav languages in the country did not differ -greatly from one another, found that Roumanian I could almost read, and -saw that the Italian version said the same thing as the German. I -suppose French had been left off the poster for the reason that the -Austro-Hungarian inter-monarchical classes, which now use that language -instead of Latin, as in the days of Marie Therese, did not need to have -their attention drawn to the danger of sedition. - -The gallows and execution wall seemed fit companions to that poster. One -might not have missed the other when seeing the one, but still there was -harmony between the two. People who do not understand one another, be -that a question of language or temperament, have no business to live -together. But the thing happens often in wedlock, and governments at -peace and leisure say that it is perfectly feasible from the viewpoints -of state interests. - -I found that _Das Reich_--the empire--had no meaning to any member of -the Austro-Hungarian group. But what held that conglomerate together? -The Emperor-King. - -Soon I found that nothing had changed in Austria-Hungary since the days -when the Empress-Queen Marie Therese, with her infant son in her arms, -and tears in her eyes and on her cheeks, had implored the Magyar nobles -to come to her assistance against Frederick the Great. The Magyar nobles -tore off their fur _kalpacks_, drew their swords, and cried: - -"_Moriamur pro rege nostro, Maria Theresa!_" - -That was still the mass psychology in the dual monarchy. The old -Emperor-King called to battle, and that was enough. Later the new -Emperor-King renewed the call, and it was still enough. - -What the soldiers did in the trenches the civilian population did at -home--a little half-heartedly at times, a little slovenly occasionally, -but reliably at all times. - -"We must help our Macedonian brothers. The Bulgars can no longer remain -deaf to their prayers to be relieved of the oppression of the Serbs," -said the Bulgarian Premier, Doctor Radoslavoff, to me in February, 1915. - -In October of the same year he said during an interview: - -"There is not enough room for two strong states on the Balkan peninsula. -Yet there must be a strong state if the Balkan problem is to be -eliminated. That strong state will be either Bulgaria or Serbia. _We_ -desire that it be Bulgaria. It will be Bulgaria when the Macedonians are -permitted to join her. The time has come when they can do that. For that -reason we go to war on the side of the Central Powers." - -The two statements picture Bulgarian mass psychology exactly. The Bulgar -wanted the Macedonian to be one with him nationally, as he is racially. -He wanted the ancient Bulgar capital of Monastir to lie again within -Bulgarland. With that in perspective he had driven the Turk from the -peninsula; for that purpose he wanted to make the Serb small. - -I found the same iron determination throughout Bulgaria and in all walks -of life. The _shope_ farmer, the shepherd in the _planina_, the monks at -Rila Monastir, the fishermen at Varna, the city and towns people, were -all for that idea. And in so stern a manner! To me the Bulgar will -always be the Prussian of the Balkan. He is just as morose, just as -blunt, and just as sincere. - -I had occasion to discuss Turkey's entry into the European War with his -Majesty, Sultan Mahmed Réchad Khan V., Ghazi, Caliph of all the -Faithful, etc., etc., etc. - -"They [the Allies] deny us the right to exist," said the old man. "We -have the right to exist and we are willing to fight for that. I have led -a very peaceful life always. I abhor bloodshed, and I am sincere when I -say that I mourn for those who died with the ships [the crews of the -battleships _Bouvet_ and _Irresistible_ whom I had seen go down with -their ships on March 18th, an event which the Sultan had asked me to -describe to him]. It must be hard to die when one is so young. But what -can we do? The Russians want the Bosphorus, this city, and the -Dardanelles. They have never belonged to the Russians. If there is -anybody who has a better right to them than we have, it is the Greeks. -We took these things from them. But we will not give them up to anybody -without the best fight the race of Osmanli has yet put up." - -Like Scheherazade, I then continued my account of the bombardment. - -Said Halim Pasha, then Grand Vizier, expressed himself somewhat -similarly. He was more diplomatically specific. - -"The hour of Turkey was come," he said. "That conflagration could not -end without the Allied fleet appearing off the Dardanelles, and the -Russian fleet off the Bosphorus. That would be the smash-up of the -Ottoman Empire. The Entente governments offered us guarantees that for -thirty years Ottoman territory would be held inviolate by them. -Guarantees--guarantees! What do they amount to! We have had so many -guarantees. When Turkey gets a guarantee it is merely a sign that there -is one more pledge to be broken. We are through with guarantees. We -joined the Germans because they offered none." - -All this in the most fluent Oxford English a man ever used. Said Halim -is an Egyptian and somewhat directly related to the Great Prophet in the -line of Ayesha. - -Enver Pasha, the Prussian of the Ottoman Empire, Minister of War, -generalissimo, Young Turk leader, efficiency apostle, Pan-German, and -what not, told me the same thing on several occasions. - -"Nonsense, nonsense!" he would say in sharp and rasping German. "We are -not fighting for the Germans. We are fighting for ourselves. Mark that! -They told us we'd be all right if we stayed neutral. Didn't believe it. -Nonsense! Russians wanted Constantinople. We know them. They can have -it when we are through with it. It was a case of lose all, win all. I am -for win all. Fired five thousand of the old-school officers to win this -war. Will win it. Country bled white, of course. Too many wars -altogether. First, Balkan War, Italian War. Now this. Better to go to -hell with Germans than take more favors from Entente. Those who don't -like us don't have to. Nobody need love us. Let them keep out of our -way. May go down in this. If we do we'll show world how Turk can go down -with colors flying. This is Turkey's last chance." - -It took Talaat Bey, then Minister of the Interior, now Grand Vizier, to -epitomize Turkey for me. He is a man of the plainest of people. When the -Turkish revolution of 1908 came Talaat was earning 150 francs a month as -a telegraph operator in Salonica. He saw his chance, and he and Dame -Opportunity have been great friends ever since. At that, he is not a -lean bundle of nerves like Enver Pasha, his great twin in Young Turkism. -He is heavy, good-natured, thick-necked, stubborn, bullet-headed, -shrewd. - -"_Très bien, cher frère_" ("We meet on the same pavement"), he said to -me in the best of Levantine French. "I can't say that this war is any -too popular with some of our people. They have had enough of wars, and -revolutions, and trouble, and taxes, and exploitation by -_concessionnaires_, and all that sort of thing. I suppose I would feel -the same way about it were I a Greek or an Armenian. But I am Turk. We -Turks felt that the European War would be the last of us. The Russians -want Constantinople and its waterways. The Italians want Cilicia, -forgetting entirely that the Greeks have priority in claim. I suppose -Thrace would have gone to the Bulgars when lot was cast for the shreds -of the mantle of the Osmanli, and Great Britain would have taken what -was left, which would have been not so little. - -"When a man is up against that he does the best he can. That's what we -are doing. It's a mighty effort, _cher frère_, but there is no way out. -We Turks are not ready yet to bow to the audience. We would still remain -in the play awhile. And we are willing to play accordingly. We have all -confidence in the Germans. Some people don't like them. They are -terrible competitors, I have been told. So far we have not done so -poorly with them. We have abolished the capitulations. That is something -for a start. When this war is over we hope to be more the masters of the -Bosphorus and the Dardanelles than we have been since the days of Grand -Vizier Köprülü. It'll be a hard row to hoe before the end is reached. -But we will come out on top. After that we and the Germans will try to -make something of our natural resources. We will build railroads and -factories, irrigate wherever possible, and establish the finest -agricultural schools to be found anywhere. But we will see to it that -Turkey is developed for the benefit of the Ottoman. Tobacco monopolies -and foreign public-debt administrations we hope to banish." - -Such is the aim of the Turk. To speak of mass psychology in the Ottoman -Empire is not possible, for the reason that it has more races than -Austria-Hungary and no central personage to hold them together. The old -Sultan is a myth to fully two-thirds of the Ottoman population. To the -Greeks and Armenians he is no more than any other high official of the -government. - - - - -XIX - -SEX MORALITY AND WAR - - -I have seen much comment on the increase of sexual laxness in the -Central European states, owing to the influence of the war. Those who -have written and spoken on the subject have, as a rule, proclaimed -themselves handicapped by either prejudice or ignorance--two things -which are really one. - -Much breath and ink has been wasted on certain steps taken by the -several German and Austro-Hungarian governments for the legitimization -of natural offspring by giving the mother the right to set the prefix -_Frau_--Mrs.--before her maiden name. I have also run across the -perfectly silly statement that the Central European governments, in -allowing such women the war subsistence and pension of the legitimate -widow and children, were purposely fostering that sort of illicit -relations between men and women for the purpose of repeopling their -states. On that point not much breath need be wasted, for the very good -reason that each child is indeed welcome just now in Central Europe, and -that the government's least duty is to take care of the woman and child -who might ultimately have been the wife and legitimate offspring of the -man who lost his life in the trenches. Sex problems are the inevitable -result of all wars in which many men lose life and health. I may also -say that in other belligerent countries this problem has as yet not been -dealt with half so intelligently and thoroughly. - -Monogamy and polygamy are usually economic results rather than purely -social institutions. A stay of nine months in Turkey showed me that -polygamy in that country is disappearing fast, because the Turk is no -longer able to support more than one wife. In the entire Bosphorus -district, in which Constantinople lies and of which it is the center, -there were in 1915 but seventeen Moslem households in which could be -found the limit of four legitimate wives. Of the entire population of -the district only seven per thousand Turks had more than one wife, so -that, on the whole, legalized polygamy made a better showing in sex -morality than what we of the Occident can boast of, seeing that -prostitution is unknown among the Turks. - -That the war increased illicit sexual intercourse in Central Europe is -true, nor was that increase a small one. It did not take on the -proportions, however, which have been given to it, or which under the -circumstances might have been looked for. - -In the first place, many of the slender social threads that restrain sex -impulse in the modern state snapped under the strain of the war. Their -place was taken by something that was closely related to the Spartan -system of marriage. Free selection was practised by women whose husbands -were at the front. The men did the same thing. The water on the -divorce-mill took on a mighty spurt--evidence that this looseness did -not always find the consent of the other party, though often his or her -conduct may not have been any better. - -This is a case in which generalization is not permissible. The good -stood beside the bad and indifferent, and reference to the subject might -be dispensed with entirely were it not that public subsistence is -closely related to sex morality. - -War takes from his home and family the man. Though the governments made -some provision for those left behind, the allowance given them was never -large enough to keep them as well as they had been kept by the labor of -the head of the family. So long as the cost of living did not greatly -increase, the efforts of the wife and older children met the situation, -but all endeavor of that sort became futile when the price of food and -other necessities increased twofold and even more. When that moment came -the tempter had an easy time of it. From the family had also been taken -much of the restraint which makes for social orderliness. The man was -away from home; the young wife had seen better times. Other men came -into her path, and nature is not in all cases as loyal to the marriage -vows as we would believe. In many cases the mother, now unassisted by -the authority of the father, was unable to keep her daughters and sons -in check. - -War has a most detrimental effect upon the mind of the juvenile. The -romance of soldiering unleashes in the adolescent male every quality -which social regulation has curbed in the past, while the young woman -usually discards the common sense of her advisers for the sickly -sentimentalism which brass buttons on clothing cut on military lines is -apt to rouse in the female mind. Soon the social fabric is rent in many -places and governmental efforts at mending are hardly ever successful. - -We have of this an indication in the remarkable increase in juvenile -delinquency which marked the course of the European War. In thousands of -cases the boys of good families became thieves and burglars. Even -highway robbery was not beyond them, and, odd as it may seem, nearly -every murder committed in the Central states in the last three years had -a lone woman of wealth for a victim and some young degenerate, male or -female, as perpetrator. In the cases that came to my notice the father -or husband was at the front. - -But apart from these more or less spontaneous failings of young men and -women, there was the category of offenses in which external influence -was the _causa movens_. Desperate need caused many to steal and -embezzle; it caused many women to divest themselves of that self-respect -which is decency and the glory of the _fille honnête_. - -Nothing can be so cynical as the laws of social administration. That was -shown on every hand by the war, but especially did it become apparent in -the gratification of the sexual appetite by that class which has nothing -but money. While the father and husband was at the front, fighting for -the state, and heaping the wealth of the community into the coffers of a -rapacious industrial and commercial class, his daughter and wife were -often corrupted by that very wealth. Nor was it always bitter want that -promoted the lust of the wealthy profligate. The war had shaken the -social structure to its very foundations. So great was the pressure of -anxiety that the human mind began to crave for relief in abandonment, -and once this had been tasted the subject would often become a confirmed -"good-time" fiend. - -There was a certain war purveyor of whom it was said that he seduced a -virgin once a week. The class he drew upon was the lowest. Most of his -victims were factory-girls, and, such being the case, nobody thought -much of it at a time when calamity had roused in all the worst qualities -that may be wakened in the struggle for self-preservation. It was a case -of the devil take the hindmost, and his Satanic Majesty did not overlook -his chance. - -For a few days these girls would be the paramours of their masters. -When, finally, they saw themselves cast off in favor of a prettier face, -they would for a while frequent cafés where they would meet the officers -on leave and small fry of civilians, and not long after that they did -business on the street with a government license and certificate showing -that they were being inspected by the authorities in the interest of -public health. - -That was the usual career of one of these war victims. But the thing did -not end there. The thousands who had grown rich on war contracts and -food speculation began to tire of the very uninteresting sport of -ruining factory-girls and shop-women. They reached out into those social -classes in which refinement made a raid so much more delectable. To -physical debauch had to be added moral and mental orgy. Taste had been -stimulated to a degree where it demanded that social destruction should -accompany lustful extravagance. And that only the woman of the better -class could give. The gourmand became an epicure. Times favored him. - -What proportions this state of affairs reached may be illustrated by the -"personal" advertisements carried at one time by one of Vienna's -foremost newspapers, the _Tagblatt_. Throughout the week that paper -would carry from forty to ninety inches, single column, of personal -ads., each of them requesting a woman, seen here or there, to enter into -correspondence with the advertiser for "strictly honorable" purposes. On -Sundays the same paper would carry as much as two whole pages of that -sort of advertising. Soon the time came when often as much as a quarter -of these ads. would be inserted by women who disguised a heartrending -appeal to some wretch in whatever manner they could. - -Emperor Charles deserves the highest credit for finally putting his foot -down on that practice. The "personals" in the _Tagblatt_ began to -irritate him, and one day he let it become known to the management of -the publication that further insertion of that sort of matter would lead -to the heavy hand of the censors being felt. That helped. After that the -_Tagblatt_ ran only matrimonial advertising. Yet even that was not -wholly innocuous. The daughter of a colonel was corrupted by means of -it. I am glad to say that the old soldier took the law in his own hand. -He looked up the man who had seduced the young woman and shot him dead -in his tracks. The government had good sense enough to dispose of the -case by having the colonel make a report. - -To my own attention came, in Budapest, the case of a fourteen-year-old -girl who had been sold by her own mother to a rich manufacturer. The -woman had advertised in a Budapest newspaper that did business along the -lines of the Vienna _Tagblatt_. The girl knew nothing of it, of course. -There was a sequel in court, and during the testimony the woman said -that she had sold her daughter to the manufacturer in order to get the -money she needed to keep herself and her other children. Josephus -mentions in his _Wars of the Jews_ how a woman of Jerusalem killed, then -cooked and ate, her own child, because the robbers had taken everything -from her, and, rather than see the child starve, she killed it. He also -mentions that the robbers left the house horror-struck. The war purveyor -and food shark did not always have that much feeling left in them. - -Poor little Margit! When my attention was drawn to her she was a -waitress in a café in Budapest, and her patrons used to give her an -extra _filler_ or two in order that she might not have to do on her own -account what she had been obliged to suffer at the behest of her raven -mother. As I heard the story, the manufacturer got off with a fine, and -the mother of Margit was just then sorting rags in a cellar, with -tuberculosis wasting her lungs. - -Society at war is a most peculiar animal--it is anarchy without the -safeguards of that anarchy which fires the mind of the idealist; for -that system and its free love would make the buying of woman impossible. - -But there were sorts of sexual looseness that were not quite so sordid, -which at least had the excuse of having natural causes as their -background. Rendered irresponsible by sexual desire and the monotony of -a poverty-stricken existence, many of the younger women whose husbands -were in the army started liaisons, _Verhältnisse_, as they are called in -German, with such men as were available. It speaks well for the openness -of mind of some husbands that they did not resent this. I happen to know -of a case in which a man at the front charged a friend to visit his -wife. After I learned of this I came to understand that progress, called -civilization, is indeed a very odd thing. The Spartans when at war used -to do the same thing, and it was the practice of commanders to send -home young men of physical perfection in order that the women should -beget well-developed children. The offspring was later known as -_partheniæ_--of the virgin born. But the laws of the Spartans favored an -intelligent application of this principle, while in Central Europe no -regulation of that sort could be attempted. - -An effort was made by the several governments to check this tendency -toward social dissolution. For the first time in many years the police -raided hotels. Now and then offenders were heavily fined. But -authorities which in the interest of public health had licensed certain -women were prone to be open-minded to practices due to the war. It was -realized that the times were such that latitude had to be given; in the -end it was felt that just now it did not matter how children were born. -The state began to assume what had formerly been the duty of the father -and proceeded with more vigor than ever against the malpractice of -physicians. One of them, convicted on the charge of abortion, was given -a two-year sentence of penal servitude. - -It cannot be said, however, that the woman who had made up her mind to -remain a loyal wife or innocent was not given ample protection. The -state was interested in the production of children, but had little -patience with illicit sexual intercourse that did not result in this. -There is the theory that the child whose father does not take some -loving interest in the mother is not of as much value as that which has -been born in the "wedlock" of love. With that in view, the government -took what precaution there was possible. The profligate and _roué_ were -given a great deal of attention, though little good came of this, since -the times favored them entirely too much. But there is no doubt that the -eyes of the law saw where they could see. - -Food-lines were as a rule attended by policemen, whose duty it was to -maintain order and keep off the human hyenas who were in the habit of -loitering about these lines for the purpose of picking out women. That -was well enough. But the policeman could not see these women home, nor -prevent the man from surveying the crowd, making his selection, and -later forcing his attentions upon the woman. - -With the need for food and clothing always pressing, the ground was -generally well prepared, and the public was inclined to be lenient in -such matters anyway--as "war" publics have a knack of doing. - -I had scraped up acquaintances with a number of policemen in the -district in which I lived. Most of them I had met in connection with my -investigation of food-line matters. They were all very fine fellows, and -red blood rather than red tape was in their veins. The suffering of the -women in the food-lines had made these men more human than is usual in -their business. - -"Another one of them has gone to the bad," said one of the policemen to -me one day, as he pointed out to me discreetly a rather pretty young -woman who had come for her ration of potatoes. "A fellow, who seems -rather well-to-do, has been trailing her to and from this store for -almost two weeks. I had my eye on him, and would have nabbed him quick -enough had he ever spoken to the woman while in the line. Well, three -days ago I saw the two of them together in the Schwarzenberg Café. The -damage is done now, I suppose. You will notice that she has on a new -pair of shoes. She must have paid for them at least one hundred and ten -crowns." - -I suggested that the shoes were not necessarily proof that the woman had -done wrong. - -"Under the circumstances they are," said the policeman. "Yesterday I -managed to talk to the woman. She is the wife of a reservist who is now -on the Italian front. The government gives her a subsistence of one -hundred and twenty crowns a month. She has no other means. With two -little children to take care of, that allowance wouldn't pay for shoes -of that sort. It's too bad. She is the second one in this food-line this -month who has done that." - -Shortly afterward I learned of the case of a woman who had sold herself -in order to provide food and fuel for her two children. She was the -widow of a reserve officer who had fallen in Galicia. Her own pension -amounted to one hundred and ten crowns a month, and for the support of -the children she was allowed another one hundred crowns, I believe. The -sum was entirely too small to keep the three, being the equivalent of, -roughly, twenty-seven dollars, depreciation of the Austro-Hungarian -currency considered. At that time life in Vienna was as costly as it is -normally in the United States. While her husband had been alive the -woman had led a very comfortable life. She had kept a servant and lived -in a good apartment in the Third Municipal District. The thing that -struck me in her case was that she had not taken the step before. It is -extremely difficult to be virtuous on twenty-seven dollars a month when -one has not known need before. - -The many cases of that sort which I could cite would merely repeat -themselves. I will make mention, however, of one which is due to what -may be termed the psychology of the mass in war. In this instance it was -not want that was responsible. Aggregates involved in war seem to sense -instinctively that the violence of arms may draw in its wake social -dissolution. The pathology of society is affected by that in much the -same manner as is evident in other organisms when a change is imminent -or pending. A period of relaxation sets in, which in the case of the -human aggregate manifests itself in sexual looseness. - -In various parts of Serbia I had had occasion to notice that the women -gave themselves readily to the invading soldiers. In the Austrian -capital I ran into the same thing, though there was at that time no -danger of invasion. - -Time lying heavy on my hands when I was not at a front, or occupied with -some political situation in one of the Central European seats of -government, I decided to pass some of it by taking piano lessons. I -made the necessary arrangements with a master of the instrument near the -Kärntner Ring. On the three half-hours a week which I took from the -_maestro_ I was preceded on two by a pretty young woman greatly gifted -musically. Her parents were well off, so that it was not a question of -getting a "good time" in the only manner possible. - -After a while the young woman failed to appear for her lessons. The -_Tonmeister_ wanted to know the reason for this. Confused and -conflicting answers being all he received, he made up his mind that -something was wrong. The poor old man had dealt with nothing but music -all his life, and was delightfully ignorant of the ways of the world. He -asked my advice. Should he inform the parents of the student? - -After I had ascertained that his responsibility as teacher was not -weighted by friendship or even acquaintance with the girl's family, I -suggested that he confine himself to his proper province by notifying -the student that failure in the future to put in appearance at her hour -would result in a report of that and past delinquencies to the parents. - -A very emotional interview between teacher and student resulted. By this -time the girl had realized the folly of her conduct and seemed truly -repentant. Being much attached to the old teacher, she made a clean -breast of it. Her excuse was most interesting. - -"You see, dear master," she said, "these are war times. I thought that -it wouldn't matter much. If the Russians came to Vienna it might happen -anyway." - -There is used in the German army a word that comprises every -rule of sex conduct to which the soldier is subject, or ought to -be--_Manneszucht_--the moral discipline of the man. Infraction of this -rule is severely punished in all cases, though the ordinary soldier may -under it cohabit with a woman by her consent. To the officer this -privilege is not given, however, it being assumed that as the instrument -of military discipline he must be proof against many demands of nature -and be in full control of himself at all times. The German officer who -would violate a woman in an occupied territory fares badly, and the code -forbids that he enter into liaison with a woman of the enemy. Nor may he -visit the army brothels which now and then are established by the -authorities. - -I do not mean to infer that the German army officer always and -invariably adheres to these rules. But he does this generally. The -abstinence thus practised reflects itself in that unqualified devotion -to duty for which the German officer is deservedly famous. It tends to -make of him, for military purposes, a sort of superman. He comes to -regard the curb he sets upon himself as entitling him to despise the -weaklings who satisfy their desires. In the course of time he extended -the fine contempt that comes from this to his allied brothers-in-arms in -Austria and Hungary, who were deplorably lax in that respect, despite -the regulations. - -Though I do not especially deal with the latter subject, I must mention -it here as a preamble to a certain experience I had one night in -Trieste. The experience, on the other hand, showed to what extent war -may influence the conduct of men whose station and opportunities might -cause one to believe that they were above surrendering to sexual -laxness. - -In the "Hall" of the Hotel Excelsior of Trieste were sitting at café -tables some sixty Austro-Hungarian officers from the Isonzo front who on -that day had been furloughed from the trenches for a certain purpose. At -the tables sat also a fourscore of women who for the time being were the -sweethearts of the officers. High revelry was on. The windows of the -room, with all others along the Trieste water-front, had been well -blinded, so that no beam of light fell into the inky blackness without -through which a fierce _borea_--northern wind--was just then driving a -veritable deluge. - -The room was well heated and lighted. I had on that very day walked off -a sector on the Carso plateau, and found a most pleasant contrast -between the cold and muddy trenches and the "Hall." It was exceedingly -snug in the place. And there was the inevitable gipsy music. - -Across the bay, from Montfalcone, came the sound of an Italian night -drumfire, and in the room popped the bottle of Paluguay champagne--the -French products being just then hard to get. - -There were three other war correspondents in the party. An Austrian -general-staff man was in charge. The officer was of the strait-laced -sort and did not sanction the conduct of his colleagues. But then he was -at headquarters at Adelsberg and could go to Vienna almost as often as -he liked. The others were poor devils who had been sitting in the Carso -trenches for months and had now come to Trieste to have a good time, -even if that meant that next morning the pay of several months would be -in the pocket of the hotel manager and in the hands of some good-looking -Italo-Croat woman. - -It was not long before we had at our table some of the "ladies." One of -the war correspondents had taken it upon himself to provide us with -company. From that company I learned what the frame of mind of the -officers was. After all, that attitude was simple enough. Each day might -be the last, and why not enjoy life to-day when to-morrow there might be -a burial without coffin, without anything except the regrets of -comrades? What was etiquette under such circumstances? The champagne -helped them to forget, and the women, though their conversation might be -discouragingly banal, were, after all, members of the other sex. One of -the women was able to take a very intelligent survey of the situation. -She was capable of sensing real sympathy for these men. I learned that -she had lost her husband in the war. It was the same old story. She had -found the small pension for herself and the allowance for her boy -entirely insufficient, was not minded to do poorly paid hard work, and -had concluded that it was easy for the well-to-do to be decent. The poor -had to do the best they could in these days of high prices. - -Out on the Carso the bombardment progressed, satisfactorily, I presume, -as the next official _communiqué_ of the Italian government would say. -The champagne bottles continued to pop. Men and women drank to one -another's good health, the former oblivious, for the time being, that -this might be the last good time they would ever enjoy. - -It strikes me that not much fault can be found with this, so long as we -are human enough to allow those whom we are about to execute for the -commission of some crime to choose their last breakfast--or is it -supper? To be detailed into the advanced trenches was generally no -better than to be sentenced to death. - -Only those who have been constantly threatened by the dangers of war can -realize what state of mind these men were in. Nothing mattered any more, -and, nothing being really important, the pleasures of the flesh were -everything. It was so with the little music student I have mentioned. I -could not reach a harsh judgment in either case, despite the picture of -Prussian _Manneszucht_ before my eyes. At the same time, I am not -ignorant of the fact that sleek communities living in peace and plenty -cannot be expected to understand the moral disintegration which the -dangers of war had wrought in this instance. - -I made the acquaintance of similar conditions in Berlin and other cities -of the Central states. Being a matter-of-fact individual, I cannot say -that they shocked me. The relations of cause and effect cannot be -explained away, much as we may wish to do it. With some fourteen million -men taken away from their families, whose sole support they were in the -vast majority of cases, nothing else was to be expected. It speaks well -for mankind in general that the resulting conditions were not worse. The -responsibility involved falls rather upon those who brought on the war -than upon the men and women who transgressed. - -And that responsibility was not shirked in the Central states. Before -the war broke out there had already been held very liberal views on -illegitimacy. The children of Hagar were no longer ostracized by the -public, as, for instance, they are in the United States and other -countries where social "justice" is still visited upon those whose -misfortune it is to have been born out of wedlock. In Germany and -Austria-Hungary it was held that a man is a man for all that. - -Small wonder, then, that during the winter of 1916, when the crop of -"war" babies was unusually large--formed, in fact, more than 10 per -cent. of the increase in population--the several Central European -governments should decide to give such children and their mothers the -allowances provided for the wives and widows of soldiers and their -children. The German state governments, that of Prussia excepted, -also abolished the "illegitimate" birth certificate and gave -the unwed soldier wife or widow the right to use the designation -_Frau_--Mistress--instead of, as heretofore, _Fräulein_, or Miss. - -This measure was a fine example of humaneness, seeing that otherwise -many thousands of mothers of "war" babies would have been obliged to go -through life with the stigma of illegitimacy branding both woman and -child. It is somewhat typical of Prussia that its government should be -willing to support illegitimate "war" babies and their mothers and yet -deny them the comforts of social recognition, when their number was no -less than two hundred thousand. - -There came up, in connection with this legislation, the question of -whether the offspring of unmarried women whose paramours were not in the -military service should receive the same liberal treatment. A great deal -of opposition was voiced by the clergy and other conservative elements. -It was argued that extension of this benefit to all would encourage a -general recourse to free love. - -But the legislators and governments were less short-sighted. The -legitimizing acts were so framed that they included all children, no -matter who their fathers were. It was held that it would be absurd to -expect the millions of women whom the war had robbed of their husbands, -or the chance of getting one, to lead a life of celibacy. Nature would -assert itself, and if the subject was not now dealt with in a rational -manner, it would have to be disposed of later when conditions might be -less favorable. - -There were certain examples to be recalled. At the conclusion of the -Thirty Years' War the South German states, being the hardest hit in -losses of male population, adopted laws according to which any man with -the necessary means could legitimately admit into his house as many -women as he cared to support. Though well-intentioned, the law shared -every defect which emergency legislation is apt to be afflicted with. -The men able to support more than one wife were generally advanced in -years, so that the very condition which the state had hoped to meet gave -rise to chaos. It had not been the intention to afford the pleasures of -the seraglio to the wealthy, but to take the best possible account of a -social emergency. - -This was borne in mind when the Central states governments dealt with a -similar condition in 1916, the factors of which were these: There had -been killed in action, crippled for life, and incapacitated by disease -nearly five million men who had gone to the fronts in the very prime of -life. That meant a serious loss to a community--considering Germany and -Austria-Hungary a single unit in this respect--which then had -approximately twenty million women in the state of puberty. Reduced to -statistics, the situation was that there were only four men of -marriageable age for every five women. It was estimated at the time that -before the war was over these odds would go to three to five. Recent -casualty statistics show that this stage has been nearly reached. - -I must make reference here to the fact that the normal and healthy woman -finds life with the physically impaired man a torture. A good many cases -of that sort have come to my attention. One of them is so typical of all -others that I will give its details. - -At a certain Berlin drawing-room I made the acquaintance of a charming -young woman of the better class. I may say that she is a writer of -considerable merit. - -A few months before the outbreak of the war she had married a -professional man of quality. When the mobilization came he was drafted -as an officer of the reserve. - -For months at a time the two did not see each other, and when finally -the man returned home for good one leg had been amputated at the knee -and the other a little above the ankle. The woman did what most women -would do under the circumstances. She received the man with open arms -and nursed him back to complete recovery. - -Soon it was evident that all was not well with the relations of the two. -The woman tried to forget that her husband was a cripple for life. But -the harder she tried the more grew a feeling of repulsion for the man. -Finally, she decided to live alone. - -It would be very simple to label the woman a heartless creature. But it -would be quite as unjust. The foes of even that small portion of -realism which the most logical of us are able to identify may be -inclined to take the stand that sex has little to do with what is called -love. And yet in the healthy race it forms the social _force majeure_. -It is not for me to decide whether the woman in question did well in -leaving the man. After all, that is her own affair--so much more her own -affair since the man, as yet not reconciled to his great misfortune, -began to plague her with most vicious outbreaks of jealousy, when as yet -he had no reason for it. - -The man is to be pitied by all, and unless he is able to calm his mind -with the solace that comes from philosophical temperament, it would have -been far better were he among the dead. He may in the end find another -mate; but, seen from the angle of natural law, it must be doubted that -the pity, which would have to be the great factor in such a love, would -in any degree be as valuable as the sexual instinct which caused the -other woman to go her own ways. Idealism and practice are always two -different things. The former is the star that guides the craft, while -practice is the storm-tossed sea. - -More than fifty thousand Russian prisoners-of-war petitioned the -Austrian government to be admitted to citizenship in the country that -held them captive. Many of these men had been sent into the rural -districts to assist the farmers. Others were busy around the cities. -They had come to be reconciled with their lot, had acquired a fair -working knowledge of the language, and association with the women had -led to the usual results. The crop of "war" babies increased. - -The Russians were willing to marry these women, but under the law could -not do so. Hence the petition for admission to the usual civil rights. -The Austrian government recognized the situation, but in the absence of -the necessary legislative authority could do nothing to admit the -Russian to Austrian _Staatsangehörigkeit_. Yet it was eager to do that. -The new blood was needed. - -Travel about the country has often brought to my attention that in -certain districts intermarriage for centuries had led to degeneration. -Goiter, one of the first signals of warning that new blood must be -infused in the race, was prevalent. Scientists had drawn attention to -this long before the war. But there was nothing that could be done. - -The Russian prisoners-of-war came to serve as the solution of the -problem. Their offspring were unusually robust, and some cranium -measurements that were made showed that the children were of the best -type mentally. - -A state which was losing men at a frightful rate every day could not be -expected to view this increase in population with alarm. So long as the -mothers were Austrian all was well from the political point of view, -since it is the mother usually who rears the patriot. The Russians, -moreover, soon grew fond of the institutions of Austria, and gave return -to their own people hardly any thought. Conversation with many of them -demonstrated that, on the contrary, they were not anxious to go home. -Russia was then still the absolute autocracy, and these men were not -minded to exchange the liberal government of Austria for the despotism -they knew. - -I may state here that the Austrian government, serving in this instance -as the example of all others in Central Europe, had done its level best -to promote this very thing. On several trips to prison camps I visited -the schools in which the Russian prisoners were being taught German. -Thousands of the men were thus given their first chance to read and -write, and to the more intelligent was apparent the irony of fate that -caused them to read and write German instead of their own language. No -more deliberate attempt to win friends could have been devised and -executed. Small wonder that on one occasion a Russian working detachment -employed in road-making on the Italian front rushed to the assistance of -the Austrians who were being overwhelmed, and cut down the last of their -allies with their spades and picks. - -To what extent Russian blood has been infused in the rural population of -Austria and Hungary is at present entirely a matter of conjecture. The -same applies to Germany, though I must state that in this case the -number cannot be so great. - -Dreary as the picture is, it is not without its brighter spots. The -mixture of blood which has occurred in many of these countries will -improve the human stock. And who would care to gainsay that governments -are not in the habit of looking at populations from that angle--the -angle of stock? None will admit it, of course, they may not even be -conscious of the fact that they hold this view. But so long as -governments are interested more in quantity than in quality of -propagation they cannot easily clear themselves of the suspicion. I am -not at all sure that it is not better thus. - -I have so far treated the post-bellum aspect of sex morality entirely -from the position of the man. Women will ask the question: What do the -women think of it? - -That depends somewhat on conditions and circumstances. - -"When one is forty, one is satisfied with being _madame_," said a -Hungarian lady to me once, when the subject had been discussed. She -meant that the woman of forty was content with being the head of a -household. - -Such an attitude takes a breadth of view altogether unknown in the -Anglo-Saxon world. I found it often in Central Europe, especially in -Austria, where one day were pointed out to me two couples who not so -very long before had changed mates by mutual consent on the part of all -four concerned. One of the husbands is a rich banker, and the other, his -best friend by the way, is also well off. The double pair go to the same -café, sit at the same table, and their friends think nothing of it. They -are regularly divorced and married, of course. - -While elsewhere in Central Europe the same easy view is not taken, it -is a fact, nevertheless, that nowhere much puritanical strait-lacedness -is to be encountered. I happen to know a certain successful diplomat who -closed both eyes to his wife's infatuation for a young naval officer. -The wife was young and her husband was past middle age. Rather than lose -the woman and have a scandal besides, the diplomatist applied to himself -what he had so often applied to others--the deception there is in -self-restraint. - -The three of them got along well together. Often I was the fourth at -table. While the diplomatist and I would smoke our cigars and sip our -coffee, the two would sit side by side on the ottoman and hold intimate -converse. But in Europe it is considered tactless to speak of such -matters. - -There will be heartache, of course. Many a good woman will find herself -displaced by a younger one. But that will not be without some -compensation. The husband who would desert his mate because the charms -of youth have flown may not be worth keeping. It may even be an act of -mercy that he has rekindled his affection at some other shrine. The -forsaken wife may have grown very weary herself of the life conjugal. - -In Protestant Germany the readjustment will be easier than in Catholic -Austria and Hungary. In the latter countries much double-living will -result, and that means that more women will have to sacrifice more -self-respect. That is the worst part of it. - -But, again, the _légère_ views of Central Europe come into play. So long -as the man has sense enough to keep his "war" wife in the background, -nobody will take offense, and the legal wife may not mind. Officially, -the paramour will not exist. As soon as she has children she will be a -"Mrs." in her own right, and I suppose that many will not wait that long -before changing "_Fräulein_" into "_Frau_." - -There is no doubt that the condition is unjust to two women at the same -time. But there seems to be no escape from it. Ministers of the gospel -have already roundly condemned what seeming sanction the government has -given to illicit intercourse. But these good men are theorists, while -the government is practical--practical for the reason that a great -social problem has to be met in the best manner possible. It is far -better to give the thing such aspects of decency as is possible rather -than to encourage the growth of the social evil into proportions that -might for all time impair the health of the race. Students of the social -evil generally agree, throughout Europe at least, that its prime causes -are economic. Communities in which the man, by reason of small income, -is not able to establish a household early in life have not only the -greatest number of loose women, but also the greatest number of -free-living bachelors. - -The problem, then, has an economic side. In the instance here under -scrutiny, the economic side is that more women than ever before must -earn their own living in Central Europe to-day. The women will readily -do that, so long as society will not entirely deny them the company of -the man or place upon such company the stigma that generally attaches to -it. Without such privileges many of these women--nature decrees -ironically that they should be physically the best of the race--would -take to vice in such numbers that society would lose more by being -ungenerous than by taking a common-sense view of the problem it has to -face. - -But logic in such matters is no balm of Gilead. The young married woman -will be able to compete with the "surplus"; the older ones, I fear, will -not. To them the war will be the thing of the hour, long after the grass -has grown over the trenches, long after the work of reconstruction shall -have healed the economic wounds. - -There will be many who can truly say, "I lost my husband in the war." -And the worst of it is that they will not be able to say this with the -tenderness that was in the heart at the departure for the field of -battle. - - - - -XX - -WAR LOANS AND ECONOMY - - -During the last three years and a half the political economy of Germany -and her allies has strongly resembled that in vogue among certain South -Sea Islanders, who are supposed to make a living by taking in one -another's washing. The same money has been making the rounds on one of -the oddest economic whirligigs mankind has so far seen. - -The war has been carried on by means of funds derived mostly from war -loans. By means of them Germany has so far raised, roughly, -$19,800,000,000, and Austria-Hungary $8,600,000,000, making a total of -$28,400,000,000. In addition to that the two countries have spent on the -war about $2,300,000,000 derived from other sources--taxation, -indemnities levied in occupied territories, and property here and there -confiscated. - -Within my scope, however, lie only the war loans. - -The interest on the German war loans so far made amounts to $762,000,000 -per year. To the German public debts the loans have added $293 per -capita, or $1,082 for each producer in a population which the war has -reduced to about 67,500,000 fit individuals. Each wage-earner in Germany -will in the future carry a tax burden which in addition to all other -moneys needed by the government will be weighted every year by $43.28 -interest on the present war loans. - -Austria-Hungary's load of interest on war loans will amount to -$344,000,000 annually. The burden is $204 per capita, or $816 for each -wage-earner, out of a population which war losses have cut down to about -42,200,000. The annual interest each Austro-Hungarian breadwinner will -have to pay on the war loans is $32.64, and in addition he must provide -the revenues which his governments will need to operate. - -This means, of course, that the cry for bread will be heard long after -the guns thunder no more. It must be borne in mind that the average -yearly income of the wage-earner was a scant $460 in Germany, and $390 -in Austria-Hungary. The war loan interest so far in sight will -constitute about 9.3 per cent. and 8.2 per cent. respectively--no small -burden when it is considered that all other revenues needed by the -government must be added to this. - -But the bitter cup of economic losses due to the war is by no means full -with these figures. The Germans have so far lost, killed in action and -dead of wounds, fully 1,500,000 able-bodied producers, and have at this -time to care for about 900,000 men, of whom one half is totally -incapacitated and the other half partly so. The Austro-Hungarian -figures are 650,000 men dead, and 380,000 totally or partly crippled. In -other words, Germany has lost 2,300,000 able-bodied men, and -Austria-Hungary 1,030,000. It may well be said that those dead can no -longer figure in the economic scheme, because they consume no longer. On -the other hand, each of these men had another twenty years of useful -life before him. This long period of production has now been lost, and -two decades must elapse before the Central states will again have as -many producers as they had in 1914. Their propagation has also been -lost, though, with the women as strong numerically as before, this loss -will probably have been made good within ten years. - -Before treating further of the effects of war loans and their influence -upon the body politic, I will examine here how these loans were made, in -what manner they were applied, and what the system of economy was to -which the transaction gave birth. - -The figures I have cited may well suggest the question: - -How was it possible under such conditions to make war loans? - -The superficial reply to that would be: - -By raising the money in the country--inducing the people to subscribe to -the loans. - -The reply has no value, since it does not disclose how the necessary -money was made available. The funds invested in the war loans were a -part of the national capital, not a portion of the national wealth, the -term wealth standing for the natural resources of a community. But -capital is the surplus of production, and production results only from -applying labor to natural resources; for instance, by tilling the soil, -mining coal and ore, and engaging in the conversion of the less useful -into the more useful, as is done in industry. A surplus of production is -possible only, however, when consumption falls below production, for -that which is left over of the thing produced makes the surplus. This -surplus is capital. - -Incomplete figures which I was able to gather in 1916 showed that before -the war the average wage-earner of Central Europe had produced and -consumed in a ratio of 55 against 48, so far as the scale of pay and -cost-of-living showed. The difference of 7 points represented the amount -of money he could save if he wanted to do that. The 7 points, then, were -the actual increase in the national capital. - -In the winter of 1916-17 the figures had undergone a remarkable change. -Wages had been increased to 70 points, while the cost of food had risen -to 115 points as against 48 formerly. In other words, while the -wage-earner was getting 15 points more for his labor, he was paying 67 -points more for his food and the necessities of life. The place of the 7 -positives in capital production had been taken by 45 negatives, which -meant that the national capital of Central Europe had fallen below -static, the point where neither increase nor reduction takes place, by -38 points. The national capital had been decreased 38 per cent., -therefore. That much of all present and former surplus production of the -two states had been used up in the pursuit of the war. - -Governments deem it a safe policy to issue in times of financial stress -three times as much paper currency as they have bullion in the vaults. -One million in gold makes three millions in paper with that formula. -This had been done in Germany and Austria-Hungary to quite an extent by -the end of 1916. For every million of gold in the vaults there was a -million of _bona fide_ paper money. That was well enough. The currency -system of the United States adheres to that principle in times of peace -even. But upon the same million of metal there had been heaped other -paper currency which carried the promise of the government that on the -given date it would be redeemed for gold or its equivalent. This method -of national finance is known as inflation. It was this inflation that -caused the wage-earner to show in his own little budget a deficit of 38 -points. - -Why the government should have inflated its currency in that manner is -not so difficult to understand as it may seem. From its own point of -view, the wage-earner had to be lashed into greater effort if the moneys -needed for the war were to be available and if the food and material -consumed by the army were to be produced. The more the consumer had to -pay for what he required to sustain life the harder he had to work. His -deficit of 38 points was the yoke under which he labored for the army -in the field, which was consuming without producing anything. These 38 -points were only 17 points less than the 55 which had represented his -income before the war--in round terms every two wage-earners in Central -Europe were supporting in food, clothing, munition, and ammunition a -soldier at the front. It could not be otherwise since two political -aggregates having then approximately, with the women included, -twenty-five million wage-earners, were keeping under arms about ten -million soldiers, and were meanwhile providing the heavy profits made by -the war purveyors. - -Though the 38 points were a deficit, the producer-consumer was not -allowed to look at them in that manner. It was his task to cover this -deficit. This he did by paying more for his food and necessities, -through a channel which the inflated currency had filled with water in -the familiar stock-jobbing phrase. The middlemen who owned the barges in -the channel were taxed by the government on their war profits, but -enough was left them to preserve interest in the scheme of war economy, -a friendly act which the middlemen reciprocated by generous -subscriptions to the war loans. - -The first, second, and third war loans in Central Europe were subscribed -to with much, though later dwindling, enthusiasm. Patriotism had a great -deal to do with their success. Real money was required by the -government, moreover. Bank accounts, government securities, sound -commercial paper, and savings deposits were turned over. The loans made -later were devoid of many of these features. Those who bought war-loan -certificates did so because it was necessary for one reason or another, -and many of the war bonds obtained in the first loans were converted. -The war and all that pertained to it was now entirely a matter of -business with those who could subscribe. The poor were tired of any -aspect of war. - -The government could not prevent their being tired, but it could see to -it that indirectly the masses supported the war policy, no matter what -they thought. That was not difficult. The high cost of living took from -the producer-consumer what the government needed, and there is no system -of discipline that is quite so efficacious as keeping a man's nose to -the grindstone. - -Sleek bankers used to inform me that there was much prosperity in the -country. There was from their point of view. The margin between the -wages paid the producer and the prices asked of the consumer was great -enough to satisfy the interested parties, government and middleman -alike. The war loans had hardly been closed when a good share of them -was again in circulation. The whirligig of war economy was spinning -lustily, and there was no danger of things going wrong so long as the -producer-consumer was kept well in hand. - -How the war loans made the rounds is quite interesting. It is the -closest approach to perpetual motion I have come across. - -Since the Central states could buy in foreign countries only by means of -special trade agreements that called for an exchange in commodities -rather than for the medium of exchange, the money raised by the war -loans remained within the realm. Much of it went to makers of arms and -ammunition, of course. In their case a million marks--I am using this -small amount as a unit only--would lead to the following results: To the -manufacturer would go 60 per cent. of the total and to labor 40. -Subdivided these shares paid for raw material, plant investment, -operation expenses, and profits so large that the government could -impose a tax of 75 per cent. without making it impossible for the -manufacturer to subscribe to the next loan. Labor, on the other hand, -found itself barely able to sustain life, and if a few marks were saved -by some, little or nothing could be bought for them. The man who was -earning 70 marks a week, instead of 55, was paying for his food and -necessities 115 instead of 48 marks--an economic incongruity at first -glance, but perfectly feasible so long as those affected could be -induced to live on about 85 per cent. of the ration needed to properly -nourish the body, and had given up entirely the comforts of life. That -scheme left him hope for better times as the only comfort. No matter how -often the money of the war loans rushed through his hands, none of it -ever stuck to them. - -Before long it was plain that in this fashion the Central Powers could -keep up the war forever. Their financial standing in foreign countries -need not worry them so long as they could not buy commodities in them. -To be sure, the public debt was increasing rapidly, but the very people -to whom the government owed money were responsible for that money. If -bankruptcy came to the state they would be the losers, and that -responsibility increased as their wealth increased. Capital and -government became a co-operative organization, and both of them -exploited the producer-consumer, by giving him as little for his labor -as he would take and charging him as much for the necessities of life as -he would stand for--and that was much. When now and then it seemed -necessary to placate the producer-consumer, he would be told that in the -interest of the Fatherland the government was compelled to do what it -did. But the necessity for this came not often. The small man was -generally overjoyed when the government was able to announce that the -war loan had been a success or had been over-subscribed. That is all he -wanted to know, so long as he was not required to go to the front. The -success of the war loan meant that he would have work--and live to see -the end of a war which everybody claimed had been forced upon the state. - -It is certain that the Central states governments would have been -bankrupt long ago had they been able to buy in the foreign market _ad -libitum_, though in that case the foreign trade connections would have -also seen to it that war loans were made to the Germans and -Austro-Hungarians. There is no doubt at all that a Germany permitted to -buy abroad would have later been less able to organize herself as -efficiently economically as she did when her financial strength was -still unimpaired for internal purposes. To this extent the swift descent -of the British blockade is one of the gravest errors booked on the debit -side of the Entente's politico-military ledger. Absolutely nothing was -gained in a military sense by shutting the import door of the Central -states. Far-seeing statesmen would have allowed Germany to import all -she wanted and would then have seen to it that her exports were kept to -a minimum, so far as the shortage of man-power in the country did not -automatically bring about that result. - -As it was, the Central states supplanted and substituted right and left, -made new uses of their own natural resources, and fitted themselves for -the long siege at a time when doing that was still easy. The British -blockade, if applied in the winter of 1915-16, would have had effects it -could not hope to attain in the winter of 1914-15, when almost any -rational being knew that to starve out the Central states was not to be -thought of. The Central states would have continued to live very much as -before, and by the end of 1915 the governments would have been obliged -to shut down on imports of food for the civilian population if the gold -reserve was not to be exhausted completely, as would have been the case -if exports could not balance imports to any extent. Production and -consumption would then not have been as well organized as they were -under the auspices of the premature blockade, and the downfall for which -the Entente has until now vainly hoped, and which will remain the -greatest _spes fallax_ of all time, would then have surely come. That -bolt was shot too soon by Great Britain. - -Though the Central governments were fully aware of this, as -some of their officials admitted to me, they had no reason to bring -this to the attention of their publics or the world. The British -_Aushungerungspolitik_--policy of starvation--was the most potent -argument the Central governments had to present to their war-tired -people. What the German air raids on London accomplished in promoting -the British war spirit the blockade of the Central states effected in -the German Empire and Austria-Hungary. In a war of such dimensions it -was foolish to thus drive the governed into the arms of their governors. - -The financial condition of the Central European states to-day is as -sound as that of the Entente states. That would not be true if any great -share of the Central European war loans had been raised in foreign -countries. But, as I have shown, this was not done. - -That the war debt is great is a fact. The government's creditors are all -in the country, however, and if need be it can set against them the -tax-tired multitude. For that there will be no necessity. The -depreciation of the currency has automatically reduced by as much as 25 -per cent. on an average all state indebtedness, in so far as capital is -a lien against the community's natural resources and labor. But of this -more will be said at the proper time. - -Early in the summer of 1917 the German and Austro-Hungarian governments -were occupied with the question to what extent it would be possible to -lighten the burden of the taxpayer. Nothing came of it for the reason -that finally it was concluded that the time for financial reorganization -was not yet come. Inflated money and high prices would still have to be -used to keep the producer at maximum effort and prevent his consuming -more than could be permitted. - -But the methods of financial reorganization, or we may call it -reconstruction, that were discussed are none the less interesting. They -involved a reduction of the interest which the government has to pay on -war loans, as well as a lightening of the war-loan burden. It was -tentatively proposed to either cut into half the rate of interest or to -reduce by one-half the principal. - -One would think that the Central European bankers would oppose such a -step. They did not, however. For the sake of pre-war loans and -investments, these men must favor a rehabilitation of the currency, and -nothing would do that as effectively as a reduction of the war debt. The -mark and crown buy to-day from one-third to one-half what they bought in -1914. With the war debt cut down to one-half they would buy from 60 to -75 per cent. what they bought in that year. As a measure of -socio-economic justice, if there be such a thing, the reconstruction -proposed would appeal to all who invested money before the outbreak of -the war. These people put up money at the rate of 100, while the -interest they are getting to-day is worth from 33 to 50. The man who in -1914 invested 100,000 marks would indeed get back 100,000 marks. The -trouble is that the mark has depreciated in purchasing power, so that -his capital has shrunk to 33,000 or 50,000 marks, as the case may be. - -War does not only mortgage the future of a nation, but it also has the -knack of tearing down the past. - -Tired of hotel life, I had made up my mind in Vienna to find private -quarters. In the end I found what I wanted. I ought to have been -satisfied with my lodging, seeing that it was the comfortable home of -the widow of a former professor of the Vienna university. - -I never experienced such mixed feelings in my life as when I discussed -terms with the woman. She was a person of breeding and tact and -considerable false pride. How much did I want to pay? She did not know -what she ought to ask. She had never rented rooms before. - -We arrived at an understanding. I moved into the well-furnished flat and -the old lady into her kitchen, where she lived and cooked and slept, -together with a parrot, until I turned over to her the bedroom and -occupied the couch in the parlor. - -Before the war the woman had fared better. She was getting a small -pension and had a little capital. The income had been large enough to -give her a servant. When I moved in, the servant was gone long ago, and -I suspect that since then there had been days when the old lady did not -have enough to eat. Still, she was getting the same pension and her -little capital was bringing the same interest. The difficulty was that -the income bought but a third of what it had formerly secured. - -There were thousands of such cases, involving pensioners, widows, and -orphans. In their case the world had not only stood still, but it had -actually gone backward. The inflated currency left them stranded, and -the worst of it was that taxes were growing with every day. The -government was levying tribute on the basis of the inflated money. These -people had to pay it with coin that was 100 so far as they were -concerned. - -Real-estate owners were in no better position. The moratorium prevented -them from increasing rents, which step had to be taken in the interest -of the families of the men at the front. Taxes kept growing, however, -and when the income from rent houses was all a person had there was -nothing to do but stint. With the currency as low as it was, nobody -cared to sell real property of course. It was nothing unusual to see the -small rent-house owner act as his own janitor. - -While the war loans and government contracts were making some immensely -rich, thousands of the middle class were being beggared. But there is -nothing extraordinary in this. The socio-economic structure may be -likened to a container that holds the national wealth. For purposes of -its own the government had watered the contents of the bucket and now -all had to take from it the thinned gruel. That thousands of aged men -and women had to suffer from this could make little impression on -governments that were sacrificing daily the lives and health of -able-bodied producers on the battle-fields--one of whom was of greater -economic value to the state than a dozen of those who were content to -spend their life on small incomes without working. - - - - -XXI - -THE AFTERMATH - - -In Cæsar's time the pound of beef at Rome cost 1¼ American cents. At the -end of the thirteenth century it was 2½ cents, due largely to the -influence of the Crusades. In a Vienna library there is an old economic -work which contains a decree of the Imperial German government at Vienna -fixing the price of a pound of beef, in 1645, at 10 pfennige, or 2¼ -American cents. When peace followed the Seven Years' War the pound of -beef at Berlin was sold at 4 cents American. During the Napoleonic wars -it went up to 6½ cents, and when the Franco-Prussian War was terminated -beef in Germany was 9 cents the pound. The price of bread, meanwhile, -had always been from one-tenth to one-quarter that of beef. In Central -Europe to-day the price of beef is from 60 to 75 cents a pound, while -bread costs about 5¼ cents a pound. The cost of other foods is in -proportion to these prices, provided it is bought in the legitimate -market. As I have shown, almost any price is paid in the illicit trade. -I know of cases when as much as 40 cents was paid for a pound of wheat -flour, $2.70 for a pound of butter, $2.20 for a pound of lard, and 50 -cents for a pound of sugar. I have bought sugar for that price myself. - -These figures show that there has been a steady upward tendency in food -prices ever since the days of imperial Rome, and we have no reason to -believe that it was different in the days of Numa Pompilius. - -Looking at the thing from that angle, we must arrive at a period when -food, in terms of currency, cost nothing at all. Such, indeed, is the -fact. When man produced himself whatever he and his needed, money was -not a factor in the cost of living. The tiller of the soil, wishing to -vary his diet, exchanged some of his grain for the catch of the -fisherman, the first industrial, who could not live by fish alone. The -exchange was made in kind and neither of the traders found it necessary -to make use of a medium of exchange--money. The necessity for such a -medium came when exchange in kind was not possible--when food and the -like began to have time, place, and tool value, when, in other words, -they were no longer traded in by the producer-consumers, but were bought -and sold in markets. - -But the question that occupies us here principally is, Why has food -become dearer? - -Actually food is not dearer to-day than it was in Rome under Cæsar. The -fact is that money is cheaper, and money is cheaper because it is more -plentiful. Let me quote a case that is somewhat abstract, but very -applicable here. - -Why should the farmer sell food when the money he gets for it will -purchase little by virtue of having no longer its former purchasing -power? He can be induced to sell such food if he is given enough dollars -and cents to buy again for the proceeds of his soil and labor what he -obtained through them before. That means that he must be given more -money for his wares. But that he is given more money does not leave him -better off. What difference does it make to him if for the bushel of -wheat he gets one dollar or two dollars when the price of an article he -must buy also jumps from one to two dollars? The result is a naught in -both cases. To be sure, he could save more, apparently, from two than he -could from one dollar. That, however, is fiction, for the reason that -the twenty cents he may save of two dollars will in the new economic era -buy no more than the ten cents he saved from the one dollar. - -It is clear now that the farmer has not profited by the increase in food -prices. All others are in the same position. Money has ceased to buy as -much as before. The worker who is getting twice the wages he received -before the outbreak of a war is obliged to pay twice as much for food. -Like the farmer, he is no better off than he was. He, too, sees nothing -but zero when expenditures are subtracted from income. - -The body politic is a living organism for the reason that it is composed -of living organisms--men and women. As a living organism this body has -the inherent quality to repair or heal the wounds it has received. The -men lost in war are replaced by the birth of others. In our time, at -least, the women are no longer killed off, and since the remaining males -are able to fertilize them a decade or two generally suffices to make -good this loss which the body politic has sustained. It is a well-known -fact that the average man is able to produce many times the number of -children to which monogamy limits him. At the conclusion of the Thirty -Years' War, when polygamy had to be legalized in southern Germany, -Nuremberg boasted of a citizen who had thirty-seven children by six -women. - -But even the economic wounds of the body politic heal rapidly. They -begin to heal in war almost with the first day on which they are -inflicted. Over them spreads the protecting scab of cheap money and high -prices. - -The German mark buys to-day about one-third of what it bought in July, -1914; this means that it is worth no more in comparison with its former -value as a lien against the wealth of the German nation. The several -German governments, however, will continue to pay on their public debts -the old rate of interest, and when the loans are called in the -depreciated mark will take the place of a mark that had full value. The -gain for the state is that it has reduced automatically its old public -debt by 66 per cent. in interest and capital. - -The same applies to the first war loans. The German war loans up to the -middle of 1915 were made with a mark that still bought 90 per cent. of -what it had bought before. Interest on them will be paid and the loan -redeemed with a mark which to-day has a purchasing power of only 33 -pfennige. If nothing is done to interfere with this relation of currency -values, the German governments will actually pay interest and return the -loan with money cheaper by 62.97 per cent. than what it was when the -loans were made. The fifth war loan was made at a time when the -purchasing power of the mark was down to about 50 points, so that on -this the "economic" saving, as established with the present purchasing -power of the mark, would be only 33.34 per cent. On the seventh war -loan, made with the mark down to roughly one-third of its former -purchasing power, nothing could be saved by the government if redemption -of the loan should be undertaken with a mark buying no more than what it -buys to-day. - -We are dealing here with the mark as a thing that will procure in the -market to-day the thing needed to live. In its time the mark that made -up the public debt and the war loans served the same purpose, in a -better manner, as it were. But that mark is no more. The several -governments of Germany will pay interest and redeem loans in the mark of -to-day, without paying the slightest heed to the value of the mark -turned over to them when the loans were made. - -The result of this is that the older investments, be they in government -securities or commercial paper, have lost in value. We must take a look -at an investor in order to understand that fully. Let us say a man owns -in government bonds and industrial stocks the sum of 200,000 marks. At -4 per cent. that would give him an annual income of 8,000 marks, a sum -which in 1914 would have kept him in Germany very comfortably, if his -demands were modest. To-day that income would go about a third as far. -His 8,000 marks would buy no more than what four years ago 2,666 marks -would have bought. His lien against the wealth of the community, in -other words, is 2,666 marks to-day instead of 8,000 marks. Those who had -to produce what the man consumed in 1914 have to produce to-day only a -third of that. They would have to produce as before if the government -returned to the old value of the mark, and since such a production is -impossible to-day, with over two million able-bodied men dead and -permanently incapacitated, with the same number of women and their -offspring to be cared for, and with the losses from deterioration to be -made good, the German government cannot take measures that would restore -the pre-war value of the mark, especially since it would have to pay -interest on war loans with a mark having more purchasing power than had -the mark turned over to the government in these loans. - -In adopting the policy of cheaper money Central Europe is doing exactly -what the Roman government did more than two thousand years ago and what -every other government has since then done when wars had made the -expenditure of much of the state's wealth necessary. Capital is the -loser, of course. That cannot be avoided, however, for the reason that -capital is nothing but the surplus of labor--that part of production -which is not consumed. During the European War there was no such actual -surplus. The increase in capital, as this increase appeared on the books -of the state treasury and the investors, was nothing but an -inflation--an inflation which now must be assimilated in figures, since -its influence upon actual production is _nil_. - -I have already mentioned that the bankers of Central Europe are well -disposed toward a partial cancelation of the public debts. They agree -not because of patriotic motives, but for the reason that such a -cancelation would better the purchasing value of the currency. A partial -repudiation of the war loans would immediately force down prices of food -and necessities, in which event the mark or crown would again buy more -or less than it bought in 1915, let us assume. For the exigencies -incident to foreign trade the step has merits of its own. It should not -be necessary to point out that a Germany living on an American-dollar -basis, as it is now doing with its depreciated mark, would find it hard -to undersell the American competitor. German industrial and commercial -interests must bear this in mind, and on that account will do their best -to preserve the margin which has favored them in the past. Cheap money -and high prices do not make for cheap labor, naturally. Even to-day -labor in Central Europe has risen in price to within 70 per cent. of its -cost in the United States, while food is about 15 per cent. dearer than -in the American cities. - -Central Europe, all of Europe, for that matter, will live on what may be -called the pre-war American basis when the war is over. The advantages -enjoyed by the American dollar in Europe in the past are no more. Gone -are the days when an American school-mistress could spend her vacation -in Germany or Austria-Hungary and live so cheaply that the cost of the -trip would be covered by the difference in the price of board and -lodging. The cheap tour of Central Europe is a thing of the past--unless -the public debt of the United States should increase so much that some -slight advantage accrue therefrom. For what has taken place, or will -take place in Europe, will happen in the United States when economic -readjustment must be undertaken. - -Aside from some damage done to buildings in East Prussia, -Alsace-Lorraine, Galicia, and along the Isonzo, the Central states have -not suffered directly from the war. The losses sustained in the -districts mentioned are relatively small, and much of them has already -been repaired. Reconstruction of that sort will not be so great a task, -therefore. - -Much labor and huge expenditures will be required, however, in the -rehabilitation of the railroads and the highroads. It will be necessary -to relay at least a quarter of the bed mileage with new ties and rails, -and fully one-half of the rolling stock and motive power now in use will -have to be discarded before rail transportation in Central Europe can -be brought to its former high standard. - -Pressing as this work is, the people of the Central states must first of -all increase the production of their soil and bring their animal -industry into better condition. For the first of these labors two or -three years will suffice; for the second a decade is the least that will -be needed. It will be necessary for many years to come to restrict meat -consumption. With the exception of South America nobody has meat to -sell, and since all will draw on that market high prices are bound to -limit the quantities any state in Europe can buy. - -On the whole, the damage done by the war to the Central Europeans is not -so catastrophic as one would be inclined to believe. In fact, the damage -is great only when seen in the light of pre-war standards. In Central -Europe, and, for that matter, in all of Europe, nobody expects trains to -run a hundred kilometers per hour any more. The masses have forgotten -the fleshpots of Egypt, and will be glad to get pork and poultry when no -beef is to be had. Enough bread, with a little butter or some cheese on -it, will seem a godsend to them for many a year. The wooden shoe has not -proved so bad a piece of footgear, and the patched suit is no longer the -hallmark of low caste. Enough fuel will go far in making everybody -forget that there was a war. - -Viewed from that angle, reconstruction in Central Europe is not the -impossible undertaking some have painted it. The case reminds somewhat -of the habitual drunkard who has reformed and feels well now despite the -fact that he has irretrievably damaged his health. - -The assertion has been made that the mechanical improvements and -innovations made during the war would in a large measure balance the -material damage done. I have tried hard to discover on what such claims -are founded. The instance that would support such a contention has yet -to be discovered, so far as I know. The little improvements made in -gasolene and other internal-combustion engines are hardly worth anything -to the social aggregate. I hope that nobody will take as an improvement -the great strides made in the making of guns and ammunition. The stuff -that has been written on the development of the aeroplane in war as a -means of communication in peace is interesting, but not convincing. - -From that angle the world has not been benefited by the great -conflagration that has swept it. - -But great hopes may be placed in the mental reconstruction that has been -going on since the war entered upon its downward curve. Men and women in -the countries at war have become more tolerant--newspaper editors and -writers excepted, perhaps. As the war developed into a struggle between -populations rather than between armies, the psychology of the -firing-line spread to those in the rear. I have met few soldiers and no -officers who spoke slightingly of their enemies. They did not love their -enemies, as some idealists demand, but they respected them. There is no -hatred in the trenches. Passions will rise, of course, as they must rise -if killing on the battle-field is not to be plain murder. But I have -seen strong men sob because half an hour ago they had driven the bayonet -into the body of some antagonist. I have also noticed often that there -was no exultation in the troops that had defeated an enemy. It seemed to -be all in the day's march. - -In the course of time that feeling reached the men and women home. The -men from the front were to educate the population in that direction. It -may have taken three years of reiteration to accomplish the banishment -of the war spirit. When I left Central Europe it had totally vanished. -The thing had settled down to mere business. - -There is also a socio-political aftermath. - -That socialism will rule Central Europe after the war is believed by -many. I am not of that opinion. But there is no doubt that the several -governments will steal much of the thunder of the Social-Democrats. Some -of it they have purloined already. The later phases of food control -showed usually a fine regard for the masses. That they did this was -never more than the result of making virtue of necessity. Endless -hair-splitting in political theories and tendency would result, however, -if we were to examine the interest in the masses shown by the several -governments. What the socialist wishes to do for the masses for their -own good the government did for the good of the state. Since the masses -are the state, and since I am not interested in political propaganda of -any sort, mere quibbling would result from the attempt to draw -distinctions. Politics have never been more than the struggle between -the masses that wanted to control the government and the government that -wanted to control the masses. - -[Illustration: Photograph by Underwood & Underwood, N. Y. - -SCENE IN GERMAN SHIP-BUILDING YARD - -The great ship in the background has just been launched. Though the war -left Germany no man to spare, every effort has been made to materially -increase the country's merchant marine. To-day Germany's mercantile -fleet is stronger than ever.] - -For the first time in the history of Central Europe, the several -governments had to publicly admit that the masses were indispensable in -their scheme instead of merely necessary. That they were necessary had -been realized in the manner in which the farmer looks upon the draft -animal. The several governments had also done the best they could to -have this policy be as humane as possible. There were sick benefits and -pensions. Such things made the populace content with its lot. So long as -old age had at least the promise that a pension would keep the wolf from -the door, small wages, military service, heavy taxes, and class -distinctions were bound to be overlooked by all except the wide-awake -and enterprising. The few that were able to examine the scheme from -without, as it were, might voice their doubts that this was the best -manner in which the ship of state could be steered, but their words -generally fell on the ears of a populace to which government was indeed -a divine-right institution. - -I have met Germans and Austro-Hungarians who were able to grasp the idea -that the government ought to be their servant instead of their master. -Their number was small, however. Generally, such men were socialists -rather than rationalists. - -It is nothing unusual to meet persons, afflicted with a disease, who -claim that nothing is wrong with them. The "giftie" for which Burns -prayed is not given to us. It was so with the Germans and the thing -called militarism. I have elsewhere referred to the fact that militarism -as an internal condition in the German Empire meant largely that -thinking was an offense. But the Prussian had accepted that as something -quite natural. We need not be surprised at that. Prussia is essentially -a military state. The army made Prussia what it is. Not alone did it -make the state a political force, but it also was the school in which -men were trained into good subjects. In this school the inherent love of -the German for law and order was supplemented by a discipline whose -principal ingredient was that the state came first and last and that the -individual existed for the state. - -The non-Prussians of the German Empire, then, knew that militarism, in -its internal aspect, was a state of things that made independent thought -impossible. To that extent they hated the system, without overlooking -its good points, however. The fact is that much of what is really -efficient in Germany had its birth in the Prussian army. Without this -incubator of organization and serious effort, Germany would have never -risen to the position that is hers. - -As a civilian I cannot but resent the presumption of another to deny me -the right to think. Yet there was a time when I was a member of an -organization that could not exist if everybody were permitted to think -and act accordingly. I refer to the army of the late South African -Republic. Though the Boer was as free a citizen as ever lived and was of -nothing so intolerant as of restraint of any sort, it became necessary -to put a curb upon his mind in the military service. That this had to be -done, if discipline was to prevail, will be conceded by all. The same -thing is practised by the business man, whose employees cannot be -allowed to think for themselves in matters connected with the affairs of -the firm. On that point we need not cavil. - -The mistake of the men in Berlin was that they carried this prohibition -of thinking too far. It went far beyond the bounds of the -barrack-yard--permeated, in fact, the entire socio-political fabric. -That was the unlovely part of militarism in Prussia and Germany. The -policy of the several governments, to give state employment only to men -who had served in the army, carried the command of the drill sergeant -into the smallest hamlet, where, unchecked by intelligent control, it -grew into an eternal nightmare that strangled many of the better -qualities of the race or at best gave these qualities no field in which -they might exert themselves. The liberty-loving race which in the days -of Napoleon had produced such men as Scharnhorst and Lüchow, Körner and -others, and the legions they commanded, was on the verge of becoming a -non-thinking machine, which men exercising power for the lust of power -could employ, when industrial and commercial despots were not exploiting -its constituents. - -The war showed some of the thinkers in the government that this could -not go on. Bethmann-Hollweg, for instance, saw that the time was come -when Prussia would have to adopt more liberal institutions. The Prussian -election system would have to be made more equitable. Agitation for that -had been the burning issue for many a year before the war, and I am -inclined to believe that something would have been done by the -government had it not feared the Social-Democrats. The fact is that the -Prussian government had lost confidence in the people. And it had good -reason for that. The men in responsible places knew only too well that -the remarkable growth of socialism in the country was due to -dissatisfaction with the rule of Prussian Junkerism. They did not have -the political insight and sagacity to conclude that a people, which in -the past had not even aspired to republicanism, would abandon the -Social-Democratic ideals on the day that saw the birth of a responsible -monarchical form of government. What they could see, though, was that -the men coming home after the war would not permit a continuation of a -government that looked upon itself as the holy of holies for which the -race was to spill its blood whenever the high priest of the cult thought -that necessary. - -"We are fighting for our country!" is the reply that has been given me -by thousands of German soldiers. Not a one has ever told me that he was -fighting for the Emperor, despite the fact that against their King and -Emperor these men held no grudge. And here I should draw attention to -the fact that the German Emperor means comparatively little to the South -Germans, the Bavarian, for instance. He has his own monarch. While the -Emperor is _de jure_ and _de facto_ the War Lord, he is never more than -a sort of commander-in-chief to the non-Prussian part of the German -army. - -Liberal government is bound to come for Germany from the war. There can -be no question of a change in the form of government, however. Those who -believe that the Germans would undertake a revolution in favor of the -republican form of government know as little of Germany as they know of -the population said to be on Mars. The German has a monarchical mind. -His family is run on that principle. The husband and father is the lord -of the household--_Der Herr im Hause_. Just as the lord of the family -household will have less to say in the future, so will the lord of the -state household have less to say in the years to come. There will be -more co-operation between man and woman in the German household in the -future and the same will take place in the state family. The government -will have to learn that he is best qualified to rule who must apply the -least effort in ruling--that he can best command who knows best how to -obey. - -This is the handwriting on the wall in Germany to-day. A large class is -still blind to the "_Mene, mene, tekel, upharsin_," but that class must -either mend its way or go down in defeat. The German at the front has -ceased to think himself the tool of the government. He is willing to be -an instrument of authority so long as that authority represents not a -wholly selfish and self-sufficient caste. - -The indications for their development lie in the fact that the German -generally does not hold the Prussian element in the empire responsible -for the war. The Bavarian does not hate the Prussian. The West German -does not entertain dislike for the men east of the Elbe river. What -Bismarck started in 1870 is being completed by the European War. All -sectionalism has disappeared. Three years' contact with the German army, -and study of the things that are German, has convinced me that to-day -there is no Prussian, Bavarian, Saxon, Würtemberger, Badenser, -Hanoverian, or Hessian. I have never met any but Germans, in contrast to -conditions in the Austro-Hungarian army, where in a single army corps I -could draw easily distinction between at least four of the races in the -Dual Monarchy. - -It must be borne in mind that these people speak one language and have -been driven into closer union by the defense of a common cause. What is -true of racial affinity in the Anglo-Saxon race is true in the case of -the German race; all the more true since the latter lives within the -same federation. - -I must make reference here to the fact that even the German socialists -are no great admirers of the republican form of government. Of the many -of their leaders whom I have met, not a single one was in favor of the -republic. Usually they maintained that France had not fared well under -the republican form of government. When the great success of -republicanism in Switzerland was brought to their attention, they would -point out that what was possible in a small country was not necessarily -possible in a large one. Upon the American republic and its government -most of these men looked with disdain, asserting that nowhere was the -individual so exploited as in the United States. It was that very -exploitation that they were opposed to, said these men. Government was -necessary, so long as an anarchic society was impossible and -internationalism was as far off as ever, as the war itself had shown. -Germany, they asserted, was in need of a truly representative government -that would as quickly as possible discard militarism and labor earnestly -for universal disarmament. A monarch could labor better in that vineyard -than the head of a republic, so long as his ministers were responsible -to the people. - -Upon that view we may look as the extreme measure of reform advocated by -any political party in Germany to-day. It is that of the Scheidemann -faction of Social-Democrats, a party which latterly has been dubbed -"monarchical socialists." The extreme doctrinarians in the socialist -camp, Haase and Liebknecht, go further than that, to be sure, but their -demands will not be heeded, even after the pending election reforms -have been made. The accession to articulate party politics in Germany, -which these reforms will bring, will go principally to the Liberal -group, among whom the conservative socialists must be numbered to-day. -Not socialism, but rationalism will rule in Germany when the war is -over. - -One of the results of this will be that the Prussian Junker will have -passed into oblivion a few years hence. Even now his funeral oration is -being said, and truly, to be fair to the Junker: - - The evil that men do lives after them, - The good is oft' interred with their bones. - - - - - * * * * * - - - - -Transcriber's note: - -Obvious punctuation errors were corrected. - -A table of contents was added. - -Hyphen removed: air[-]tight (p. 148), bread[-]winner (p. 354), -fountain[-]head (p. 31), hall[-]mark (p. 31). - -P. 51: "quantitity" changed to "quantity" (a large quantity of crude -rubber). - -P. 115: "sharps" changed to "sharks" (For the food sharks). - -P. 154: "Kaffee-ersatz-ersatz" changed to "Kaffee-ersatz". - -P. 227: "General Höefer" changed to "General Höfer". - -P. 366: "fron" changed to "from" (prevented them from increasing). - - - -***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE IRON RATION*** - - -******* This file should be named 40628-8.txt or 40628-8.zip ******* - - -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: -http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/4/0/6/2/40628 - - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions -will be renamed. - -Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no -one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation -(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without -permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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