Feeding the Hungry, P. C. Hiebert, 1929

ing agreement between us. Later more Mennonite workers were admitted. Now we were ready for work but there was no food supply. During my absence from Moscow our home Com- mittee had cabled a credit for food remittances, which evidently had been recalled; perhaps because of the pro- test against that plan. So we had neither food nor cred- its. A telegram had been sent to our Constantinople unit, urging immediate shipment of supplies, but no answer had been received. From Berlin a telegram had been sent to D. R. Hoeppner, located in Poland at that time in relief work for American Mennonites, asking him to come to Russia at once, but there was no word from him. Cor- nelius Klassen of Moscow had gone to the Volga valley 186 FEEDING THE HUNGRY settlements during my absence, but had not yet returned, nor was there data available on which to determine the quantity of food to allocate to each settlement, or to whom to consign the shipment, neither did Peter F. Froese have this information. But it was impossible for me to leave Moscow, for daily and hourly I expected word from each and all of these mentioned. Then came a cable from the Mennonite Central Committee establishing a food credit—not an order for food remittances, but a purchase of food in bulk at extremely low prices. Soon after, two men arrived from the ‘““Trakt” or Koeppenthal district, near Saratov, bearing papers certifying that they were authorized by the churches there to represent them in requesting food for their district. Both men, Johann Dyck and Penner were later very active and capable workers in our organization. Their reception at the Moscow station emphasized again very pointedly the necessity of extreme caution in our activities. Scarcely had they left the train when they were invited by the Tcheka—the secret police—to a pri- vate office at the station. Their papers were examined. They were stripped naked and closely searched. Nothing incriminating being found, they were released, and came on to see me at the Savoy. Dyck was at once appointed as chairman of the local American Mennonite Relief Committee in the Koeppen- thal rayon (county) in the Autonomous Republic of the Volga Germans. ‘This was the first official act in setting the A.M.R. machinery in motion. First DELIVERY OF Foop—A CHRISTMAS GIFT Our first order for the delivery of food supplies to feed the starving in Russia was written out for our Com- mittee in the Koeppental Rayon (county), the Trakt set- tlement near Saratov. The following is a copy of that order: UNSEALING THE CLOSED DOOR 187 AMERICAN MENNONITE RELIEF Aik: AS Moscow, Dec. 17, 1921 To CHIEF OF SUPPLY DIVISION A.R.A. from AMERICAN MENNONITE RELIEF Subject—Allocation KOEPPENTAL RAYON HILFSKOMMITTEE Please deliver to the Koeppental Rayon Hilfskommittee, of the Gebiet der Volga Deutschen, post address Koeppental (now called SURKI SAMARSKI) from the Saratov ware- house foodst