Feeding the Hungry, P. C. Hiebert, 1929

eoretically, the plan seemed work- able; but local problems soon showed that one could not distribute any large quantity of food to one group of people in a village, ignoring the other groups, without getting into serious trouble. There had always been con- siderable race feeling, and the local officials would never have tolerated any relief program which was limited to helping the Mennonites. Several of the other relief or- ganizations were very much handicapped in their attempts to do effective relief work, largely because they ignored political and racial problems. Another plan offered by the A.R.A. was the food remittance plan, by which money could be paid to the A.R.A. in New York for food to be delivered in Russia at the A.R.A. warehouse nearest to the designated person or organization. The Russian government furnished free transportation within Russia, and the A.R.A. turned all of the profits into the child feeding fund. An immense amount of good was done with these food remittances, but they were intended to give people in America an oppor- tunity to help their relatives and friends in Russia, and to supplement other methods of feeding, rather than to be used in a regular relief program. If used for that purpose, 210 FEEDING THE HUNGRY they created the same local difficulties as the bulk sales plan. Another difficulty with the food remittance plan was that it did not function quickly enough. ‘The greatest need existed during the period between March and August of 1922, and the food remittance system was not function- ing well in the A.M.R. territory until July, and then only after considerable effort on the part of the A.M.R. to speed up the delivery of the packages. The delay was no fault of the A.R.A.—it was due rather to the poor mail, travel and shipping service that existed in Russia at that time. The third plan offered by the A.R.A., and the one which the A.R.A. preferred, was the Eurelcon plan. It grew out of the experience of the A.R.A. in child-feeding in Germany, Austria and Poland. By this plan the A.R.A. sold food at cost to the cooperating relief organizations, with no stipulation save that the A.R.A. contract with the government be complied with, that the food be given to the needy, impartially, in the form of a balanced ration prepared and served daily. The Eurelcon plan had both its advantages and dis- advantages. Some of the advantages were: It was a proved method of feeding, worked out and ready to function. It had the approval of the government—in fact it was substantially the same as the method they were using to give relief themselves. It gave the A.M.R. control of operations. Local committees were able to say to would-be meddlers that they were acting under A.M.R. orders. They were able to regulate exactly the amount of food given daily, to see that it was properly prepared, and that the persons re- ceived it who were entitled to it. ORGANIZING FE