Feeding the Hungry, P. C. Hiebert, 1929

s, and that the A.M.R. supply seed. In April, 1923 a delegation of three men bearing credentials from the Slavgorod and Pavlodar Mennonite communities appeared in Moscow to ask help for their people. Out of about 17,000 in their colonies, approxi- mately 5,000 did not have food of their own. By this time the grain supply was very small. If used for food, there would be no seeding and no crop for the next har- vest; if used for seed, there would be increasing hunger from March to October. It was perfectly clear that help should be given. But how? The difficulties were innumerable: Siberia was still under military control; it was far away from Moscow,— about five days and nights by train; supervision would be extremely difficult; and the community had become dan- gerously demoralized. The problem was thoroughly discussed with the off- cial representatives of the Mennonites—Froese, Klassen, and Isaak, located in Moscow, as well as with the Siberian delegation. We formulated a plan that marked a new departure in the A.M.R. methods of work. Instead of 314 FEEDING THE HUNGRY helping through donations, a loan was arranged—a loan of seed grain, to be repaid in part with horses, and in part with grain, after the harvest. Such a loan required guar- antees which were undertaken by the three Siberian dele- gates, signing for all the Mennonites of the Pavlodar and Slavgorod settlements, and further by the plenipotentiaries in Moscow of all Russian Mennonites outside of the Ukraine and Crimea—the founders of the Allrussicher Mennonitischer Landwirtschaftlicher Verein. A transla- tion of the contract follows: Moscow, April 24, 1923 Contract-Agreement between the American Mennonite Relief and the Plenipotentiaries of the Organization Committee of the Allrussicher Mennonitischer Landwirtshaftlicher Ver- band and the Plenipotentiaries of the Mennonites of the Slavgorod and Pavlodar regions. The American Mennonite Relief, Director in Russia, Alvin J. Miller, party of the first part; the Plenipotentiaries of the Organization Committee of the “Allrussicher Menno- nitischer Landwirtschaftlischer Verband”—Peter Fr. Froese, Franz Fr. Isaak and Cornelius F. Klassen, and the Plenipo- tentiaries of the Mennonites of the Slavgorod and the Pav- lodor Districts—Johann A. Reimer, Heinrich H. Friesen, and Peter P. Petkau, parties of the second part, have made the following agreement: (1) The American Mennonite Relief loans to the “Ver- band” Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000.00) for the Menno- nites of the Slavgorod and Pavlodar Districts for the pur- chase of seed grain. (2) This sum will be loaned by the A.M.R. to the Organization Committee of the “Verband,” for the Menno- nite settlements of the Slavgorod and Pavlodar districts as a seed loan, and must be repaid in the following manner: 1. After seed time, not later than June 10, this year, 125 usable work-horses will be delivered to the A.M.R.; 2. after