that it is practicable to dig another 100 feet when you have dug already 260 feet. But while these figures show that there is nothing chimerical about the proposed transformation; while they are a true measure of its practicability, nevertheless they do not tell the entire story. The deeper you go, and the greater, per inch of excavation, the quantity of material to be removed, the graver the consequences of any possible slide. But on the other hand, when you have reached in this process the stage actually reached, namely, the lock canal stage, the mass of excavation ceases to be a difficulty, because you can use the Canal itself for supporting the instruments of excavation and for transporting the refuse to the dumps. The reason is clear. It is because you can execute these excavations in one portion of the channel while ships are navigating in another portion, and this operation can be carried on without in any way troubling the regular passage of such ships. You enjoy, therefore, the precious, the inestimable, privilege of working while the Canal is in operation. Thus, freed from any concern and anxiety as to a fixed date for the completion of the work, you can take all the necessary measures for ensuring the absolute stability of the slopes. These measures are simple. They consist merely in the removal of a sufficient quantity of ground laterally to temper the declivity of the slopes as much as Nature requires. The great slides which have worked such havoc at Culebra have been caused merely by the toleration of lateral slopes which were too steep, which were not sufficiently inclined toward the horizontal. These slides would never have taken place, never have existed as the occasion of great difficulties; nobody would ever have witnessed the closing of the Canal owing to the earth and the rock being precipitated into it by the slides, if the slope had been gentle enough. In other words, if the excavation made after the closing of the Canal by the slides had been made beforehand in the virgin soil, in order to give to the slopes a gentle enough angle, there would never have been any slides. The reason why I advocated the opening of the Lock Canal at a higher level must now be plain. It was not in order to oblige vessels to pass through a couple of additional locks. It was in order to secure better conditions for preventing the formation of slides. As the first cut was made less deep it was easy, with the same amount of excavation, to obtain slopes more inclined on the horizontal. Once the passage was opened to ships, after reasonable precaution had been taken against the danger of slides, the proper method would have been to continue the work of excavation by dredging simultaneously with the operation of the Canal. The aim of these further excavations would have been the widening of the summit of the channel from 300 feet to 1,500 or even to 2,000 feet. Digging of the bottom and correlative lowering of the water level would thereupon have gradually followed. The method for the construction of the veritable sea-level Canal, the "Straits of Panama," which I devised in 1886 and which I have never ceased to advocate, consists in making first a Lock Canal, and, secondly, once the connection has been established by that inferior method, in transforming gradually the waterway into a sea-level Canal, by the excavation of its sides, by the dredging of its bottom, and by the corresponding lowering of its level at the summit. I consider that a Lock Canal at a higher level than the one constructed would have been more quickly completed, that it would have been built at a smaller cost, and have been attended with fewer difficulties both before and after its opening to navigation. But this is unimportant. The great fact is that a Lock Canal actually exists, and that the first phase of the construction of the "Straits of Panama" is now over. Let us not lose a single instant, and let us begin the second phase. There is nothing now to be done but to continue the works by which the Canal has been reopened to traffic after being closed by the slides. Nature has thus forced upon us the system of works which is indispensable for finally constructing the "Straits of Panama." Ten years more will be required to accomplish this transformation. International navigation will not be injured nor in any way hampered during the process. On the contrary, inasmuch as the first object is to enlarge sixfold the width of the Canal at the actual summit, before deepening its bottom, and subsequently lowering its level, every barge loaded with refuse will mean greater protection against the danger of slides and a wider channel to navigate. Agreements with the German Army-Americans and Their German Escort Officers- F BY VERNON KELLOGG RANCE and its friends peer anxiously across the trench lines of the western front and wonder how it is going with Lille and Valenciennes and St. Quentin and Sedan, and all that hidden land lost for the moment to the sight of the world. Held in the merciless grasp of the invader-ruled with the uncompromising rigor of an enemy army embittered by checks and mounting losses-with no friendly diplomats to inform themselves and the world outside of injustice, cruelty, and tragedy, the people of occupied France exist in silence and darkness. Do they even exist? And if so, how? This is an attempt to give some answer to the question. The Commission for Relief in Belgium should have been named the Commission for Relief in Belgium and North France. For one fourth of its activities have been devoted to the importation, protection, and distribution of food and clothing in occupied France, a region about 21,000 square kilometers [approximately 8,300 square miles] in area, and including a population (since the occupation) of about two and a quarter million French civilians. These imprisoned French people are mostly women and Almost every man of children and old men. military age from this territory is in the French army. They had time and opportunity to answer the call to the colors before the steel ring was set about the land in September, 1914. Of the present total population of the German-occupied territory of France, hereafter usually referred to as North France, more than one half is included in the contiguous arrondissements of Lille, Valenciennes, and Douai, in the Département du Nord, small in area, but thickly populated by an industrial population depending always very largely on food supplies imported into that region. There are also other industrial centres in the occupied territory, notably the Longwy-Briey coaland iron-bearing region in the Département de Meurthe et Moselle. Altogether, it is undoubtedly fair to consider the whole population of the occupied territory as about two thirds industrial and one third agricultural. Having this fact in mind, and recognizing the inevitable demands made on the resources of the region by an invading and occupying army of great size, and the serious situation of a population, largely industrial, cut off suddenly from all normal external sources of supply, it is easily understood that steps would have to be taken by local authorities and philanthropic persons very soon after the occupation to arrange for food distribution to the poor and to the workless people in the industrial districts. Such steps were, indeed, taken at once; local authorities and citizen committees set themselves actively to the task of obtaining possession of local food supplies, and dealing them out economically and fairly. Fortunately, the harvest was just about completed at the time of the occupation, and there was also a considerable stock of cattle and sheep in the farming regions. The town councils and local committees arranged to secure resources by the issuance of bons, notes, etc., and by borrowing from the wealthier citizens. Then grain and local food stocks of groceries, clothing, etc., were purchased, mills commandeered, and an equalized distribution begun. Despite the good results of all this beneficent activity, however, the time soon came when it was obvious that the local food supply, what with German requisitions and the needs of the people, was rapidly nearing exhaustion. Indeed, it is only surprising that the region was able to maintain itself for as long as it did without external aid. As a matter of fact, this need for outside help and appeals for it began to be sufficiently imperative in certain parts of the occupied territory by December, 1914, to attract the attention of the Commission (already actively engaged on a large scale in the ravitaillement of Belgium), and in January, February, and March, 1915, some supplies of flour, rice, dried beans and peas, bacon and condensed milk were sent to Givet, Fumay, Sedan, Charleville-Mezieres, and Longwy from the Belgian stocks of the Commission. Maubeuge and the immediately surrounding region had already been attached to the Belgian province of Hainaut for the ravitaillement purposes. It soon became apparent, however, that, instead of casual sendings from Belgium, an independent and systematically distributed continuous supply of food staples would have to be arranged if the population of North France was to be spared serious and even dangerous suffering from lack of food. The Commission, therefore, began to take measures to arrange for this. With the aid of the American Ambassadors in London and Berlin, and the State Department, negotiations were undertaken, and, in time, arranged, with the Allied and the German governments and the Great Headquarters at Charleville for the regular ravitaillement of all of occupied France by the Commission. Before these more general negotiations were completed certain assurances were given by the German General Government of Belgium to Minister Whitlock at Brussels, which made possible the beginning of a regular sending of food to a limited region about Fumay and Givet which had been attached to Belgium by the German authorities for administrative purposes. So that by March 1915, the Commission was sending food to about 400,000 persons in the occupied French territory (regions of Maubeuge, Fumay, Givet, etc.) By the end of that month arrangements were practically completed for caring for all the occupied territory, although the formal working agreement between the Commission and the German military authorities at Great Headquarters was not signed until the middle of April. These arrangements provided for a provision of sufficient funds from outside French sources, and the appointment of French committees in all the villages-there are nearly 2,000 communes in the occupied territory-and major French committees for the various regions and districts into which the territory was divided for military administrative purposes. These committees were to handle the details of the distribution under the inspection and general control of a small number of American representatives of the Commission, and I have no words capable of justly appraising the devoted and self-sacrificing labors of the many thousand members of these French volunteer groups. The Americans were to reside in various centres in the occupied territory, and have with them for their protection and escort certain specially assigned German officers able to speak French and English. These officers were to be present at all conferences between the Commission representative and the French committees; in fact, they were to be constantly with the young Americans at all times. The Americans were to live in houses provided by the army (by requisition) for the escort officers, have their meals with them, and travel about with them over the territory by train and motor on tours of inspection. It was an enforced close companionship for the sake of the safety of the Americans, and the assurance of the military authorities that we should do no spying or inciting of the French to uncomfortable behavior. In a conference held at the Great Headquarters on March 21st, between Major General Zoellner, representing the Supreme Command of the German Army in France, and Mr. A. N. Connett, at that time director of the Commission in Brussels, a telegram from Mr. Hoover, from London, of March 18th, served as a basis for an agreement in principle on the general provisions necessary for the arrangements, and on April 13th a formal signed agreement was entered into at Brussels between the German Commander-in-Chief of the Forces in France, represented by Major von Kessler, an officer of high capacity and integrity, and the Commission, represented by Messrs. Connett, the director just retiring, and Crosby (now Assistant Secretary of the Treasury), the incoming director, who alone signed. This basic agreement is as follows: Between the German Commander-in-Chief, represented by Major von Kessler, General Staff Officer, at the General Intendant des Feldheeres: and The Commission for Relief in Belgium, represented by Mr. O. T. Crosby, acting for the C. R. B. at Brussels (who alone will sign), and Mr. A. N. Connett. 1. The G. C. I. Ch. gives his consent for the C. R. B. to undertake the supply of the population of the occupied French Territory with foodstuffs. 2. The G. C. I. Ch. gives the assurance that the goods imported for the said purposes will never be called upon for the use of the German army, but shall be used solely for the French population of the occupied territory. The G. C. I. Ch. will issue strict orders to all the respective subordinate authorities to the effect that these goods must never be seized. Any goods which may not have been distributed at any time will remain at the exclusive disposal of the C. R. B. 3. The C. R. B. is authorized to appoint in the occupied territory of Northern France, American citizens as its delegates, who may, subject to the supplementary agreement No. 1 attached hereto, satisfy themselves of the carrying out of the assurance given under par. 2. 4. The requests to the C. R. B. for the distribution of the goods will be effected according to the determination of the C. R. B. in conjunction with the German Military Authorities, by French trustees, who are to be nominated by the French communities subject to the approval of the German Military Authorities and of the C. R. B. These trustees will represent the French communities in the transactions with the delegates of the C. R. B. more particularly in connection with accounts and payments. At the time of the signing of the basic agreement, the two supplementary agreements referred to were also formulated and signed. One of these determined the conditions of the transportation of the food supplies through the occupied territory of Belgium as well as France -for all the foodstuffs had to be brought to North France from Rotterdam through Belgium. The other, and more interesting agreement, concerned the position of the Commission's representatives in the occupied French territory. The more important points in the transportation agreement provided for the free use of such canals as could be used, and a half freight tariff on the railroads. The loaded canal boats and the railroad cars were to be sealed at Rotterdam, or at Belgian points, such as Brussels, from which cities shipments were made into France and delivered sealed at destination. They were also to be placarded to show that the property in them 5. The G. C. I. Ch. will afford every facility for belonged to the Commission, and the waybills the carriage of the goods to the place of destination. The goods will be admitted free of duty, and freight will be charged according to similar principles as may, from time to time, be in force for the supply of Belgium. The transport is regulated by the supplementary agreement No. 2 attached hereto. 6. In order to eliminate doubts as to the origin and destination of goods supplied, all means of transport and storing rooms will be labeled officially by the German Military Authorities in such a manner as to make the goods recognizable as those covered by the stipulations of par. 2. 7. If military exigencies should so require, this agreement may be cancelled by the G. C. I. Ch. at any time, without giving any reasons, by a notice to that effect to the C. R. B. However, all goods imported by the C. R. B. then being already within the occupied French territory shall be disposed of in accordance with the stipulation of this agreement, the American delegates remaining long enough to discharge their duties with respect to such goods in so far as this is considered practicable for military reasons. 8. The right of the German Military Authorities to requisition for military purposes against bons the foodstuffs for men or animals still existing in the country is in no way affected by this agreement. Likewise the German Military Authorities re were to contain an attestation that the goods were destined only for the French civilian population. The second supplementary agreement provided that the Commission representatives should be able to assure themselves that the food supplies were being used exclusively in accordance with the guarantees given, i. e., were not being taken at all by the Germans. This meant that each representative must have a certain freedom of movement (in company with his officer) within his district; which movement should be restricted only by special Our military conditions and necessities. invariable rule was that the American must follow the food. The agreement also provided that the French occupied territory was to be divided into six distribution districts, at a centre in each of which, two Americans and a German escort officer were to be stationed, with an additional chief representative and chief escort officer at Great Headquarters. As a matter of fact we kept, most of the time, but one American in each district centre. The Commission representative for the Lille district was not allowed to live in Lille, but was sta tioned at Valenciennes, where he and his officer lived with the representative for Valenciennes district and his officer. By the agreement the Commission representatives were entitled to receive, free of charge, quarters, officer's rations, suitable attendance, and military motor car for the use of themselves and escort officers. These motor cars were maintained even after the cars of higher officers had to be discontinued because of lack of tires, oil, and gasolene in Germany. Each American had a special passport which entitled him to move about in his district, and to go and come between Brussels and his centre. He had a railroad pass for his rail journeys, and his necessary official correspondence, censored by his officer, and telephoning and telegraphing over the military wires, through the medium of his officer, were not charged for. Even though the passports were limited to the particular districts, any representative could go into other districts if his officer was willing to take him, and a certain amount of visiting from district to district was done, and occasional gatherings for conference of all the representatives and escort officers at Great Headquarters were held. Each American entering upon his position as Commission representative in North France "takes upon himself the obligation to carry out his duties in such a manner as may be expected from an honorable citizen of a neutral state." It is gratifying to be able to say that in the whole history of the stay of the Commission's men in North France, during which at least thirty different men were used, no single complaint of dishonorable or unneutral conduct on their part was made by the German military authorities. Some of the escort officers had occasional complaints to make of the immaturity of some of the Americans, or of their manner, not sufficiently stiff or precise to impress properly other German officers dining with the escort officer and his American. One complained rather bitterly to my amazement, I remember, that his American persisted in wearing a ragged overcoat! But despite the strain of sympathy and anger, imposed on them by being compelled to see the sufferings of the helpless French, under the rigors of military control, and, too often, military brutality, our men held their strong feelings in check. They were not only bound in honor, but they knew that their mission could only be accomplished by the maintenance of a correct behavior; they could help the imprisoned people much more by limiting themselves to the all-important work of the ravitaillement than by giving way to unneutral acts or speech, however strong the temptation. The personal work and experiences of the Commission's representatives in North France were very different from those of the workers in Belgium. Belgium, except West Flanders and part of East Flanders, is administered by the Germans by a quasi-civil government with, to be sure, a strong military flavor. But North France has always been under the direct and sole control of the German Army, or, perhaps it would be better to say, armies, as each of the half dozen armies occupying the territory exercises a considerable autonomy in the region occupied by it. All these armies, and hence the whole territory, were, however, under the final control of the Great Headquarters. It was the distinctness of these armies and the occupation by each of a specific part of the occupied territory that determined the limits of the half dozen ravitaillement districts. The rigors of the military rule varied somewhat with the different armies, the Bavarians occupying Lille and vicinity, under Prince Rupprecht, being, in curious contradiction to the popular notions about Bavarians, the most rigorous and brutal in their treatment of the civil population. RESTRICTIONS ON COMMISSION WORKERS This military rigor, and the fact that each of the districts extended westward to the very trench lines, greatly restricted the freedom of the Commission representatives in North France both in movement and personal relations with the civil population. It was understood that no American could hold conversation with any French civilian except in the presence of his escort officer. However, this was not always enforced in cases where the American had lived long enough with his officer to establish a feeling of confidence and trust in his honor. On the other hand one or two of the officers were very rigorous about this, and always promptly interrupted any conversation that seemed to be straying in the least from subjects strictly related to the food relief. And these poor shut-in people did so much want to talk a little about other things! Also with each recrudescence of military operations here or there along the front, the American I |