zollerns to their knees. Some startling things were discovered, and
the brains of the diplomatic force of the government were put to the
test. International problems arose which were never before encountered
in the history of nations.

England, with its blockade against Germany, and Germany with its
submarine warfare against British and neutral shipping, developed
problems which had to be solved relative to keeping Germany from
getting supplies which would enable her to withstand the siege, and also
as to the sending of supplies to England, Belgium, France and Russia,
and particularly to our own forces fighting with the Allies in France.

A BIG FACTOR IN WAR.

Unfortunate as it may seem, one of the biggest factors in waging
successful war is to prevent the enemy from getting food supplies. It is
a frequently repeated truism that "an army travels on its stomach," and
in the pleas for conservation and efficient management the leaders in
every country declared frequently that "the war would be won by the last
loaf of bread," or that it was not a question of ammunition, but of
wheat.

One of the serious problems which the government was therefore called to
face within a very short period after the American troops were first
landed in France was that of dealing with the food situation, both at
home and abroad. At that time the German U-boats had sunk merchant ships
having a total of more than 5,000,000 tonnage, and the food situation
was precarious in the Allied countries. Germany, on the other hand,
because of long preparation for the struggle, coupled with efficient
management and practices, was more largely independent of other
countries.

At this time it was learned that Germany was securing large quantities
of foodstuffs through the medium of some of the neutral countries.
America was, therefore, called upon to take steps to prevent the Germans
getting supplies from this country, through the intermediary of Holland
and the Scandinavian countries. As a result the government placed an
embargo on a long list of articles including fuel, oils, grains, meats
and fodder. The embargo, which was made effective by a proclamation of
President Wilson, forbade the carrying of such supplies as were
mentioned from the United States or its territorial possessions to
neutral countries.

The purpose of the embargo was not to prevent the neutral countries from
securing foodstuffs from America for their own consumption, but to
pr