ro-Hungarian countries for use in the relief work. So he was able to
keep Hoover advised of all the news, not only promptly, but in good
Americanese. His laconic but fully descriptive message to Paris
announcing the Archduke's passing read: "August 24th, Archie went
through the hoop at 8 P. M. today."

Relief in Eastern Europe was spelled by Hoover with a capital _R_ and
several additional letters. It really spelled Rehabilitation. It meant,
in addition to sending in food, straightening out transportation,
getting coal mines going, and the starting up of direct exchange of
commodities among the unevenly supplied countries. There was some
surplus wheat in the Banat, some surplus coal in Czecho-Slovakia, some
extra locomotives in Vienna. So under the arbitrage of himself and his
lieutenants there was set up a wholesale international bartering, a
curious reversion to the primitive ways of early human society.

This exchange of needed goods by barter solved in some degree the
impossible financial situation, gave the people an incentive to work,
and helped reduce political inflammation. It was practical statesmanship
meeting things as they were and not as they might more desirably be, but
were not. I say again, and many men in the governments of Eastern
Europe, and even in the councils in Paris[1] have said, that Hoover
saved Eastern Europe from anarchy, and held active Bolshevism to its
original frontiers. That meant saving Western Europe, too.

Then Hoover came back to America to be an American private citizen
again. That is what he is today. He is still carrying on two great
charities in Eastern Europe: the daily feeding of millions of
under-nourished children, and the making possible, through his American
Relief Warehouses, for anyone in America to help any relatives or
friends anywhere in Eastern Europe by direct food gifts. But he is doing
it as private citizen. The story of Hoover--as far as I can write it
today--is that of an American who saw a particular kind of service he
could render his country and Europe and humanity in a great crisis. He
rendered it, and thus most truly helped make the world safe for
Democracy and human ideals. It would only be fair to add to his Belgian
citation the larger one of American Citizen of the World and Friend of
All the People. But he would only be embarrassed if anyone attempted to
do it now. We can safely leave the matter to History.

[Footnote 1: The official representative of