Holland already saw that she
would need to hold all of her food supplies for her own people. So
Shaler went on to England. Here he tried to interest influential
Americans in Belgium's great need, and, through Edgar Rickard, an
American engineer, he was introduced to Herbert Hoover.

This brings us to Hoover's connection with the relief of Belgium. But
there was necessary certain official governmental interest on the part
of America and the Allies before anybody could really do much of
anything. Hoover therefore introduced Shaler to Dr. Page, the American
Ambassador, a man of heart, decision, and prompt action. This was on
October 7. A few days before, on September 29, to be exact, Shaler
together with Hugh Gibson, the Secretary of the American Legation in
Brussels who had followed Shaler to London, had seen Count Lalaing, the
Belgian minister to England, and explained to him the situation inside
of Belgium. They also handed him a memorandum pointing out that there
was needed a permit from the British Government allowing the immediate
exportation of about 2,500 tons of wheat, rice, beans, and peas to
Belgium. Mr. Shaler had brought with him from Brussels money provided by
the Belgian _Comite Central_ sufficient to purchase about half this
amount of foodstuffs.

The Belgian Minister transmitted the request for a permit to the British
Government on October 1. On October 6 he received a reply which he, in
turn, transmitted to the American Ambassador in London, Mr. Page. This
reply from the British Government gave permission to export foodstuffs
from England through Holland into Belgium, under the German guarantees
that had previously been obtained by Mr. Heineman's committee, on the
condition that the American Ambassador in London, or Americans
representing him, would ship the foodstuffs from England, consigned to
the American Minister in Brussels; that each sack of grain should be
plainly marked accordingly, and that the foodstuffs should be
distributed under American control solely to the Belgian civil
population.

On October 7, the day that Hoover had taken Shaler to the American
Embassy and they had talked matters over with Mr. Page, the Ambassador
cabled to Washington outlining the British Government's authorization
and suggesting that, if the American Government was in accord with the
whole matter as far as it had gone, it should secure the approval of the
German Government. After a lapse of four or five days, Amba