Show EUROPE'S LITTLE PEOPLE PEOPLE 1946 1946 Prices High Nigh and Goods Scarce But Belgium Is Forging Ahead By PAULINE FREDERICK Foreign Correspondent It BRUSSELS It was not a typical Belgian home but it symbol- symbol symbolIzed symbolized zed Belgium in relation to the rest of Europe This little though I it has known the invader more than once has made an amazing economic recovery and is in a class beyond any of its neighbors in this part of the world No the Van de dc Vens Yens do not live In an average Belgian home because be be- because cause greater material advantages than many of their countrymen know have provided them with a modernistic house in the Holly Holly- Hollywood Hollywood Hollywood wood sense with expanses expanses of glass glassand glassand and chrome salons a breakfast room on the second floor a library the decor and furnishings bespeak bespeak- bespeaking ing a trend toward the ultra smart As I sat talking to Madame Van Vande Vande de Von Ven I could look across the cof- cof coffee lee fee table with its bowl of narcissi In the center to the salon with chairs and divan covered in clipped clipp d wool a bowl of scarlet tulips tulip on the table to the dining room with its wall lull landscape in oils It was in this setting that Madame Van de deVen deVen deVen Ven talked about living conditions in Belgium as she knew them dur dur- during during ing the war and now You can get anything you want in Belgium if you pay for it she told me That was true during the occupation as well as now now although although INTERVIEW Madame Van Vande Vande Vande de Ven Yen and son Johnny in their home in Brussels where Pauline Frederick interviewed them every week prices are dropping as as- astonishingly During the war it took ten times as much money to run my house and take care of my family as be be- before belore before fore lore the war Madame told me It is now down to five times as much and I think when it gets to three times that will be about what is expected to be normal Of course the prices have been very hard on the poor people You had to buy things on the black mar mar- market market market ket because they were not avail avail- available available able otherwise You still have to buy buyon on n the black market if it you want things she went on For example butter on the black market is roughly 2 a pound while it has been as high as 3 a pound The official price is around 60 cents Real Heal silk hose bring around 8 on the marche noir whereas the official price is about 1 There has been only one shoe ration during and since the war so that it is almost necessary to buy shoes on the black market For an ordinary pair of women's shoes the black market price would be between 35 and andO 40 O whereas if you wanted a pair of stout walking shoes that would last for some time you probably would have to give the equivalent of oJ 60 Cigarettes command the usual fantastic price that they do in all al countries of Europe today There is ablack t lack market street in Brussels where anything may be had from American uniforms UD to potatoes And Anc clothing coupons can be bought on the streets The UThe black market has been help help- helping helping ing to bring prices down Madame Van de da Ven said and then went on onto onto onto to explain The uThe Belgians are in in- They must be active even even outside the law When it was said no goods could be pro pro- produced produced produced people buying on the black market created such prices that the government was forced to do some some- something something something thing to increase the supply so as asto asto asto to bring prices down Because goods are coming on the market the price of textiles has come down 60 per percent percent percent cent since New Now Years Year's and the gov gov- government government government is taking steps to close up places that are selling above the official price In the food line the scarcest item is potatoes with meat running ing sec sec- ond Just before the elections a anew anew new list came out which slightly increased in in- increased increased creased the ration for fat meat meal mealand and coffee and of course there wa waa was wasa a suspicion on the part of many peo- peo 4 4 pIe that this step had a direct con con- connection connection n with the elections If you dont don't deal on the black market and stay tay within the ration ration here here are arc some ome of the allotments As in other European countries bread read and potatoes are an important important tant ant part of the Belgian diet Just under a pound of bread a day per person person erson and twenty pounds of pota- pota potatoes potatoes toes oes a month are the ration Three- Three fourths of a pound of coffee a month monther per er person is the coffee ration and about of fat which must include margarine a spread butter which contains cheese and butter Oranges are rationed to t two and one-fifth one pounds a month and dried fruits and raisins less than one one- fourth pound The cheese ration is i iless less ess than a quarter pound per per per- person person person son per month Miners who are so essential to Belgium's economic re re- recovery recovery re- re recovery covery are given extra points of course As for clothing tickets are allowed for a period A womans woman's tailored suit would take 80 points and an ordinary slip would woul use up 9 points However it is possible to obtain lingerie in certain stores without coupons if if you pay extra francs or you can buy clothing on the streets of Brussels But Belgium is doing very well she asserted Madame Van de Vens Ven's husband is isan isan isan an of and andwood andwood wood products from the United States They have a year old daughter Jacki and a year nine-year- old son Johnny A lordly camache poodle named Jeep completes the family amily Jeep born on the day of liberation has brown hair clipped to leave eave ruffs about his feet and head and wears a German iron cross Yes the Van de Vens think Bel Bel- Belgium Belgium Belgium gium is doing very well And that is the impression you get everywhere One business man pre pre- predicted predicted to me that if conditions con- con continue continue to improve this little country will be back to normal by the end of the year Already coal production productions is s up to 75 per cent and steel 60 per cent The textile mills are get get- getting getting getting ting under way But Belgium must have imports especially from the United States And in order to buy American goods she must have dollars Bel Bel- Belgium's Belgium's Belgium's gium's greatest resources are labor and coal with which she makes im- im imf y f y y f If If's s JEEP The Van de Vens Ven's camache poodle with Johnny The German iron cross cro s once given to Nazi warriors war for bravery now adorns the dog ported raw materials into goods for sale abroad She has plenty of ol goods for internal consumption be be- because because because cause the outbreak of the war found her plentifully stocked and the Bel Bel- Belgians Belgians gians glans were able to hide much of their supplies from the Germans which they are now putting on the market But Belgium must have export business Before the war war Belgium was a aland aland aland land of low prices and low wages When the cost of living began to ad ad- advance advance advance vance 10 times above normal wages were raised 80 per cent in order to make existence possible But Bu Buat at that point the government decided ed that only a vicious spiral of in in- inflation inflation inflation was in progress so it put puta a halt to wage advances and nd start start- started started started ed working on price decreases As Asa a result Belgians themselves tell tel you that the price drops in as short shor shora a time as two weeks are aston astonishing |