FAMINE, a scarcity of food over large areas, resulting in suffering or death by starvation and disease to mul titudes. Short crops are caused by drought, excess of rainfall, severe and untimely frosts, the ravages of insects and vermin, the devastation of war, wholesale destruction of forests, dis eases of plants, etc.
The Greek republics enacted very strenuous laws regarding the trade in grain; and the Romans, even at the time of their greatest prosperity, were so dependent on Egypt and Sicily for their hreadstuffs, that even a brief delay in the arrival of the ships caused local famines. In the Middle Ages famines were of frequent occurrence and were often accompanied by frightful social phenomena. The famine of 1125 dimin ished the population of Germany one half. All through the Middle Ages pub lic opinion upheld the city authorities in driving out of the gates the neediest inhabitants and letting them perish. In a famine which devastated Hungary in 1505 parents who killed and ate their children were not punished. As late as the middle of the 17th century famines were a common affliction in Europe and even in the 18th century they still oc curred. The last time a period of bad harvests was designated as a famine in Germany was in 1817.
During and in the year following the World War (1914-1918), there were many deaths from famine in Europe, but it is inconceivable at the present time that a general famine should devastate western or central Europe or the Americas. In India and other parts of
Asia the situation is different. In India, where there are eight months of dry weather and the crops depend on the rainfall of four months and subsequent irrigation, if there is any lack in the monsoon, famine is almost sure to fol low. Under the rule of the English, too, the population has greatly increased, and, while the majority of people live from hand to mouth in ordinary times, the slightest failure in the rice crop causes the famine point to be immedi ately reached. The recent famine in India cost the government in 1900-1901 $28,235,000. Apart from this $13,700, 000 was advanced to native states for famine relief and $4,735,000 for special agricultural advances. In 1870-1872 Persia lost 1,500,000 inhabitants, a quarter of the whole population. In the N. provinces or China, Shensi, Shansi, and Honan, with a population of 56, 000,000, during the years following 1877 it was reckoned that between 4,000,000 and 6,000,000 people perished. In the famine of 1891-1892 in Russia it was estimated that in 18 provinces 27,000, 000 inhabitants were affected.
In the summer of 1920, a famine in China caused thousands of deaths.