The evening herald. [volume] (Albuquerque, New Mexico) 1914-1922, 1915-04-02
CHILDREN DRIVEN
FROM SCHOOL
TO WORK IN
THE FIELDS
Hungary Is Making
Desperate Efforts to Get
Usual Spring Planting
Done, That Famine May Be
Averted.
ALL CHILDREN OVER
IL REQUIRED TO LABOR

ASSOCIATED Press Correspondence.)
Venice. March i5.-Next To war.
Austria Hungary IL devOting her
greatest energies 10 agriculture. III
we can only obtain sufficient labor.
says the government, the next har-
vest Is secured" Consequently every
thing possible " now being done 20
provide for the spring work on the
land. Tens Of thousands OF boys and
girls have been released from attend
ance at school; married ONE and
girls are being pressed into service.
and adult male workers are NJ eager
" sought after as are recruits for the
armies In the field.
by a special decree the Austrian
ministry of education has directed
that In the country districts all chill
dren In the three higher grades. that
IL, Of ~, 10 and Ia years of age, are
to be excused from school. In order
that they may work in the fields or
at home. The school authorities are
instructed TO organize this child labor
la "A systematic manner. 10 that the
best results may be obtained by EN-
ploying them In districts where help
Is most needed. They will be formed
into groups In a sort OF military man
ner. the elder boys acting as under
officers. II il thought that this will
encourage the children In wo. king,
besides inspiring them with patriotic
sentiments.
Practically all country children
have been brought up to work on the
land. and there are endless ways In
which they can he useful. from pick
ing c%aterpillars off the fruit trees TO
guiding "A pillow and n yoke OF oxen.
Farmers declare hat the modern
pillow II so lightly built that "A sturdy
boy OF Il years can quite easily work
IL. Then as TO the girls, the little
ones can look after the babies nj
home. while the bigger ones cook,
and iron and carry meals to the
workers in the field.
So many peasants have been called
10 the army thas there Is very little
adult male labor left in the rural dis
tricts. And the few men who are
there show no great inclination To go
to work. and 50 far have steadily re-
fused Ca enter into the usual con-
tracts for harvest work, hoping by
waiting To get considerably higher
wages. The land owner are furious
and threaten that the government
will compel them to work when the
time comes. And as a matter OF fact
the state already has empowered To-
cal authorities to force able-bodied
men OF an classes 10 WORK In the
fields In case Of necessity for wages
at the current rate In the district.
In addition 10 securing all the labor
possible. the government n doing 10
best 10 our the use OF machin-
cry on the farms. The ministry OF
agriculture has already agreed to sub
sidize seed sowing machines with a
grant Of $50 ench. and Will do the
same with harvesting machines when
the crops are ready.
The field work OF last fail Is said
To have been very satisfactorily pes-
formed. and nav II IL hoped that by
Pl these %expedients the problem OF
the spring work will also be solved. 50
that In the end the next harvest will
not fall far below the average.
From the official reports Of the
Vienna markets II appears hat many
Of the most important articles of
daily food have more than doubled
In price since the outbreak OF the
war, seven months ago. Flour now
costs s cents a pou-d, and dried peas
II cents compared with 4 cents last