Omaha daily bee., 1917-04-15

Washington, D. C., April l2-This
war will be won in the wheat fields.
1t will take man power and money
power in full measure. Blood and
treasure are the price of victory; the
greatest of wars does not fail to call
for its sacrifice. But behind the men
who risk their lives, behind the guns
that burn up treasure, there must be
the mammoth, ceaseless flow of food
for workers and fighters.
To see that the river of flood flows
in flood, to assure that there is
enough for America and a lavish sur
plus for Americas allies-that is one
Of the greatest problems that faces
the nation. The endless miles of rich
farm land in this country and the eff
ficiency of American farmers give
good guarantee that the problem will
be solved. But the quicker and the
better the solution, the sooner the
victory. Every extra bushel OF grain
that the nation can raise, every pound
of meat the nation can save from
waste, means shortening Of the
struggle and saving of life. There
is no task more important today than
the production and saving of food
Every man, woman and child in
America has a share and duty in it.
In the warning nations of Europe
there is government supervision Of
food raising, food buying and food
cooking. Each nation has an elabor-
ately organized government depart
ment to look after the larder, We
are long way from needing food
dictator in America, but we are in
honor bound to hungry world to
raise and eat our food on war basis
Moreover, we already have our gov
eminent department, deliberately or
gained, to aid in the efficient produc-
ton of food, to pbint out how It can
be most economically DISTRIBUTED and
eaten. That department is the Fed
eral Department fNAgriculture. :.
In the Department of Agriculture,
with the state colleges and workers
who cooperate with it, the Unhed
States has an establishment for the
working out of agricultural problems
which means food problems-great-
er than that of any other three ma
tions in the world combined.
The department today, stands con-
tronted by an immense task. In the
next fewmonths it will play greater
part in the life of the nation than
ever before. 1t is far better fitted to
play such part than the vast ma
jority of Americans realize. It has
been growing and extending its actvi-
ties at such rate in the last few
years that the public has hardly kept
up with it. As the common center
of organized American agriculture,
the department is an asset not only
to America, but to France, England,
Belgium and the other nations who
look to us for food, whose value can
hardly, be overestimated. This is a
time for every American to under
stand just what the department is,
what it is doing and what it can do,
SO that he will give due weight to
its advice, and by intelligent cooper
alton help to solve the nations prob
lem in the most effective way.
The department is the largest scien-
tfhc establishment in the world. In
the last ten years, its working force
has shot up from 5000 men and wom-
en- to 1900. The work it does in
plant and animal investigation is not
surpassed anywhere. The effective
ness of that work is reflected in the
efficiency Of the average American
farmer. We hear a great deal about