Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1905-1919, 1917-08-27

cepted the war and the draft ana
bought the bonds they want to be
about the actual business of fighting.
The sooner it is over with the betterl
While there is everywhere remarkably
solid support OF Mr.. Wilson and great
enthusiasm for his recent state papers.
one finds much impatience with con-
gress. Why don't they pass the laws
and be done with it? There is also
good deal of criticism OF Mr.. Wilson's
cabinet Whether this is well founded
or not, the full confidence of the peO-
pie. and with the growing impatience
OF the people there is likely to DO
more and more criticism Of the ex-
ecutive and more and more demand
out here for a coalition cabinet. This
can be offset somewhat by a strenuous
campaign Of publicity by the govern
ment as to what is actually going on
and being done. This has been weak
spot so far.
In the meantime the interest has
shifted somewhat from discussion OF
the war itself to certain corollary
aspects Of it. Wth'a prospect thru
all these states of an enormous crop
the greatest for corn, at least, in our
history-the people are thinking or
the problems of labor--getting enough
labor to harvest the crops-and of
food prices. food control and trans
portation. Everything the farmer has
to buy Is going up just as it is for the
city dweler.
Disagree on Food Control.
The point Of view of the great food
producing sections is of course. quite
different from that of the food con-
suming cities and, the great eastern
manufacturing Centers. The con-
sumer wants food prices low, whilo
the producer who Is in constant
tussle with nature and taking gamb-
ling chances at that, wants food prices
high. Many farmers with whom l
talked feared that Mr.. Hoover would
not get the producers point of view,
and would see the problem too much
thru the eyes of the east and the con-
sumer. It's worth noting, in passing
however, that Mr.. Hoover was born
on an Iowa farm.
A sound judge of agricultural con-
dtions, Henry Wallace of Wallaceis
Farmer of Iowa, sees great danger.
and in the end futility, in any attempt
at price fixing. either maximum or
minimum, on the great commodities.
1t never has worked from the time OF
Diocletian down, he says and never
will. When the government has
brought the consumer as closely as
possible into contact with the producer
that is, made the machinery of dis
tribution as simple and efficient as 1t
can be made, it has done all 1t should
do. This, with "A campaign all along
the line for economy. the saving OF
waste and the use of cheaper kinos
of food in place of dearer, will alfevi-
ate the severity of condition which
is unescapably abnormal.
Many Difficulties for Hoover.
There is great feeling all thru this
country that there are too many mid
dlemen and exploiters between tho
producer and the consumer, each add
ing his profit to the cost, and that IL
Mr.. Hoover can take care of these,
prices will regulate themselves ac-
cording to the law of supply and de-
mand. From the anxiety which ex-
lists both in city and country, over
what Mr.. Hoover is to do, 1t is easy
to be concluded that whatever he does.
he is going to be continually In tho
hottest water known to America, for
no amount of reasoning can make tho
food producer and the food consumer
see the problem of food control in the
same terms.
Another problem and one that must
be met instantly and with power s
that of transportation. No one can
travel in the west and hear the stories
of the difficulties of both manufacture
ers and farmers without concluding
that we are not far off from a de-
moralization of the railroads of tho
country. When the necessities of mil
itary traffic have to be met-tho
enormous volume of transportation OF
men and supplies-no one knows
what will happen. This is likely to
come in the fall about the time that
the farmers wish to ship their crops,
and the farsighted leaders among
them are already beginning to worry.
Compared with these vast economic
problems, the organization of the war
itself has come to seem like small
affair.
Ex-Governor John Lind, member of
the Minnesota council OF defense sees
in this the greatest difficulty of the
northwest How to get coal shipped
in, both for industries and for heat
ing purposes, during the long northern
winter. and how to get the wheat and
| other crops shipped out, furnishes the
most serious of problems.
IF the nation wants us to do our
part in feeding the world" he said,
they must not permit us to be held
up by the coal people and the rail-
roads. We can't stop to haud cord
wood, and we don't want to have to
burn our corn for fuel, as we have
had to do sometimes in the past"
Here is n man size job for Mr..
Hoover and Mr.. peabody. It is-the
opinion of many good judges OF crop
conditions that the production this Il,
fall unless there are disastrous
changes In weather conditions, will be
sufficient to meet the crisis. II only
the means OF distribution and the
railroad and coal problem in par
ticular can be handled by the federal
government. ] have heard more talk
OF federal control Of railroads and coal
mines all thru this country than ever
l heard before