The Knoxville independent. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1894-current, 1917-05-05

borrower Cost of Living.
BY BOLTON HALL.
copyright, 1917 by Bolton Hall, All
rights reserved.l
The flowers that bloom In the spring
look sweet in the public parks, but to
a mother with starving children not so
| sweet as potatoes and onions and beets.
The easiest way to bring down the
prices of food is to raise more of it
and yet more. But today there is a
prospect of less acreage The farmers
are planting less land because of the
high price of seed, in some places po-
tato seed cannot be had at all. The
Gamers are reducing their output of
vegetables because of the shortage OF
tins.
If you and | don't remedy this, food
will cost twice as much next winter
even if the European war is stopped.
Thirty millions of fighting men are
now consuming and destroying produce
of all sorts and even destroying the
land from which their labor should
produce it, And each soldier requires
the entire earning of at least four per-
sons to keep him in the field of battle
instead of in the field Of crops. Is it
any wonder that, while wages have
risen they only climb the stairs, while
prices go up in the elevator? 1t is go
ing to take some time to get those
prices down.
Baron Davenport, the English food
controller, with the despotic powers Of
the defense of the realm law has COM
Wandered all lands in London which
are needed for cultivation by women,
children, invalids or old men.
He has followed our Mayor Pingree's
potato patch plan and has had them
divided into small plots and expects to
have quarter Of million people EN-
ployed in London alone.
Richmond park, where William w.
| and Mrs. Fitzherbert made love, is now
making food for the people. Hyde
J park and lots of others are to be plow-
! ed up. A new cemetery at East Hamp-
/ ton has been planted with potatoes
Oxford and Cambridge college gardens
are beginning to furnish nourishment
for tue body rather than delight for
the mind.
All this would be flea bite, but the
ministers of agriculture in England
France and Italy have followed suit
Germany did it long ago If England
forces all her idle land into use food
will be cheaper in England in spite of
the submarines than ever before and
England will be richer in spite of the
wastes of war, for not only food, but
all wealth comes in the first place from
land by labor. Like case, like rule; if
We use our land we will have more
money and will get more for it.
But you can help yourself even If
others haven't sense enough to help,
Is there an unsightly vacant lot near
your house? Wouldn't you like to i'm
prove it this spring and in improving it
save the $500 you will otherwise have
spent TOT vegetables!
Don't you think the owner should be
glad to have it cleared Of rubbish and
cultivated and made attractive to pro
spectiye buyers?
Don't you know that one hour of that
sort of work every evening or four eve.
nings or mornings week will improve
you as well as the lot. make you
stronger, give you better sleep and in
crease the respect in which you are
held by your neighbors and by your
neighbours wife?
Sure thing!
The trouble is that many aren' t
smart enough to find the place and the
wise ones haven't time to show them
or they just don't care.
But they will care next winter when
they have to foot the bills for vegeta,
bles-instead of for other jewels.
Vacant lot cultivation takes the sting
out Of charity by putting men and
their families on the vacant lands and
make them self supporting and at the
same time provides pure air and health
full living for the ailing wives and chill
dren.
For the home owners: Why not i'm
prove the block in which you live. sup.
ply your dinner table and supply your.
self with an appetite that will be JOY
in itself?
For the asylums, sanitariums, hos
pitfalls, reformatories. prisons and char
ity associations; why not put the
down and outs to work in the alb
sence Of other labor and in helping
them teach them to help themselves
and you?
Not only the unemployed or the dis
employed, but the sick the Respondent
the consumptive and the inebriate can
produce $500 or $500 worth Of food on
each acre. Yet we are appointing end
less commissions to inquire into the
cost of food las if we didn't know all
about that and are always trying to
indict somebody for conspiring to raise
prices No one in this country seems to
have thought of inquiring why so many
available parts of the earth are kept
idle. the very places where food should
be produced and raw material pro
cured.