The daily Alaskan., 1917-06-04
HOW YOUTH MAY HELP

The high cost Of living Is on the lips Of people h all cities. towns, suburban communities and manufacturing and mining villages in the United States, writes Dr. P. P. CIaxton. commissioner of education. department of tue inte- rior. in the American City. It has many causes. Two of these are the un- usual lack Of food and the fact that most of the food Is consumed far from the place of production. which makes the consumer pay the cost of storage and transportation and the profits of the uIdLlemen, mEay of whom in times like these take advantage Of the wants or the people to make profits larger than they should
 Is there Q remedy? There is a par tial remedy at le0St. but not wholly in investigations or legislation. This rem edy Is so simple and close at hand that, as Is so frequently tue case 1t Is over looked h the schools Uf the cities, towns. suburban communities and man. uGaccuring ard mining villages Of the United States there Ore approximately G.OO0OOO boys oaI girls between the ages of nine and sixteen. Most Of them are idle moro than half Of the year. They are iu school less than e thousand hours in the year and, allow ing ten hours Q dGy for sleep, are out Of school more than 1000 waking hours. more than an average Of nlue hours da-. not counting Sundays. National and state laws make 1t impossible for most of them to do any profitable work in mill, mine or shop, and many of them are forming habits of idleness and falling into vIee. ,Ercn during the vacation months only about 10 per cent have any profitable employment Only about 5 per cent of them 90 away from their homes except fCr few days. Still they must live and be fed and clothed.
 For 100000 of these there Is access to back yards. side yards. front yards and vacant lots. wLich might be cultl- yated as small gardens for the growth of vegetables and small fruits. Many live where space could be easily had for chickens. ducks or pigeons. And there are not less than G.OOO,OUO older boys and girls and adult men and wO- men for whom an hour or two of work each day in a garden would be the best form of recreation and rest from the routine of their daily labor in office or shop or mill or mine and who might easily find the time for 1t.
 With some intelligent direction these school children and older boys and girls and men and women might easily pro duce on the available land an average of ST5 each In vegetables and fruits for their own tables or for sale In their immediate nelghbOrhoOd. fresh and crisp through all the growing months and whOlesOmeIy canned and preserved for use in winter. This would add STJO, 100000 to the best form of food supply of the country without cost of transportation or storage and without profits of middlemen. The estimate Is very conservative, as has been shown by many experiments.
 In addition to the economic profits, there would be for the children health and strength, removal from temptation to vice and education of the best type, and for older persons rest and recrea- ton in the open air and the joy of watching things grow.
 This might all be attained at com paratively little cost by putting into the public schools for every hundred children between the ages of :.aSS22. and