Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1917-12-30
To Double the Food Supply With New Farm Machinery


Copyright. 1917, by Frank G. Carpenter.)
DETROIT, 1917.
q WRITE today of the farm tractor
III as coming asset in our great war
with the Germans. 1t is an old
q saying that an army can move only
upon its belly Cut off the food
supply ard the troops are defeated.
This was never SO true as now, when
not only the soldiers, but the nations
behind them must rely upon the out
side for the most of their food The
United States has become the bread
basket of the nations. We must have
food. not only for our 10o.0oo,000 peo-
pie at home. but for the hundreds of
millions OF our allies and the armies
abroad. From now on the cry from the
"far-off Macedonia" over the ocean will
be food. food and still more food How
shall we supply it? We have the land,
but not the men to cultivate 1t. Our
laborers have. been decimated by the
draft. and Uncle Sam is calling more
and more men from the farms to the
Army. Our only salvation is the use
of machinery. We must make gasoline,
kerosene and alcohol take the place OF
into the trenches. and new inventions
must enable one man to do the work of
ten.
4
Among the most important of these
inventions is the farm tractor. We
have thousands already in use and the
great factories here and at other in
utr;a fJ,,r ip
machinery to add to the number. They
should be aided in every possible way,
and the Council of National Defense
should see that they are furnished with
men and supplies. I understand that
one sewing machine company has re-
Gently taken an order for. $30,000,000
worth OF tractors to be built after
new design. and ! know that Henry
Ford G. Son have accepted orders to
make thousands of cheap tractors for
Europe and that they are now pre-
pairing the tools and plant to supply
5000 to England in time for the plow
ing next spring. Mr.. Ford says II is
better business to aid our allies to in
crease their own food supply than to
aid, our farmers In raising food which
must be shipped across 1000 miles of
water infested with submarines. whose
business 1t Is to destroy such supplies.
Therefore, the first of his tractors will
be sent to Europe. and it will probably
be some time before they are ready
for the American market.
1t is only a few weeks ago that Mr..
LLOYD george made a speech as TO the
government plans for increasing the
crops of the British Isles. At that time
he said they had ordered thousands of
tractors, and that England would, have
e.ooo breaking 500 az the close OF this
winter. Many or the famous estates are
to be devoted to the raising Of food,
and parks and lawns upon which the
grass has grown for centuries will be
turned up by these tractors. Every acre
or cultfyable land is TO be used, and the
tractor is to make up for the loss of
the labor demands by the battiefelds
of France.
II such a policy could be adopted and
carried out in the United States, we
could feed all the people upon this big,
round earth, and supposing space could
be brideed, have enough left over for
every man. woman and child on the
planet of Mars. our farming area to-
day covers only a small mart of the
Union. The total amount of our land is
means two thousaud millions ana SO
s7S.o0o.oo0 and of this only 47s.0oo.00o
mas ever neeh turhea up nS me plow;
area has nroduced in one YEAR more
than 4,0o0.ooo,0o0 bushels of corn and
wheat winch at the current prices OF
,.hsa, mouid he worth w 49, ..,a
$4,000, 900, 900 If we could bring ali the
farm lands now owned into use, this
Iop .,. ~ 10 - nuu ny Mas,
,ann ina oans s t,n,es Nay Ts ~ pun
rna.,;n ~ ~ 49,, traa.o ot .,,
ply" ius VI ,in t tnan ntt anu tHe
ntsar Nv, ,,,act';nsrv e",,,J a.,,,.
t,.e haha,s nf nora ana oSt Iiahs
.,h.ra ons g. ro,y .rawin. sn 81. tr Nv
nn,e,,.,a1 toods,,,es ~ ne I.,;t tns
poasns rsaiiw hayond +ha me un'e1
the Widest ina gina tim so e'o"'' u
IT TIa ,hs anr1, nron T., ,o,- .s,s
,,arn than oon mn ooo hnshs ". III ~ ouues"
age Weld ner acre of that cron the Irn;tad
States over. has never been more thsn