The Lakeland evening telegram., 1917-04-18
AN APPEAL FOR HOME
THRIFT AND PREPAREDNESS
CBy W. A. McRae. Commissioner of
Agriculture

the worlds greatest and most appall-
ing war 1t is no time 20 apathy,
Indifference ard insens'5ihsy The
war will test us to the dtmost 1t
will call men rom the farms, where
they are sorely needed Our army
ana navy, and the vast aon-produc-
ing population OF the cities must be
fed The food shortage in tile coun-
tries we have Joined in war is alarm
ing We must help to support them
and maintain ourselves
We cannot do this unless there is
maj ked increase in our production
lel loodstuffs Lean harvests last year
caused shortage in the reserves of
wheat. and the past winters whea;
crop is in bad condition. The usual
supply of canned goods is short.
There are fewer beef animals in the
country than twenty years ago.
There is already hunger in American
cities.
Investigations by the United
States Department of Agriculture
discloses astounding facts II is
shown that twelve States of the
South. in which cotton is staple.
bay billion and a third OF dollars
worth of food crops from the North.
in hay, corn, meat, butter and other
necessaries. which in large part can
be produced at home Florida's s to
: tai in purchases is put at $4,000
600. This means that we send
. away more than $S5 for each man.
: woman and child in the State to
buy food. Had we lived within our
selves as we should have done what
vast sum could have been added
to deposits in c'r ranEs instead o.
those in Chicago and New York
where single banks have NOR,
? money than in the $50 banks O.
10 Florida combined
~ All the surplus meat and grain o
re West will be needed this year t,
feed our army and help feed thos
he OF our allies. whose women an,
in children are hungry and in mourn
its ing for their dead Prices will b
Nv irsufferably high in the South thi
no year if we do not act with promp.
=, less
Florida is an agricultural State
and yet we are not feeding ourselye.
and the sources from whence W
ks have been getting supplies can sen
n ms little or none this year. Instance
it's in multiplied numbers can be give
to as ic what we can do in this bountt
lis fully favored State Let me cit
of what the boys and girls are doing
In 1916 the $50 boys of the cor
clubs in Il counties made anaverae
of 42 bushels of corn to the acre. a
es- three times the average produced b
,n. their fathers. In b ccnnties "A
ry, girls in canning clubs made an aver
ar age profit of sl432 in vegetables o
o. each of their tenths of an acre. q
o. an average of $50 profit to the acr.
on Tie ten highest contestants made
average profit of $1OO.5O each an
the average yield of vegetables fo
each girl was 3901 pounds. The tc
rs tai number of cans put up was 179
,s, 95!.
,er Let me urge that all kinds {
lot vegetables and fruits be conserve
lis this year. Preserve any surplus
gs however small. for later use. Vast
re nothing. Let commercial bodie
en- banks and merchants offer prizes i
zee their counties to girls to encourae
lid The canning habit
in Parents who want informatio
,at about boys corn and pig clubs shoul
in write to Prof. c. X. McQuarri
m Gainesville. or about girls cannin
ID clubs to Miss Agnes Ellen Harri
.be Tallahassee.
nd For our States good and the n,
nd tons good let our farmers do the
10 fest this year. and they will do
,u, sound service in the patriotic dut
The before them of helping to feed n
nations