Brownsville herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1910-current, 1917-04-06
FRIDAY, p r o, 1917.


Says the New York Times anent an arti-
Gle by B. +. Yoakum published in The Her
aid today:
The crops of 1917 will decide whether
the world shall be fed of shall starve in
1918. The reserves will be exhausted when
this crop year ends. Here, where food
prices are already high. where much agri-
cultural labor has been diverted into in
dustry, the food situation i of prime i'm
ro-tance. In its relation to wages, indus
trv, The cost of living, the increased pro-
dpesion If American foodstuffs this wear
is Vita. In every wheat-growing country
but Australia and India this fundamental
crop is reported short for 1917. All over
the world, when millions of men must be
production of wheat is below the normal.
Our W crop has been estimated at Co.,
600 900, whereas the average for five years
was 7~28,O00,000 bushels, and the .'bum-
per" of 1915 was 1,026, O00, 900 bushels.
How are we going TO feed our friends
across the water and have enough left to
feed Ourselves3 1t is a serious prospect,
nv huT tC W. iC~oiuttiN.
The Department of Agriculture is work
ing hard to impress upon the farmers the
highest efficiency in producing and storing
food. Tie supply of potatoes is scant.
Secretary Houston is showing how to deal
with preventable potato diseases, such a
sometimes cut off $4,000. 900 to 100. 0O0.-
900 bushels. He L. showing the farmers
14-~ - ~-..-o. w-..&@ -. ~---l ~--I..-
how to conserve surplus fruits and vege-
tables. lie Is urging vacant lot and back
yard cuIti. alton. He is pleading for the
utmost food economy in every household.
He is recommending corn meal and rice as
substitutes for flour.
Secretary Houston is doing, and will keep
on doing, active and fruitful work to in
crease the food supply and to wake up this
wasteful, careless people TO the necessity
of skimping and not ~squandering.
Will the Americans wake upf 1t j. "a
condition, not a theory" that confronts
them. They may be tightening their belts
next winter.
Mr.. B. +. Yoakum. a railroad builder. a
master of transportation, who has an eve
loT ldTHlln- a. II WHOle, WHO saw long ago
the need of its development a. an adjunct
of transportation, has on this page today
a letter which every reader of The Times
should read. 1t is profitable for %instruc-
ton to everybody. He takes up wheat,
milk and potatoes. He shows u short crops,
the reduction by the governments mobili-
baton of labor for war purposes g. tic
farm labor that has to feed more than
loo, 00O, 600 persons. Bread. meat, milk,
potatoes, we must have. Pay the farmer q
good price, let him pay good prices To his
hired men.
For every hired man who must
shoulder a rifle for military duty we
had better furnish inducement for an
other to take up n hoe for farm work.
For every farm laborer who leaves
the farm for the ammunition factory
to earn SO a day we had better offer
inducements to the farmers to speed
up their efforts to feed the people, and
show how they win be justified in 60
ing TO the labor market and paying
good wages for the same class of la
Dor for farm work as the gun and bat
lie hip factories pay labor to serve
ilse -avernment.
IIar, +ense. Mr.. Yoakum says that q
practical plan ito insure an ample sup
ply of the substantial necessities of life