Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1917-04-29
VIEWS AND NEAR-VIEWS; ).
HINTS AND SUGGESTIONS.
Whole-Wheat Flour Propoaition-Ba-
Dies and Piants-Warttme Sorghum.
Storm Iasurance-C0stly Coal,


Carl Vrooman. assistant secretary of
agriculture. comes out In advocacy of
the adoption in this country Of whole
wheat -four and he lays great empha-
Sis OH the economic saving. Mr.. Vroo-
man contends that because of the
greater food value of the whole VIII cat
flour the grain would be threefold. Not
only would the gross return of the
Hour he larger. the -four would be
cheaper and the bread would go fur
Their. Whole-wheat flour costs less to
mill than white -four, contains practf-
cally all the elements that sustain ami
NAL life. and suffices where white bread.
robbed of the elements essential to cell
life. fails. 1t is a better as we'll as
Il cheaper food.
In this country the wastaSe in mill
ing wheat into white -four is 2S per
cent. England. he says. has cut hers
to 10. Italy is down TO Is. Swit2er-
land to go. and France to 90 per cent
BY adopting the Italian standard. Mr..
Vrooman estimates we should increase
our wheat supplies for the purpose Of
bread by S0.o00.00o bushels Rcstric-
tion of the loss to 10 per cent would
increase the practical value Of our
wheat harvest by 100000 bushels.
This proposition of Mr.. Vrooman.s
seems to be an important proposal in
behalf OF preparedness.
"A plant for every baby" Is the slo-
gan OF the Florida Federation of wo-
mems Clubs. That means that every
woman who Is interested will plant
tree. shrub or plant on Floridas pub
lie highways for each child born. and
Florida paper figures it out in this
way:
suppose 1000 babies are born in
1917 In Florida. and 500 pecan trees,
200 palms, the same number OF cam
frAn
as many OF some such garden annual
as the peony. are contributed to the
States charms-all this in one year
can you imagine the beauty and profit
1t will mean for Florida. II continued
ten years."
The women's clubs of the alligator
State have taken out no patent on this
idea. and Virginia women have 4 per-
feet right to adopt II. Trees and flow
ers along the wayside are much lovelier
than weeds.
With sugar at an unprecedentedly
high figure, II may well be worth while
for the Virginia farmer to plant heav-
iiy for q sorghum crop Out West
they have maple sugar for substi-
tute sweetness. and in some parts OF
the country they grow the sugar beet.
ana IN both cases the raw material
has 10 go through the hands OF the
manufacturer. Here in Virginia any
farmer can raise sugar cane. and they
all know how to make sorghum mo-
lasass. They learned the art from
their fathers and grandfathers. who
mastered the business in the stormy
days of something more than fifty
years ago. This long sweetenin"
may not be complete substitute for
sugar. but IL Is better than no sweet
ening. and it is mighty healthy. There
is time to plant this crop. and farmers
VIII do we'll to make use of il.
one OF the most discouraring times
OF farmers life is when a storm of
some kind or frost, DESTROYS a crop
AFTER he has spent time. money and no
little energy in putting it in IF his
barn is burned, or his house. his losses
are offset by the insurance he carries.
II the frost kills his beans. however.
the loss is total. The United States
Department Of Agriculture points out
way or meeting catastrophcs such as
these. namely. by having weather
insurance, with at least Statewide
scope Companies furnishing tornado
'nSura nce' ha'l insurance, etc. Al. .ady
exist in parts Sf the United States and
Canada. There is room In this part
OF the country for more OF them, per
haps.
Everybody agrees that the price Of
coal Is high. and nobody claims that
II is worth the money. Everybody also
agrees that the cause of the hisb
prices is the perverse or inefficient ac-
tfon or policy OF somebody else. This
neinE the case, II would seem that
some or our eminent economists, com
mereial experts and statesmen should
be equal to the task Of betterinr m.
situation. The ultimate consumer Is
getting mighty tired OF paying for
what he doesn't get.