The Green Forest tribune., 1917-08-24

'NHA Ncb bAuI hNASs tliC oIlttb hNldtNo | and the West Indies. This field has since the war increased its production by 100000 tons per annum. How far this demand will interfere with the American supply of 100000 tons is | difficult to forecast, first, because some increased supplies may be obtained by the allies from the East Indies. and, second, because the allies have re duced their consumption to some ex- tent.
 In any event, if all the enemies of Germany are to be supplied, there must be economy in consumption | everywhere. The normal American consumption is about 90 pounds per person per annum and is just double | the French consumption.
 Vegetables.
 We have this year q most abundant crop of vegetables for our use as a re- l suit of a patriotic endeayor almost universal throughout the country. Our | potato harvest alone promises an in- crease from 2S5 5O00,00O bushels last year to over 400000.000 bushels this year. The other vegetables are like wise enormously increased through | the planting and extension of millions | of gardens. The sweet potato crop | promises to be from 10 to 20 per cent l above what it was last year, and the commercial crop of sweet corn for l canning purposes is estimated to be 1 from 20 to 90 per cent above that of l last year. The commercial crop of | tomatoes for canning purposes will l probably be somewhere between 10 and 20 per cent above what it was last year. There is an increase in the acre age of late onions of about 54 per cent over the area harvested in 1916.
 Fish and Sea Foods.
 The waters of our coasts and lakes are enormously rich in food fish and shell fish. Our streams, too, contribute a great quantity of fish. Many varie- ties are now not used for human food, but are thrown away or used for ferti- lizer. Habit has confined our use of fish to few varieties, and inadequate methods of commercial handling have limited our use of these largely to only | certain days in the week. With better marketing facilities, with better under standing of how to use the most varie- ties with proper preservation by ST ng and salting and by establish l ing plants for frozen fish, we can in- | crease greatly our supply and thus re- ieve largely the pressure due to the inadequate supply of meat. We only have to harvest our own fish supply. It feeds itself. Every fish eaten is that much gained in solving the pres ent problem of living. The products of the land aI<; conserved by eating those of the sea.
 Our Duty.
 l I have endeaVored to show in previ- ous articles that the world is short of food; that Europe is confronted with the grim specter of starvation unless from our abundance and our waste we keep the wolf from the door. Not only must we have a proper use of our food supply in order that we may furnish our allies with the sinews with which they may fight our battles, but it is an act of humanity towards fellow men, women and children
 By the diversion of millions of men from production to war, by the occu- patton of land by armies. by the iSo- lation of markets, by belligerent lines, and by the destruction of shipping by submarines, not only has the home pro- duction of our allies fallen by over 500,000,00 bushels of grain. but they are thrown upon us for a much larger proportion of their normal imports for merly obtained from other markets.
 They have reduced consumption at every point, but men in the trenches. men in the shops, and the millions of women placed at physical labor re- quire more food than during peace times. and the incidence of their saving and any shortage which they may suf- fer falls first upon women and chill dren. If this privatiOn becomes too great, their peoples cannot be main tained constant in the war, and we will be left alone to fight the battle of democracy with Germany.
 The problem of food conservation is one of many compleXions. We cannot, and we do not wish, with our free in stitutions and our large resources of food, to initiate Europe in it's policed l rationing, but we must voluntarily and intelligently assume the responsibility before us as one in which everyone has q direct and unacceptable interest. We must increase our export of foods | to allinS and in thn firpnTO of our shipping situation. these exports must be of the most concentrated 1 foods. These are wheat flour, beef, pork and dairy products. We have oth- CT foods in great abundance which we can use instead of these commodities, and we can prevent wastes in a thou sand directions. We must guard the drainage of exports from the United States, that we retain a proper supply for our own country, and we must | adopt such measures as will amelior- ate, so far as may be, the price condi- tions of our less fortunate. We might so drain the supplies from the country to Europe as by the high prices that would follow to force our people to shorten their consumption. This oper- alton of normal economic forces" would starve that element of the com munity to whom we owe the most pro- tection. We must try to impose the burden equally upon all.
 Action Must Be Voluntary.
 There is no royal road to food con servaton. We can only accomplish this by the voluntary action of our