Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1917-12-11
Increase of Food Ration
Means Food Capital Won't
Last Beyond the Winter
of 1918-19
(This is the sixth of Mr.. Corey's ar
ticles on conditions in Germany
BY HERBERT COREY

lSlt Dy ftSTDeTl COIGy.J
BASEL, Switzerland, Oct. 22.-(By
Mail. Germany daily food has been
increased in quantity and bettered in
quality for the time being. aud it is
promised that this increase shall last
through the year. as a result of the sat
isfactory harvests of 1917.
From the information have been able
to obtain here, l am forced to the con-
clusion that this statement is some
what misleading. / believe that not
only has Germany reached her maxi
mum of food production in 1917, but
that she will never again reach that
point during the war. Further, be-
lieve that Germany is now eating up
her food capital.
The inevitable conclusion is that Ger
many is counting upon peace before the
winter of 191S-19 comes.
The 1917 harvest, or more properly
the food product available to the CEN
trail powers during that year, may be
considered as divided into three parts,
now that proper control Of the neu-
trails has prevented Switzerland and the
North sea countries from provisioning
Germany from their surplus. These
are:
The harvest of Germany proper.
The harvest of the powers affiliated.
Inc harvest OF the occupied TERRI
tories.
Contrary to a very generally held
opinion, / believe that Germany came
nearer to a disappearing basis this
year than ever before in her history.
Not only was her consumption cut to
lower figure, but it is likely that her
actual production reached higher num-
bers than ever before.
Every inch of ground available was
cropped in Germany last year. Lawns,
parks, the strips of grass ground along
railroad tracks, the hospital properties
were all cropped. Visitors to Berlin
will remember the tiny plots alongside
the railroad on the way to the golf
links, each provided with it's combina-
ton summer-and-tool house, on which
the Berlin workman used to spend pleas
ant Sundays in the summer time, drink
ing beer and cultivating his flower and
kitchen gardens. These have all been
put in potatoes and other useful crops
now. They may serve as sample of
the empires food producing activities.
1t may be assumed that this hitherto
untitled ground produced it's maximum
of crop last year, just as 1T may be as
sumed that the maximum acreage has
been devoted to crops. For the most
part the German ground is not naturally
rich, and it requires fertilizers and plen-
ty of labor Fertilizers and labor are
alike lacking, but the ground which has
been lying fallow for generations would
certainly be good for at least one exE
cellent crop. The best has been used
in this way for two years, and all for at
least one year. 1t is not supposable that
next years crop can approach that OF
the year Just past. However, 1t may be
assumed that the added acreage more
than made up for the decreased fertili
ty of the land regularly under cultiva-
ton, and which for three years has been
starved.t
AS for the regular crop of Germany,
there was a drouth this spring in north
eastern Germany and Polish Prussia
which was followed by a dry spell this
fall The Germans were very pessimis-
tic in May and June. but better weather
later on resulted in a good crop through
the south. The east was not up to nor
NAL. The low point on food was in
June, when bounties were offered for
the first green vegetables, and farmers
were punished for pulling potatoes be-
fore they were fit. However, the green
vegetable season, followed by the
green fruit season, relieved the worst
of the shortage until harvest time.
The reason for the saying that Ger
many is eating her food capital is that
the meat ration has been increased
throughout the empire.
throughout the war Germany has
tried to save her herds, for her leaders
have realized that if they were cut too
low it would not only be a tremendously
expensive but practically an impossible
undertaking to attempt to replenish the
hoofed stock from neighboring countries