The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1917-10-29
AN OPEN LETTER
FROM ]. F. DEEMS
Federal Food Administrator of Iowa
Calls on War Mothers Wives and
Sweethearts to Help
Their Men.
WANT PLEDGES SIGNED
House to House Canvass viii be
Completed by November S, and
Conservation Will be
Reality.
WANT PLEDGES SIGNED

The following open letter on food
conservation has been sent out to the
women of Iowa from the headquarters
of the United States food admins.
tration bureau, Of which j. F. Deems
of Burlington, is the administrator
for Iowa:
BURLINGTON, Iowa, Oct. 20. 1917.
To the war mothers, wives, sisters
and sweethearts of Iowa: Your coun-
try has called your men, and you
have given them cheerfully. Your
men are now calling upon you to aid
them, to make certain their future
comfort when in the great armed
camps Of France they prepare to
battle for you and for their country.
They have right to expect that you
will heed their call, and we are
therefore pointing out to you how
you can be of the greatest aid to
them. Food will win the war; don't
waste 1t, is the slogan of the United
States food administration, and IL
was adopted as means of bringing
home to the people the great neces-
sity under which the government Ia
bors Of having the housewives Of the
nation voluntarily behind it in it's eff
forts to provide, not only for our al
lies who are holding the fighting
line in France, but for the youth of
America who will soon be taking
their places in that great battle line,
and who will suffer or be comfort
able in the proportion the men and
women of this country take hold Of
this most serious of businesses and
bring it to success.
We are asking the housewives to
sign the food pledge. We are asking
that the house to house canvass for
the food pledge be completed by NJ
vember 5. In every county a chair
man is at work with her faithful
helpers, and it is due to their efforts
the campaign has advanced to the
stage where success is in sight pro-
vided more workers are added to
their staff for this final week of in
tensive effort from October % to
November 5. So we are calling upon
the war mothers to aid the can.
vassers in completely covering their
territory this week. We are asking
them in the names of their sons who
have gone to war.
The government isn't going to'take
anything from anyone. 1t is asking
the people to pledge themselves to
food conservation, to save food in so
far as they are able and to encour-
age others to do SO. The govern
ment through the food administra-
ton wishes to get in closer touch
with the housewives. 1t asks a hearty
voluntary support of it's measures
for food conservation. 1t wants to
know who and how many it can de-
pend upon. We must find in the
United States in the next year two
or three times as much food for ex-
port as we ever dreamed of export
ing from this country, and we must
find it in such 4 manner as not to
injure the current supply. So we
are asking the war women of Iowa
to join US in this campaign, to make
sure that the work is thoroughly and
effectively carried out. Sign the
food pledge, and join the ranks of
the canvassers in your vicinity for
this final week of the food pledge
campaign. Help us help your soldier
boys to win the war.
Sincerely yours,
J. F. DEEMS,
Federal Food Administrator.