Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1917-06-18
LEVER BILL FOR
FOOD CONTROL
TAKEN Up AGAIN
Lever Brings Il Up In the
HOuse---Senate Will Give
1t First Place
PRESIDENTS DEMAND
FOR MORE SPEED HEARD
Hoover Wants July | Made
Food Conservation Day.
Up To the Women
By Robert ]. Bender

Omitted Press staff correspondent
Washington, June IS. = Legislative
and executive branches of the govern
ment turned all attention today to en-
acting the Lever food control bill into
law.
Speed was the. cry from the white
house. Speed was the objective of Pres
ident Wilson s leaders in congress.
Speed was the call from Herbert Hoov-
er, who has practically completed his
food control organization, and who
awaits only necessary congressional au-
thority to put into operatin his plans
for instantly checking present upward
price trends Of life S necessities.
representative Lever opened the con
gressional battle in the house. President
Wilson gave out letter to Representa-
tive Borland explained the Lever bill.
which, while giving Herbert Hoover
control Of the food situation, is not to
control food but to release release it
from the grip of spectators and other
persons who seek to make inordinate
profits.
Congress must choose, Lever declar-
ed in opening the momentous debate,
. between President Wilson and the
German kaiser as to which shall con.
troll the food situation.''
Senate Will Speed 1t
Al the same time Senator Simmons
journeyed to the white house personal.
ly to assure the president that the SEN
ate would sidetrack the war revenue
measure to give the food bill the right
of wsy. Speed is the thing, Simmons
agreed
Coineidentally with these steps, Hoov
er today named Sunday July l, as food
conservation day, when he urged news
papers, magazines, ministers, fraternal
organizations, motion picture theatres,
billboard owners, etc., to join in ma
tion wide campaign "to awaken the
American housewife to her opportunity
and duty"
In this campaign, by which Hoover
hopes to save $2,000,000,000 annually
through elimination Of waste in the
kitchen alone, all summer schools will
be utilized. Through summer schools
alone, Hoover expects to educate $780,
900 housewives in the art of saving.
All, to Work for It
Specially directed campaigns are to
be made in hotels, railroad dining ears,
cafes and all manner of public eating
places.
Hoover pointed out today that "if
only two cents is saved, on every meal,
an annual saving of another $1,000
900, ,000-equal to the liberty loan-will
have been saved to this nation and her
allies"
As much as possible of this work will
be turned over to state defense eoun-
ellis, cooperating with the National
Council OF Defense. Cooperating in this
work. the women IS committee of the
National Defense Council today tele-
graphed each of its forty eight state
divisions sect behind Hoover "
The agriculture department also got
behind' Hoover today when Carl Vroo,
man arranged an itinerary to visit the
great farming states of the middle and
far west next month TO launch a mar
keting campaign for the crops that will
then be Gin harvest. - Better prices to
the farmer and fairer prices to the
housewife will be Yrooman S slogan.
Middlemen who do not show the
"proper spirit" win be relentlessly
crushed, Vrooman declared.
Scores Spectators
Lever, pleading for the measure, de-
nouneed vigorously "the heartless, un.
patriotic Intermediates who rob and
gouge the farmers.
"a loose iointed, unorganized de-
moeraey hasn t ghost of a chance in
q contest with such an autoeracy as
Germany's organization.
Organization is the only weapon
with which organization can be over
come, An organization, as the term is
used here, means not only whipping in
to shape the man and money power of
the nation, but every resource of the
nation which may be used in the con-
test.
"The people are not going to be sat
isfied with silly excuses about delega-
tion of autoeratie powers. To pay huge
prices for enough meat to feed a cat
may make dangerous men and women
out of ordinary peaceful and good eiti-
zens-
THAT some kind of food and fuel
control is necessary to their most eff
fieient mobilization is imperative.
We intend to drive from establish
ed agencies Of distribution the market
manipulator and gambler, the man who
buys as eheaply as he can. and sells as
dearly as be msy--the Shyl0ek OF com.