The Birmingham age-herald., 1917-08-06
E. A. CLAYBROOK GIVES HIS
 VIEWS ON FOOD SITUATION
President of New York Produce Exchange Tells Something About Part This Great Institution Plays
 in Conduct of War

The New York Sun, in recent issue, contains an interesting interview on the food situation with Edward A. Claybrook, the new president of the New York Pro- duce Exchange Preside,at Claybrook is a brother of the Rev. Wlloughby N Clay brook, rector of St. Mary on- the High lands Episcopal church. Birmingham.
 The Sun article is attractively Illustrated with an interior view of the produce ex- change and photograph of President Clay brook. It reads in part as follows:
 The New York Produce Exchange has been described as the biggest open mar ket in the world for foodstuffs. The com modities dealt in include wheat corn, oats, barley, rye, flour, cornmeal, hops, hay, straw, seeds, pork lard meats. all sorts of meat food products, tallow greases, cotton seed oil and various othe vegetable and animals oils. naval stores of all kinds, butter and cheese. These commodities are bought and sold in quan- titles ranging from cargo lots to pack ages.
 Naturally the business of the exchange has been of growing public importance since the entrance of the United States into the war brought the food question still more prominently to the front. Its members have been studying not only the food question itself but also transporta- ton problems connected with it. Richard A. Claybrook, the newly elected presi- dent of the exchange, has made a state ment of his view of the situation to a Sun reporter
 At the outset of the interview MT. Clay brook said that before proceeding with facts and figures bearing on the visible and invisible food supply he deemed it advisable to make clear one point re- garding trading on the exchange
 The average person" he said, is of the opinion that the exchange is huge structure designed anu maintained for the sole purpose of speculating in grain and foodstuffs. Nothing is further from the truth. In word, there is no specu- lating in grain or foodstuffs whatever through Chicago houses dealing in grain.
 NO PRICE FIXING
 Neither is there any price fixing. Our members are in keen competition all the time which tends to hold prices down to the minimum rathe. than to boost them For instance, a buyer comes to the exchange for flour. There are several hundred flour men on the floor. He wants his supply at his original figure. He comes to me, and 1 cannot sell him at his figure. He goes to someone else. The chances are before he leaves the HOOr he has his flour and at a price he has fixed upon. With such state of af- fairs there can be no collision, no price fixing and no gambling in futures, be- cause it is a case of deliver the goods and pay for what you get"
 THE SUPPLY OF WHEAT Then Mir Claybrook took up the ques- tion of food supply:
 With proper care and conservation, he said, there will be ample food to feed our allies, our neutral friends, our stay at homes and our fighting men on land and afioat. It is all question of proper care and this is the gospel We are preaching from morn till night.
 We know the past and we are antici- pating and preparing for the future Un- less all signs fail, crops will be plentiful | this year, although I do not anticipate bumper crops. If we husband our re- sources here at home there will be enough I for all and the housewife must do hel | part, which, I may add Is a great bis | part. We can rely upon Canada to hell us to live up to our obligations abroad | in keeping the stream of wheat moving 1 toward Europe, and doubtless India. Aus | tralia and the Argentine will add many millions of bushels to the grand total Russia is still an unknown quantity. ! This question of feeding Europe i ] one of the best examples of our patriot