Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1917-06-04
CONTROLLING A NATIONS FOOD-.W


WASHINGTON. ID. c.. Juno 3.-There
Is one thing which every consumer can
DO right now to keep prices down. and
that Is to refrain from buying more
than no usually buys OF staple food
articles. The present high price Of
Staples is duo in no small part to the
sudden alarm about a food shortage,
which has sent housckeepers into the
market to buy far beyond their i'm
mediate needs. For example, I'm a Ger
tain suburb the people have dubbed
together to buy -four by the barrel
certain clerk makes II practice
10 ouy ten pounds OF sugar every day.
All over the country these things are
being done. One of the results is that
niiiers have orders for about twice
VIA. ,heir mills can produce. The in
eVitable effect is to force prices up
ward. TO encourage speculation.
ROOD boarding is not economy To
ou! vegetables that will keen and
store them In your cellar. to preserve
fruits and put them on the pantry shclf
are genuine food economies because in
,hcse ways you may save foods which
are abundant In the summer, and large
quantities OF which will rot. By such
expedients as these you are adding
your mite 10 the nations food SUNNY
I9ut by boarding -four and sugar Won
arc forcing up the price Of these arti-
cles, and you are not increasing the
supply.
The question OF prices seems to be
badly misunderstood. Thus general
IMPRESSION seems TO have gotten
ABROAD that Congress Is to give the
president power to fix prices SO that
ne can arbitrarily lower the retail price
OF food articles. As matter OF fact
although the bill, as reported by the
committee does give him this power
there Is little likelihood that he will
exercise It,
The primary purpose of price liking
Is TO assure the farmer OF good
price for his products. so that he viii
raise all that he possibly can. 1t has
bcen the invariable experience of the
FARMER that small crop pays better
IMAM a large one. For example a man
could m more money last year out
OF half crop of potatoes than he
could two years ago out OF bumper
crop. The South gets more for mod
crate cotton crop than it does for a big
one. Every farmer knows this And
every farmer. for that reason il es-
tremeiy suspicious of the propaganda
on the part OF the government and
the press for him to plant more and
produce more. He is asked to spend
his money for seed. and in developing
new lands, when, his entire experience
teaches him that Il big national crop OF
any staple will mean low prices for
that staple. And his costs OF produc-
ton are so high that he cannot risk
low price.
Potatoes BADLY Needed.
For example. RICH, now a big po-
tato crop Is needed badly. But IL cos,
*35 TO plant an acre in potatoes. Tn
less prices stay at very high level,
the farmer cannot afford TO plant many
potatoes. DR.. 4. T. Russell. OF the Wis
consin State Agricultural College. told
the House Committee on Agriculture
that for this reason he had advised
students OF that institution not to plant
potatoes. A man can plant crop of
beans this year for about s.. and beans
are a much better risk. therefore, than
potatoes.
So the need for the food adminlstra-
ton 10 have power to FIX minimum
price is clear. Unless he has some as
surance OF good return the farmer
will not enthuse over this bumper-crop
idea.
Price-fSing will not be resorted TO
at all until the need for it is certain
The first price fixed. IL any price is
fixed. will be a minimum price for GER
tain staples. This price will be high
enough to assure the farmer OF lib
eral profit over all costs OF production.
IL then a staple becomes so abundant
that its market value is less than the
price which the government had guar
anteed to the producer. the government
Will make up the difference. This is the
working OF the minimum price az 1t
was explained to the House Committee
on Agriculture.
Such minimum price would tend