Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1917-10-16
Food Pledge Campaign Week.
MAINE WILL BE cANvAssED IN THE
CAMPAIGN FOB CONSERVATION.

II One hundred and fifty thousand food
{ substitution pledges! Every home In
the State Of Maine visitedi A State
, wide campaign projected 90 large In It's
! scope that the work to be accomplished
| 10 as great as though census Of the on.
tire state were to be taken In q weekI
! Such 10 the program outlined for the
/ Food Pledge Campaign Week, October
21st TO 2Sth inclusive. Similar cam
paigus are to be conducted In every
, other state of this country and 1t 10
planned to enroll 100,000,0 900 people in
Army.
What 10 Il all about?
Why so much fuss?
i In every state Thousands OF people are
asking these questions while Thousands
Of others are preparing themselves to
furnish complete answer to the query.
The reasons why the Food Pledge
Campaign has been projected upon such
broad lines are simple enough, plain
enough.
So simple and plain that they have
been stated In the compass Of card-s
card that 1t Ia proposed to hang In every
home of the lsnd-a card that is the
"war creed Of the Kitchen, because 30
closely are the people In this country
linked to the world war, that one of the
phases Of the struggle must be fought
out In the American kitchen.
II soldiers are to fight they must be
fed. For the past three years, one by
one, our allies across the sea have been
taking the men from the farm and from
the factory and sending them to the
firing line. Each man sent to the firing
line meant one less to be relied upon to
help produce the food that twill win
the war"
England, France, Italy, and Belgium,
says the war creed of the kitchen, which,
after all, completely states the problem
and presents the solution, taken to-
gether, even in times Of peace import
forty per cent of their food stuffs, but
now with their millions upon the firing
line they must import more heavily than
before.
There are stores of wheat in Australia.
There is food in South America, but
ships are scarce. Time is vital factor.
The voyage to Australia and to South
America takes too long. II the needs OF
those who fight for rs across the sea
are to be met, the food that sustains
those fighters must come from this
country.
If the laborer is worthy of bis hire,
surely the fighter Is worthy OF bis food.
That is principle universally accepted
by the American public. However,
warns the United States Food Administra |
tion, 1t is not every product that can be
sent across the sea. Corn will not
serve the need; our allies have never |
used 1t as food; they have no mills to |
grind It; turn It into meal and 1t would |
spoil before 1t could reach Q European |
port. There are just four classes of
products, the experts say, that We must
send to our allies II our duty to them
is to be discharged; they need meat,
wheat, sugar and dairy products. But,
say the experts, who have gathered the |
figures, unless American consumption Of |
those food stuffs Is reduced below the |
normal consumption our reserve will |
not be large enough to meet the need.
And 90 the problem becomes simple |
one-at least when studied.
We can conserve our wheat by In |
creasing our consumption OF other |
grains. We can conserve our meat by |
making greater demand upon the re-
sources Of the fish market. All Of
these are expedients known to the
American housewife.
If the United States were an auto |
cratic country there would be no popular |
appeal for the conservation Of food.
There would be IN sutocratic food CON-
troll. The mailed fist would rule In tho /
kitchen. Imperial food decrees would |
be inforced at tho point Of the bsyonet.
But ours is not an autocratic country. |
Food control is In the hands Of the |
people themselves, and 1t 10 to the
people that the Food Administration |
has appealed in the Food Pledge Card
Campaign.
Herbert Hoover has termed this ap-
peal an unprecedented adventure In
democracy''-an adventure that will
determine whether or not Democratic
form of Government is, after oil, fitted
to engage In death grapple with an
Autocracy.
The appeal in the Food Pledge Week
Campaign Is that the homes of this
country be enrolled - members OF the
United States Food Administration.
Broadly speaking the United States Food
Administration includes every man,
woman, and child In the United States,
because food control is In the hands of
the people.
, The Food Pledge Week Campaign,
therefore, resolves itself into an effort to
secure a result Of voluntary agree
ment pledges insuring the general sup.
port for q we'll defined program of food
conservation. The Food Pledge Week
Campaign represents an effort to Induce
as many of the American homes ~
possible to unite In common policy.
Our wheat reserves can be conserved
II everybody helps. Our meat reserves
can be conserved II the whole public CO.
operates. The Food Pledge Week
Campaign, therefore, turns out to be
simple enough In Its outlines. The
American people are asked to join to-
pether In common conservation policy.
AZ evidence that they are supporting
this policy they are asked to hang
card denoting membership in the United
States Food Administration In their
window. In order that the conservation
policy may be understood, the reasons
for it made plain, and the manner OF
observing It rendered certain, instruc-
tiou csrds-"The War Creed Of the
Kitchen"-are to be hung in the home.
And that 10 what the National Food
Pledge Week Campaign 10 oil about.
ae,vle$1ns nm p0fat0 Mafkets.