Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1917-10-25
HOME GARDENS
HELP THE ALLIES
Enough to Feed 100000 Sol
diers Year Raised in Them
Last Summer
By CHARLES LATHRoP PACK


all records and was generally beyond ex-
| pectations. The work Of gardening, of
canning and Of drying vegetables and fruits
has been under way I'm the land, from
| Maine to California and from the Lakes TO
| the Gulf, and has justified all belief as TO
| success. 1t is important to consider what
this means. It means 1,150,000 acres Of
| city and town land under cultivation the
past season for the first time. Urban and
| suburban America became vast garden
as the result of the impulse given to the
| nation by the National Emergency Food
| Garden Commission. Our nationwide sur
vey located nearly 100000 such gardens.
! This is only a beginning. What shall the
harvest be next year?
In our one year of experience II is con-
| servative to state that by the planting of
| gardens the nations food supply has been
| increased to the extent of more than $780,
| 900 900. Next year we will do even better.
| We will then have more war gardens and
the average production will be larger. With
better knowledge there will be fewer
| failures
Any inventory Of the food situation must
1
vital factor. AZ its first duty, already ac-
! complished it has been of great value In
keeping down the cost of living for the peo-
pie of America Household expenses have
been bad enough as 1t is. That they would
| have been far worse without this garden
! crop is obvious
| The significance of this planting does not
| end with the summer season. The war gar
dens will exert their influence on the cost OF
| living during the winter months. The In
dvdual citizen has realized that the over
supply of the growing season must be trans
lated into terms Of abundance for the win
| ter. This realization has brought about
| such activity in household conservation as
| America has never before known. Food
saving and food conserving are becoming
| national characteristics. From a wasteful
nation America is being transformed into
nation alert to the needs of the future. The
keynote Of this new national spirit has been
that nothing should be allowed to go to
waste-that nothing useful should be
thrown away.
Cost of Feeding the Soldiers
War has made Uncle Sam the biggest
buyer Of food in this country. The board
bill for his soldiers will soon be at least
81, 900 900 a day. We are to have 100000
or more men under arms shortly, according
to Secretary Baker At forty cents a day
food cost per man It will be seen what
that means.
I am told that the reserve stock of food
stuffs at each camp is worth Sl25,0O0, and
there are thirty-three camps in the country
today. This means that food valued al
$4,125,OOO is taken out Of the regular chan
! nels Of trade production and consumption.
) These figures give but a small idea of the
need of food conservation on the part Of
, the individual at this tine and the need will
be greater next year. The National Finer
gency Food Garden Commission urges every
soldier Of the soil 10 promote himself at once
to a colonel of conservation and to make
plans for gardening and for conserving gar
: den food in 1918 as never before.
The glass.jar manufacturers of this
country have delivered during the season
Of 1917 about 100000 glass jars. A
, survey of the household supply OF Jars used
10 for canning and preserving in some twenty
! ! typical towns throughout the country
showed that the housewives of America in
1917 used but one new jar to over three
and one-quarter old glass jars which were
S | already on hand. Thus, you see that in
e | conservative terms the home women OF
A | our country put up nearly 500,000,00C
| quart jars of vegetables and fruits, certain
i ly three times what had been accomplished
t in any season before. Next year, profitinG
l. by their experience Of this year they will
- can believe, millions more, and more viii
" be needed
The commission is, OF course. gratliet
n at the success of its work in behalf Of fooC
n thrift, and congratulates all who have haC
a part in this patriotic effort.
This war will be won in large part b!
e fighting with food. We will do our dut!
J. In this hour of trial, and we have no create
d duty than the production and conservation
l. of food This war is as much our war a
:" II is the war of Europe, and unless we cal
e keep the soldiers and the women and chill
d dren of our Allies fed, the western line o
r. defense may be thrown back toward tn
Atlantic seaboard, and it is we'll With
10 possibility that in that case we would Sc
N the enemys army on our shores.
' Danger of Starving Our Allies
To prevent this disaster calls for tn
best effort of every American household
You cannot starve Germany, Ambassado
y Gerard has told us so, and from the avail
"a dDle eNlutIGb btltNC ne - IlBul Du
we will starve our allies IL we are so short
sighted, small and mean and unpatriotic a
- not TO deserve the name of Americans. Thi
must not be II will not be
IN The town or city farmer who can rails
even half of his winter supply of vegt
tables is able, as result, to accompis
at much as a constructive citizen. In othC
| words, we must make a big drive to pre-
NC duce food in this country as near the poiI
Of consumption as possible rout the middl,
man and the cold-storage man and he
III the railroads in the tremendous transpo
49, | tation problem that confronts them whi
- the country is at war.
pe Glass jars and all other containers mu
be conserved this winter and the man,
facturers must next year be prepared
a | meet the largest demand for them Il
-, country has even seen.
ys To win the final victory in the gre
Nv war America must feed not only herse
tie and her fighting forces, but she must he
to feed the people of England, France tia
and Russia. To do this with the highe
measure of efficiency is the real problel
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We THE WAR GLOBE