Evening capital and Maryland gazette. (Annapolis, Md.) 1910-1922, 1917-11-10
FOOD SITUATION
IS MOST SERIOUS
Many People Prefer 70 avoid Fac
ing Realities.
AN APPEAL TO SACRIFICE
Facts Demand Nations Attention Ell.
fort To IgnOre Initiates
Ostrich.
lBy Riehard n. Edwards.l

public long enough some change may
take place which will obviate the ne
cessity of facing facts when these
facts are unpalatable
This country faces a very serious
food situation, but the United States
| Department OF Agriculture has misled
-the nation. and in doing so misled the
Administration itself In President
Wilson'S appeal for sacrifice in order
to conserve food for our allies he
said:
"Our country, however, is bles-
sed with an abundance of food
stuffs, and If our people viii
economic in their use, provi
IDENTIFY combining themselves to the
quantities required for the main
tenance Of health and strength,
etc"
President Wilson was thoroughly
| honest in his own belief as to the cor
rectness of this statement, or he
would not have made it. But un-
! fortunately ii is incorrect. The coun-
try is not abundantly supplied with
foodstuffs, and it is a serious mistake,
viewed from every angle. to have this
| impression created. If the country
should be convinced that there was an
abundance of fodstuffs for our own
needs, there would be less realiza-
ton of the necessity of increased
| food production and increased food
| conservation, and no justification
could then be found for the high
prices prevailing. If these high
prices were due entirely to specula-
tors and gamblers, the gamblers and
| spectators should be hung or shot.
But unfortunately the facts are such
as to demand the most serious consid-
Grafton of the nation. We must face
the issue with exactly the same spirit
that we must face the realities of the
war, and prepare to meet the food
! question with exactly the same de-
gree of self-sacriice with which the
soldier offers his life.
The man who wates food, who con-
sumes more of wheat bread, beef,
pork and mutton than is actually
needed for his sustenance, is a slack
er in this hour of world tragedy He
is infinitely more of a Stacker than the
| man who because of cowardice seeks
to escape the war. The latter from
cowardice may try to save his life.
| The former, from selfish gluttony is
unwilling to sacrifice even some of his
appetite. The hotel or the social
club which furnishes on its bill of fare
| a larger supply Of foodstuffs than
should be demanded at this hour, or
which wastes by giving too large q
portion, is worse than a Stacker. It
co-operates with the Stacker merely
because it does not want heroically to
stand for what is right, and therefore
it seeks to appease the gluttonous APP
petite of the food Stacker. The time
has long since passed for mincing
words in the discussion of these prob
lens. Let us face the facts as to the
food question.
This years wheat crop is 150,000.OO0
bushels less than the average yield of
the last five years. 1t is over SS.0O0,-
600 bushels short of the crop of 1901.
or 16 years ago, though at that time
we had population of at least 25,-
/ 600, 600 less than we have today. At
the average rate of consumption, bas-
ed on an increase of $4,000, 900 people.
we need at least 125,000,0OO bushels
more of wheat than we then needed
for our domestic consumption alone.
But instead of that we have a decrease
of 8S,000,0O0 bushels short of that
years yield
This years wheat crop is 100000
bushels short of the yield of 1912. Il
is lO3,000,000 bushels short of that of
1913. It is 36S,O0O,OOO bushels less
than that of 1915.
If this years yield of corn and
wheat had been increased in propof-
ton to population as compared with
the yield of 1906, we would have 525.-
100000 bushels more than the aggre-
gate yield of these two crops in that
year.
The total production of wheat and
corn for the last two years is 400
100000 bushels short Of the total pro-
duction for 1914 and 1915.
1t is true we have had a large in
crease in corn and oats and in a few
other things this year, but it seems
impossible to get government authori-
ties to recognize that this increase
will not be sufficient to fill UP the
vacuum created by last years short
age of nearly 1,400, 100000 bushels OF
grain, potatoes and other foodstuffs,
as compared with 1915, making last
year the most disastrous crop year
in the history of the country.
We have 15,50O,O00 head of sheep
less than we had in 1903, a decrease
of over rs per cent; while our popu-
lation has increased in that time by
probably nearly 255, 1000. 900.
We have 100000 head of beef cat
tie less than we had in 1909. and T.
100000 less than as far back as 1900.
And as though these facts in regard
to sheep and beef cattle were not seri-
GUS enough, we have the recent state
ment of the Department Of Agricul-
ture that on September 1 the country
had 100000 less swine than one year
ago, a decrease in u months of S.3
per cent: and the average weight of
hogs now going into the packing
houses is very much less than former
~. due to the fact that the high price
Of feed has been causing farmers TO
sell of their hogs without waiting for
their full growth.
These facts are startling enough.