Norwich bulletin., 1917-12-28


 men as Hoover and Secretary Hous- ton, that the worlds exigencies will demand of us farmers a bigger output of food necessities in 1918 than we managed to screw out in 1917.
 The next question is: How are we going to do 1t
 When a man is already standing on tip-toe on the topmost round of the ladder and straining his arms to their utmost to make them reach their fartheSt, it is all very well to tell him that he must manage, somehow, to get another basket of apples off that limb. Even though the apples be there, if they are beyond his reach, how is he going to pick them? Balloons are not in every farm equipment. Nor would they be handy things to pick apples apples require more expert skill than most farmers possess.
 Nevertheless, if the applies are there and one must get them-the next question is, How?
 A good many of us came mighty near to breaking our backs, last sea- son, in the attempt to produce more than normal quantities of food-stuffs- We were all short of help, and the at tempt to enlarge our production with inadequate assistance in the work threw a crushing burden on many Of our shoulders. That we managed to muddle through as well as we did, was matter quite as much for thank fulness over our good luck as for boasting of our good work
 The draft took some of our help CTS. The urgent calls of shipyards and intuition plants took others. We found ourselves called on to make bricks without straw; worse yet, we eound that the tale of bricks demand ed from us was increased.
 And now, with even less straw in sight. we are called on to make more bricks! Having done our best, we learn that we must at once set about doing better.
 We've got to raise still more corn raise more wheat-and weather con- ditions in the winter wheat districts are reported the very worst ever known, with an already assured loss of a hundred million bushels from req sonable expectations We've got to scare up more sugar, somehow, and the only visible means at hand is in the production of a vastly bigger crop of sugar beets. And so on and on.
 At the same time the already made quate labor supply is continuing to dwindle.
 It's enough to make Mark Tapley blue.
 Yet, do you know, I have down at the bottom Of my heart strong con viction that we're going to do it: that we farmers are going to aston ish ourselves, and make even the offi- cials open their eyes a little.
 think we are going to make good" What do you think?
 Over iu New York state several of- feiai leaders of public sentiment are waking up and beginning to take an interest. The leader of the majori- ty party in the state senate, who knows Northern New York pretty we'll, declares that section is in danger of producing less than a year ago, un- less some help is given. He remarks. very truly, that Farmers must man age the farm end of it, not soldiers or statesmen, if we are to get the food" Therefore he advises two things which might be done at once and with great effect:
 ..First-Parole young farmers all ready in camp and men hereafter drafted from the farms subject to call, provided that they make good on the farm"
 "Second-Institute the Canadian plan of War Production Committees in every city and village. These make a complete survey of their towns and get volunteers who know farm labor to take it up again for the whole time,