The daily banner. (Cambridge, Md.) 1897-2008, 1918-03-21
MIR. PRICE OPPOSED
TO STRIPPING FARMS
Says The Farmers Need Help in The
Production OF Crop>-WouId Pre-
vent Contractors From Hiring
Farm Labor.

Congressman J. d. Price. of the
First District. in an interview recent
ly declared that he intends to sup
port the Harrison legislation reclas-
styling farm WCrkmen as skilled la
bor, and then intends to see if some
thing cannot be done to prevent Gov
ernment contractors from Stripping z
the farms by the offer of allurinS
wages.
Something must be done to Keep
labor on the FARMS" said Mr.. Price
If it is not, our country and its war
Allies face untold suffering l fear
that Washington is not aroused to
the seriousness of the situation
Mr.. Price had conference with
Judge Harrison, of Virginia, on his
proposed amendment to the Dent
bill, the effect of which will exempt
skilled farm labor from the neXt
draft He said he wants to be sure
that the amendment will accomplish
this.
More than 215,O00 farm labor
ers and persons engaged in stock
raising were accepted for service III
the first draft" said Mr.. Price.
THAT is just 20 per cent of the to-
ton is THAT under the proposed
method of selecting men in the next
draft this number Of farm laborers
will be exceeded. What does this
mean? 1t means that the draft and
the munition factories and the Gov
ernment contractors are stripping the
farms of their labor, and with food
as one of the vital necessities of this
war We can only imagine what the
result will be.
General CroWdCr, the Provost
Marshal, told the House Military Af-
fairs Committee that shipyard work
ers are placed in the deferred classes
and passed for the draft. That
means they are virtually exempted.
What is the use Of building ships if
we don't raise the food for them to
carry to our starving Allies? What
is the use of sending an army TO Eu
rope to fight Germany if We don't
raise the food to feed it?
My mail is filled with letters ev-
cry day telling me of the number of
farm laborerS on the Eastern Shore
who have been placed in Glass Al.
One letter from a father tells me that
three OF his sons have volunteered
and are now in the army. The
fourth, who stayed at home to help
him on the farm, has been placed in
Glass Al, and will likely be taken
in the next draft. He added that if
the boy is taken he is powerless to
continue his farm work on the old
basis. There are other incidents like
this, and this thing is now approach
ing the phase Of being almost a
scandal-this thing of stripping the
farms of their labor when the ques
tion of food may prove the decisive
factor in the war.
when the draft law was first con-
sidered in Congress, tried to get an
accepted which would
exSmpv 1fti- -ssnzzs----I.--z-a l. -z-anI
out on a point of order.
Il want to say the farm boy is not
seeking exemption. He is willing to
do his part, and instead of appealing
to him to enter the military service
we should appeal to him on the same
patriotic grounds to stay at home and
help win the war by raising food
stuffs. David Lubin, the greatest
food expert of the world, says the ma
ton with the last bushel Of grain in
its bin will be the nation to win the
war. Many other prominent men be-
lieve the same thing. 1t now looks
to me that Congress should take
some steps to compel the War De-
partment officials to take notice of
the grave food situation. 1t is as
to me that Government ag-
encies are not giving the same seri-
Gus attention To this problem as they
are to the shipbuilding problem. Our
present condition is one where there
is fast growing demand on us for
foodstuffs in the face of diminishing
crops through the lack of labor"