The Hawaiian gazette., 1918-02-12
CHILD back, TALKS
OF FOOD MATTERS
More Drastic Regulations and
Federal Licenses For Fishing
Boats Among Plans Announced

More drastic food restrictions, fed
eral licenses for fishing boats, forbid
ding the sale of hens and pullets, and
stricter enforcement of rules for zen.
eral food conservation were amona the
matters touched upon yesterday by J.
+. Child, food administrator for Ha-
waii upon his return from Washing
ton where he attended a conference of
those directing conservation in the
various states and territories.
At the conference, Mr.. Child said
he was able to show by records that
were available at Washington Just
what the Territory has been doing
along food conservation lines. These
records show, he said, that imports of
foodstuffs In Hawaii in l9l7 dropped
approximately ten percent.
System Succeeds
The present system of the voluntary
conservation of food in homes gener.
ally, he said, is working satisfactorily
and no change in methods is now con
templated. People are observing meat.
less and wheatless days in the Islands
with no other pressure than the simple
appeal to their patriotism, he said, and
the results have been satisfactory. He
did not believe there would be any
laxity, but added that should the oc-
casiOn arise, the food administration
has ample power to enforce any dras
tie regulations that might be required
The food administrator would not
day that changes about to be intro
duced in connection with fishing boat :
and the marketing of fish would have
any decided effect on prices. The sys-
tenn of licensing boats, however. he
said, would broaden his powers and eff
feet a greater control of the industry
that he has had hitherto.
Studies Conditions
While on the mainland, Mr. Child
said, he made a particular study of
fish marketing in various large cpnters,
like San Francisco, Chicago and New
York
Honolulu in the matter of fish mar
ketinE and fish prices" he declared,
''is really lucky
He said that in the various main
land centers he encountered exactly
the same problem that Honolulu is fac
ing, with the difference that mainland
conditions were far worse than they
are here. In this connection he stated
that he had ascertaincd that Honolu
In g per capita fish consumption is far
above those of mainland centers.
Mr.. Child's statement in regard to
conditions here being worse than else
where is at variance with information
gained by some others who have made
a study of local and mainland condi-
tons.
Sell By Pound
In connection with fish prices here
Child said that change that is going
to be placed in effect by the food adj
ministration is that hereafter fish must
be sold by the pound and not by the
fish, as. has been done commonly in
the past. III Daj.s., r., as73 sftGoRr3
What changes in prices mightrbe eff
fected the food administrator was un.
willing to say beyond stating that any
prOfiteering or taking advantage of
war conditions would meet sharp check
Honolulu is to some extent affected
by the poultry order which was receiv
ed from Washington by the food ad
ministrator yesterday. This order for
bids the slaughter and sale of pullets
and hens for a period of year. The
order, it is thought, is an outcome of a
condition which arose when the price
of grain and feed for chickens began
to soar.
Poultrymen found their profits van
ish with the rising prices of chicken
feed with the result that they aban
doned keeping chickens in many places
and sold them on the market. Under
the new order, the sale of pullets and
hens is to be stopped for the period of
n wear