The Challis messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1912-current, 1918-04-24

!: !: !: !: ! ! !: !. !; !:
-EyL////LIL1 wv tlilttu IStdteS Has
fHkf taken stock of the ma
Ia tional larder A mon
La ster inventory has been
little made of all food re-
\~ sources in the United
States, and now Uncle
Sam is in fair way to know what
food stocks he has on hand to last
over until next seasons crops come in,
how much food he can spare for the
allies, and how sparingly he should
make use of it at home.
Under an act of congress approved
by the president August 10, 1917, the
secretary of agriculture was authorized
to Investigate and ascertain the de-
mand for, the supply, consumption,
costs and prices of, and the basic facts
relating to the ownership, production,
transportation, manufacture, storage
and distribution of foods food mate
rails and any articles required in con-
nection with the production, distribu-
ton or utilization of food. An appro-
priation was granted for the survey,
and within a week after the bill had
been signed by the president schedules
We're in outgoing mails to food mer-
chants and manufacturers.
Here are some facts regarding the
correspondence which formed the ba-
sis of the nationwide food inventory.
fISl- 1t tab
by the bureau of markets was made up
of $4,000 names. There were 1S.oVo
grain. flour and feed dealers; l,2OO
brewers. 500 distillerS, $500 Gamers OF
fruits, vegetables and sea foods; l'foo
refiners and dealers in edible OILS, l.
800 sugar and syrup refiners, 32,ooo
wholesale and retail bakers, 1,040 flsn
freezing plants, and so on through the
hundred or more classified food traces.
A huge force of clerks was kept
busy mailing schedules and sorting
editing and classifying the returned re-
ports. The whole master list WAS
more than duplicated by follow up iet-
ters and letters giving special ln1oriha-
ton. The inventory covered 50 ieau-
ing food items and brought in complete
returns of the years harvests.
-Four general classes of commodities
were covered: First, quantities OF ia"
products on the farms, such as grain
live stock, poultry, eggs ana Money
second. stocks of food products nearer
the consuming stage in manufacturers
iobbing. wholesale, storage ana otliei
commercial establishments; thlrd'
stocks in small retail ESTABLISHMENTS
fourth food supplies on the she'NeS
and in the bins of the family pah'r:'
Done Largely by Mail.
The most important part of Uncle
Sans stock taking job was uohe U.
corresnondence with food dealers ana
makers But it was not possible 10
inventory all food stocks oy Hill
There were 1G5 5000 small retail srocels
who through inability to read OF "i
derstond English, were unable to carr!
~. th, instructions of the schedule II
would have been quite Impossible ~
inventory each one of these slll''l .o
Germs by personal canvass ll'e, nasad
tho bureau resorted to estimates oas ,a
on q detailed survey Of representative
counties. .,o t,ne
Aso h,sis Of selection for these TYPE
counties all the counties in the .ni, ,,.
states we're divided into seven s''" ,,i1
,oaord;ng TO the size of the largest VIZ
lava town or city contained in eacn'
The first group consisted OF - ' "e ir
noliton districts, in number 81 ~
stances embracing all or par'S w a,
oral counties; the second Sr""p as.
..,,oa 10 smaller metropolitan "''