The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1918-04-12

mi. ooiiiSOH mas Hdu some distressing
cases brought to his attention by con-
stituents, where boys were reported
dead to their parents without any
previous notice whatever that they
were sick. The Navy Department has
been found by Congressman quick to
give information concerning mem
ber of its enlisted force upon request,
but Mr.. johnson seeks to have the
Department take the initiative in cas-
es such as have been called to his
notice.
Lieut.. Col. E. Lester Jones of the
Supply Division of the Signal Corps
has testified before the Military Com
mittee of the Senate that but one
airplane has been shipped to France
as a result of the expenditure of some
$SOO,OOO,O00 for aeroplane production.
Just how far Col. Jones himself is re-
sponsible for that condition of affairs
he failed to state. The public history
of this gentleman, as showing his fit
ness for service in the Supply Division
of the Signal Corps, is interesting.
A few years ago he was a practicing
veterinary surgeon. When Mr.. Will
son became President, Surgeon Jones
was appointed Deputy Commissioner
of Fisheries and later he was made
Superintendent of the Coasts and Geo.
datic Survey. From the last named
position he resigned to accept COM
mission in the Aviation Service of the
Sigma. Corps. Just what relation each
one of Jones appointments has borne
to his preceding experience is a ques-
tion, and the lamentable failure of
our aircraft program is doubtless due
to some extent to the meddling of
just such misfits as he.
Senator Sherman, of Illinois, is
among the considerable number of
people who look with doubt upon the
recent statement of the Federal EN-
ployment Service that complaints of
shortage of farm labor are "hysteri-
cal and exaggerated. After quoting
from the official declaration of the
Employment Service, Senator Sher-
man said: 81 have letters in great
profusion on my table and in my files
in the last 80 days from farmers
whom | never knew to have Mysteries.
They are hard headed fellows.
never knew one of them to exagger-
ate" While acknowledging that the
farmers might be in error, he inclined
to the view that their impression of the
farm labor supply is more dependable
than that of the officials in Washing
ton.
Senator Knute Nelson, of Minneso-
ia, declared in an address in the SEN
ate recently that the action of the
Food Administration in fixing a max
imum price for wheat had enhanced
the market price of other cereals. He
declared that, relatively, corn, rye,
barley and oats are higher in price
than wheat, and cited in support of
this assertion letter from a Mime
sofa farmer saying that instead of
using these latter cereals for feed for
stock, the farmers are grinding wheat
for feed. Senator Nelson's conclusion
is thus expressed: eff we study the
situation carefully, we shall come to
the conclusion that the price fixing
on wheat has been an abject failure.
II we study the history of attempts
at price fixing which have been made
the world we shall find
hot oil hou hanv, fo,1
lres."
Putting a college professor at the
head of the Fuel Administration seems
to have worked about as well as put
ting mining engineer at the head
IF the Food Administration. How lack |
IF practical experience sometimes lead
10 trouble was emphasized few days
ago by statement in the Senate by
Senator Borah, of Idaho, who said that
4 miller within three miles of Borah's
nome received a telegram from the
Food Administrator telling him to
,ease grinding wheat. At that mo-
nent there were II wagon loads of
wheat at the mill, with the farmers
sitting on the drivers seats, waiting !
20 unload. They had to go home and
AXE their wheat with them, and they
led it to stock. After reviewing this
,ase and a somewhat similar one de-
'cribed by Senator Pomerene of Ohio,
Senator Borah asked: "Are you sur
orised that there is an atmosphere
If depression in the rural districts 2"
Senator Hitchcock, of Nebraska,
md loyal Democrat, thinks that GER
ain orders made by the Executive De-
Dartments were discourteous to the
Senate. So long as the Senate stands
'or that sort of thing, what else can it
expect?
Now that the Food Administration
has commenced to correct its mistakes
here is prospect that food production
will attain its normal stride.
Germany has been under the delu-
sion that she was plavinp this war