The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1918-08-12
The Necessity For
Conservation
OF Sugar

Some of our very good friends are
complaining of the recent requests Of
the food administration for the con-
servation of sugar, and declaring that
they can never-no never-get along
on a ration of two pounds of sugar
per month per person. To all such we
would say that the people of France
are existing on half that, the annual
allowance in that country being but
Is pounds per person. In Italy, that
nation which loves sweets conditions
are even more strenuous, the allow
ance in that country being but nine
pounds per year per person.
We never know what we can do I'M
til we try. The United States has
been the greatest per capita user Of
sugar in the. world 1t will do us no
harm to cut down on our consumption
bit in the interests of the boys over
there, and our allies who have al
ready cut their consumption to an al
most starvation basis.
The necessity for the request is
not far to seek. Germany, Belgium
and France were, before the war
great beet sugar producing countries.
The supplies from all these coun-
tries have been practically shut off
ever since the beginning of the war.
If Germany has produced any sugar
since 1914, the outside world has seen
none of it. Conditions in Belgium
have not been conducive for the pro-
duction of any thing but absolutely
necessary food products to stave off
starvation, and even these they have
been robbed of by the brutal Huns.
| America has contributed millions Of
dollars to starving Belgians, and they
could hardly be expected to raise
sugar beets for the Huns. The sugar
beet soil of France has been sown
so thickly with shot and shell and
shrapnel that it has been made a
desert, and there was neither labor
nor opportunity for the raising of
beets The war with it's ravages
shut off those sources of supply and
we had to depend upon Cuba, Louis
lana and Hawaii for our sugar Con-
trary to the general impression, the
crops in those countries were not es-
pecially good, and the supply was
shortened by so much. On the heels
of the shortened supply came the de-
struction of 50,OOO,OOO pounds by the
kaser's ever-busy submarines. Of
course this was not so serious mat
ter as the sinking Of transport load
ed with troops would have been, but
1t was nothing to rejoice over at that
In view Of all these facts Food
Administrator Hoover is asking the
people of the United States to volun-
tarily limit themselves to one-half
pound per week person. Remember
ing the cheerful unanimity with
which the American people have fol.
lowed the suggestions of the food ad-
ministration in regard to the conser-
walton Of wheat products and meats,
during the past year, by which our
allies and our fighting men over
there have been supplied, we have no
doubt that they will comply willingly
with the suggestions and requests of
Mr.. Hoover.
He estimates that to organize and
put in operation a sugar rationing
system would cost the government
something like $5,OOO,OOO, besides
taking the services of 100000 men,
who might be otherwise employed
We can save all this labor and ex-
pense by doing voluntarily that which
he ask. Let's do it.-Tampa Times.