New-York tribune., 1918-05-01
We Have No Right to Ask
Them to Suffer More
Than We, He Says
Unused to Corn Grain
Crop Outlook Indicates Har-
vest of 100000, 900 to
90o,000,000 Bushels

National Food Administrator Herbcr rt
and explained in a speech before the
United States Grain Corporation why
United States soldiers and our Allies
in Europe must be plentifully supplied
with white -four bread, which is not
oven as nutritious as the war bread
now served in this country.
"The question arises daily why the
Allies cannot use more corn and leave
us the wheat" said Mr.. Hoover. "The
superior value of wheat as breadstuff
lies alone in its durability and its pal
atablllty, not at all in it's nutrition.
We have no right to ask more hard
ships OF our allies than we do of our
selves.
Beyond this, however, lies lonA
range OF practical questions. The peo-
pies of Europe are. ignorant of the art
OF making corn bread. They have not
cultivated q taste for corn products.
Thew have little equipment for home
baking. The life of cornmeal is yerv
short and there is lack of corn mills
in Europe. 1t is difficult to ship corn
during the terminating period"
Mr.. Hoover said the food administra-
tlon had gone over the subject of
grain shipments very carefully with
representatives of our allies, and that
after close calculation OF their needs
1t was found that the people of this
country would have to provide a
margin for export rejecting a reduc-
ton OF about 16 per cent in their own
wheat consumption. In this calcula-
tlon it was taken for granted that our
he obi
other sources substantial quantities of
grain.
lowing to shortage of shipping and
the demands for more rapid transpor-
tation of soldiers" he continued, "the
supplies for the Allies from more re-
mote markets have been further cur
tailed and the demands on us have
increased to the point where we are
now sending abroad go per cent of our
mill output.
"Our allies are doing their share,
however. an food conservation. They
have cut their whole cereal consump-
tion by about so per cent in order to
spare us ships for the transportation
of more soldiers to the front"
Mr.: Hoover said there were three
possible measures to reduce consump-
tion of wheat-rationing allowing
prices to rise to the point where con-
sumption has to be reduced and VOL
untary reduction of consumption. He
said that II commerce in wheat, with
trading in futures unstabilized prices
and uncontrolled consumption had
been allowed to take its course, with
our allies bidding for from 80 to SO
per cent of our wheat supplies, flour
would now be selling at from $50 to
$50 barrel, instead Of from $40 to
$105O
81 agree with some, farmers" he con-
tlnued, "that they would have received
from SIS to $40 bushel for wheat had
1t not been for the restraints imposed
by the government. But l would say
to these farmers that they would have
been taking money not only from the
blood of our soldiers and from the suf-
terlng OF the poorer consumers, but
every farmer would himself have paid
nifty times over for the national dam
age that would have followed labor
trouble"
Mr.. Hoover said that the whole grain
trade was so intact that it would re-
sumo its normal course overnight if
the government found it advisable to
withdraw control. He said that at
present the crop outlook indicated a
harvest of from S00,000,00O to OO,OO0,-
600 bushels of wheat, while the harvest
of our allies looked most promising
The country can look forward to an
entirely different economic situation
from that which confronted the coun-
try in 1917, he asserted
Mr.. Hoover discussed technical issues
IN grading and milling and marketing
of wheat with the members of the United
States Grain Corporation J. H. Barnes.
president of the corporation, presided.
The conference will be continued to-
day.