The Manchester journal. [volume] (Manchester, Vt.) 1861-current, 1918-12-05
FOOD PROSPECTS, 1919
Especial Correspondence

hSnHlkNOls Dec. g. anime is tnt
mother of anarchy" declared Herbert
Hoover in closing remarkable ad.
dress to the special conference OF
Federal Food Administrators called to
Washington recently. From the in
ability Of governments to secure food
for their people, grows revolution and
chaos. From an ability to supply their
people, grows stability of government
and the defeat of anarchy" said the
speaker, did we put it on no higher
plane than our interests in the protec-
tiol Of our institutions, we must bestir
ourselves to the solution of the prob
lem."
Mr.. Hoover was making what many
/ of his hearers believed to be his fare
well address to the Food Administra-
tors. He is now in Europe comforting
with others over the entire world food
situation. His summing up Of the
food situation indicates so plainly that
for the next year, at least, some COM
| prehensive regulation of the worlds
stock of foods will be necessary that it
may be found advisable to continue
the Food Administration in some ca
pacity for that length Of time. Hoov-
er, himself, does not favor Govern
ment control of food longer than is
absolutely necessary, and he intimates
that by next harvest time private init
iative may again handle the problem
of supply and demand. 1T is my be-
lief" says he, "that the tendency of
all such legislation except in war is to
an over degree to strike at the roots
of individual initiative. We have Sc
cured its execution during the war as
to willing cooperation of 95 per cent
of the trades of the country, but under
peace conditions it would degenerate
into an harassing blue law" Mr..
Hoover thus takes stand quite diff
ferent from that taken by Burleson,
McAdoo, Daniels, Redfeld, and other
bureaucrats in Washington, who de-
sire to see Government control of
private industries become a perman-
ent feature of our national life.
In his inventory of the worlds food
supply Hoover finds that of wheat and
rye dairy feeds other than the high
Iroteins beans, peas, and rice, there
are sufficient supplies with economy in
consumption; of beef there is suffic-
lent to load all refrigerating ships to
capacity; of sugar, sufficient supplies
for our normal consumption if other
nations retain their present short ra-
tions but a shortage for us if they
increase their rations; of coffee, there
is surplus; but of high protein dairy
feeds there is shortage of about
100000 tons, and of pork and dairy
products and vegetable oils shortage
of about 5000, 10000 pounds. Of the
worlds total to produce the above re-
suits it is estimated that North Amer
lea will furnish something over 60 per
cent, and that the United States, in
cluding the West Indies, will be in a
position to furnish a total of about
20,000,000 tons of food of ell kinds for
export, compared with our pre-war
exports of about 100000 tons. OF
course these calculations are based up
on assumptions as to transportation,
production and consumption which
may be subject to great disturbance
and distortion during the reconstruc-
ton period. Mr.. Hoover furnished one
great shock to his audience when he
said that "there are 40,000,000 people
in North Russia to whom fear but
little access with food can be obtained
this winter. Their transportation is
in complete anarchy and
shortly many of their ports will be
frozen even if internal transport could
be realized. expect the most dread
full results of starvation beyond all
human power to allay." A large part
Of the blame for this condition must
be laid at the door of the Russian
who promised the Russian
people peace and bread and has fed
them loco-weed instead.
The question of continuing for
brief period some sort of food regula-
tion is one which will present itself to
a Republican Congress for decision.
If the Department Of Agriculture, un-
Ter Houston, should fall heir to that I
junction politics in the matter Of food ]
would be rampant up to 1920 with the
.esults that exports and domestic con- I
would be greatly demoraliz- q
ID. Doubtless the present Food Ad-
would be more trust
worthy agent to guard against prof
teering and speculation for the next
,ear, because conscious Of its ap- s
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