Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1919-05-14

We are in receipt Of Il request
from the government that we run
il series Of slogans advising every
body TO Build Now.
We are told to urge pcrSiStcntly
and regu arly that all building that
can be rIShcd up now be done in
preferences to waiting till later in
the Tear, or till another year.
We wish that conditions were such
as to justify us in complying with
this request. but they are not.
The government is also urging
that everybody II sc all the food and
Feed crops pOSSiblc-and this advice
is sound. Food and feed will be, we
are told. both scarce and high for
several years to come, and "thc
United States must. TO a large eX-
tent. for several years to come, feed
| the world
Very we'll. If we are ITO feed the
world, how are we to do it, or to
40 our part OF ii, if we neglect the
planting Of field crops and gardens?
And how are we to plant. cultivate
and harvest if we have not the labor
with which to do it?
We do not know. Of course, that
are the same as conditions prevail
ing generally over the State and ma
ton. If they are. then the advice to
'build now" is out Of place, for here
we are wofully short of labor for
agricultural purposes. 1t seems to us
that the production OF food and feed
is the one great essential to-day.
Locally, we see on all sides gar
denS implanted, fields not yet hay
ing been touched by the plow. Why?
There is no labor available for the
work. The unusual and unreason-
able prices being paid for carpenter
work have attracted from the farm
lines the men who ordinarily do the
farm and garden work. They are
now building: they are employed
at non essential work, largely, and at
time when their services are sorely
needed in the line Of food and feed
productiOn--an essential line.
Why build now at Il period .criti-
cal in the line Of agriculture? The
labor now needed in the farm and
garden work is needed now or not
at all. 1t will soon be too late for
this class Of essentially productive
labor to be valuable. Why not set
aside all building work not absolute
~ essential? This non essential work
can be taken up later in the fall. be-
tween farm and garden seasons. Civ
ing opportunity for men to labor at
food production work now at the
critical period. and the seasons will
automatically release them for the
building needs.
Last year we had a "wOrk or fight"
proposition before us. and il was a
mighty good thing. and put many a
man to work who otherwise would
have idlcd away his time or engaged
in some non-csscntial task We need
something to-day that will have Il
similar effect. for. while there is a
marked shortage OF labor there is
no shortage in the ranks Of the hab-
iiual l0afcrS. Between the idlcrs who
~ nothing ~ any time if not com
PEELED 10 work and the workers who
ar" Toink to other lines at II criti-
cal time. the real producer OF food
and feed finds himself in Il most un-
rnviahlc situation.
our hope is that local authorities
everywhere will busy themselves in
seeing That all lOafcrS go to work for
or on the roads for The
good Of the community at large. and
th; individuals and enterprises Of all
kinds will lay aside to Il more pro-
pitionS season, any building that is
not absolutely and Immediately cS-
Scniial
Our slogan is "Build nothing at
present that can wait until the abor
lccds Of the producers OF food and
feed can be illcd.' This seems to
us to be the safe and sane policy.