New-York tribune., 1920-05-08
u. S. to Act
TOHalt arm
Labor Crisis
Curtailment in Some Nom
Essential Industries, In
Guiding Road Building,
to Divert w orkers Urged

From Tho Tribune's Washington Bureau
WASHINGTON, May Faced by
critical shortage in farm labor
throughout the country. the Council Of
National Defense will be asked by
Secretary Baker to consider the ad-
visibility Of bringing about curtail-
ment in some of the non-essential in
dustries, including road building, in
order to divert labor to farm work.
proposal to that effect has been
sent to Secretary Baker, chairman of
the council, by Daniel Willard, presi-
dent of the Baltimore & Ohio Rail-
road. Mr.. Baker announced to-day
that as soon as he received Mr.. Will
lard's letter he would call q meeting
of the council and request particularly
the attendance Of Secretary of Labor
Wilson and Secretary of Agriculture
Meredith.
1t is understood that the Willard
proposal contemplates an appeal to the
state governments to aid in putting the
curtailment into effect.
Administration officials, members of
Congress and representatives of vari-
Gus national farm organizations in
Washington said today that the farm
labor shortage has reached such a crit
lcal stage that the farmers would be
compelled to make large retrench-
ments in their planting programs The
erect OF this, unless more labor is
made Immediately certain for the har-
vesting season., it is agreed, will be a
serious food shortage next fall, with
consequent ky-rocketing Of food
prices.
According to Or. H. c. Taylor, of
the Department Of Agriculture, the
supply of farm labor in the country is
" per cent below normal, and is Is
per cent below what it was last year.
typical instance reported to the
department by Frederick Rasmussen,
secretary Of the Pennsylvania State
Board of Agriculture, shows that the
farmers of that state lack $1,000 of
their normal crops, the shortage
amounting to $4,000 more than it was
last year.
A. M. Loomis, of the Washington
headquarters of the National Grange.
declared to-day that of the sons Of
farm hands who went to war less than
l per cent have returned to the farms,
the remainder preferring to stay in
large industrial centers, where the pay
and the attractions are stronger.
While representatives. of other farm
organizations here were inclined to
regard this statement as exaggerated,
Mr.. Loomis insisted that the figure was
correct
The farmers are embarrassed also
by the shortage Of railroad equipment
to move their products, This factor
so acutely affects the present situa-
tion that the Senate Interstate Com
merce Committee has already taken
under consideration the introduction
of Legislation authorizing a government
loan of $5O0,000 900 to the railroads for
the purchase of additional equipment
Demand Better Car Service
"a typical illustration of this short
age," said Charles 0. Lyman, secre-
tary of the National Board Of Farm
Organizations, "was shown in resolu-
tlons adopted recently by the truck
farmers of Florida, announcing their
determination to reduce their acreage
radically unless better car service is af-
forded
"Acute as the labor situation is, I
doubt whether the farmers would be
willing to include road building among
the non-essential industries to be cur
tailed. as Mr.. Willard proposes. The
Improvement and maintenance Of their
roads are essential to farmers In the
marketing of their crops, and summer
is the only time when road work can
go on.
"The solution lies in making farm
work more attractive in competition
Continued on page three)