Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial. (Wilmington, Del.) 1878-1928, 1920-05-29
Food and Farm Problem.

Food and Farm fropIeW.
1t is almost as certain as anything can
be that unless extraordinary efforts are
made the food situation will be scrioes and
prices much higher than today.
The shortage of farm help means more |
in the cities than in the country. 1t IS
really the city mans problem rather than
the farmers problem. The latter will
make sure, in any event, of something 10
eat for himself, aud If there is not enough
for everybody it is not he who VIII go
hungry. II is up to the cities, therefore
to supply him with labor. if they want nm
to supply them with food. He is not the
one who should feel anxious. ordinarily
a shortage of one crop could he onset oS
a b;y Weld in another, but all food crops
are likely to suffer this year owing TO the
! labor shortage.
Iabor's wage ON the farm is not COM
narsble to that of the city. The winter
wheat crop was a failure. The spring
wheat crop threatens to be short, regard
loss of weather conditions, owing to the
sbortaqe Of labor on the farm. Ii is
likely that the total wheat yield Tor the
wear will he nearly, il not fully, one-third
less than in 1919.
A Washington estimate Is that one
million men have left the farm in the last
three wears. The drift to the city oe-
comes more pronounced each year. a
very small percentage of the farm boys
who went to the war have returned to the
nlow. Big wages in industrial employ
ment have appeared to the disadvantage
Of the farm. Labor cannot be conscrlpt-
cd for farm work, and farmers cannot
offer the mercenary enough to tempt them
This fact has been recognized in Columbus
: Ohio where two thousand men nave en-
r rolled under pledge to give one dds
sor,;ce each week to farmers needing
+ oss;etapce. To make such crop cam
paign effective organization IS essentiai
IF every city in the United States wo'io
odont the Columbus plan, there would be
: many more tons of potatoes, corn ant
cabbaces and other vegetables next tai
, The backward season still makes
5 nossihle 10 help the farmer with the plant
| ing Of some crops. and if he can thus en-
i large his cultivated area he will need NOR
r helm Al harvest. The only way nc ca'
G do this is through volunteers from "a
i cities
There Is something radically wron
d when Michigan reports 10000 Vacaii
9 farm houses. New York, $4,000, and near
i h every State reports 50 many young me
' deserving agriculture that q crS's
/ threatening. Farmers have been ge't'n
Il high prices for their products, but the
Q saw their costs have been abnormal an
e they cannot compete with general y
; dustrv In bidding for labor. There a.
+ no figures at hand as to the number
r. abandoned farms in Pennsylvania ne
il Jersey and Delaware, but apparent
9 the gentleman farmer is finding agrlcu
a ture an expensive luxury.
Meanwhile. it might be pertinent
ne observe that there are lot q men knoe
III ny about cities who would be better
at # thew were earning an honest living on
TX farm. A man from the West who went
in New York. said he saw million idle'
to His estimate. no doubt, was extravagaf
Of bnt there are many urbanites, who Z
e not neither do they spin, and v
T. never would be missed nor mourned-
n. Industrial development and the forcl
he Of production regardless q costs, w"
ar consequent draining q labor from la
II. u factory bv the lure Of excessive wag
So are creating sernblance Of prosper
on that threatens paralysis to agriculture a
he starvation TO the nation