Evening star., 1920-01-18
advance \ ! ! CONTRACT
FORF0ODS URGED !! J
John H. Shepherd Believes
Farmers Might Follow
Cfothiers' Example.
To the Editor of Tho Star:

! To the Editor Of Tho Star:
| In your Sunday issue appeared an
article with large display heads, Fear
Short Crop of Perhshable Food Az
| over the Country" F. W. Bolgiano,
scotsman, says, Gardeners and prod
uce growers are buying less than 30
/ per cent Of the seed for spring plant
ing than in previous years. He then
| advises to stop talking about prof
iteering and start production on the
| right scale. and prices Will come
| down" ~,
He then criticises Mr.. Clarence Will
son and his fair-price committee ana
says: I'VE have got to do sometnlng-
| the country demands it. Things must
! be produced" Following his address
the District Council Of Agriculture Of
| the District of Columbia took ifnme.
diate action to enroll 1000 members. II
they can get them, to inaugurate the
greatest home garden drive ever ano
these home gardeners must woIk ~
keep prices from reaching extortton-
; levels"
There are 100000 people in Wash
| ington to be fed. The question arises;
how many of that 100000 people VIII
these 1000 back-lot farmers provlae ple
of ground will Mr.. Bolgiano secure
| to the thousands of apartment house
renters? How many people VINO CON
| troll back lots will be induced TO take
time from movies for real cp wprS c.no ~
ming will they do with sugar at ~
cents a pound and garden seeds at
high prices? No statistlcian or
prophet is needed to forecast that tne
back-lot farmers will not produce
enough to provide per cent OF
Washington's population with vege'
tables If Mr.. Bolgiano and the DIS
trict az icultural committee Will Sc
cure lower prices on fertll1zerS, Wnlch
1t IIoY q
which was the highest in years; Sc
cure reduction Of high freight rates;
secure reduction in farm implements,
now double and treble the cost prior
to the war; secure farm labor, as tne
boys and young men who formerly
worked twelve to fourteen hours SIX
days in the week on the farm. at 32o
a month and board. have gone TO tne
cities, where they work forty,Iour
hours week and draw II per noun;
REGARDLESS Of efficiency-an occasional
farm worker can be found for - per
day-he may count on some produc,
ton, but no increase. under present
conditions A year ago farmers re-
ceived cents a pound more Tor noss
get meat at 2 cents less per pound!
Service to DairyRen.
Mr.. Wilson rendered great service
to the dairy-men and the milk con-
sumer when he showed the enormous
cost Of distributions Of milk in Wash
ington. In nearly every large, city the
chorus Of complaint about. the hgh
cost Of milk has moved states and
cities to spend thousands Of the tax
payers money to prosecute dairymen
or to investigate their business. The
chamber of commerce OF; the city or
Rochester, N. z, appointed commit
duction, and after six months survey
Of the dairy farms in Eve counties
around Rochester reported that the
average dairyman was producing milk
at loss on the prices he received.
but If, the city would operate dis
tributing agencies the public would
receive milk at a reasonable price.
The board Of health OF New York
only a few days ago ;recommended that
the city should conduct. milk distrout-
dren. In this connection it might he
well If the District agricultural. com,
mittee would spend some time anu
some money from its treasury 70 .study
the, cost Of distribution OF, vegetab1es
radius of twenty miles. OF Warrington.
A farmer ten miles from Washing
ton shipping two carloads Of turnips
to Chicago about a month ago. for
which he received 2 " cents pound,
ffty-five pounds to the bushel,; there
fore he received $1.37h per bushel:
freight to Chicago less than cent a
pound. The haul from the farm to
depot was three miles. The farmers
neighbors hauled from ten to fifteen
miles to Washington, received 30 cents
a bushe1. The consumer in Washing
ton paid from. 121z to Is cents a
The Chicago public paid no more or
less. About the same difference oc-
CURED on sweet corn last summer. 1t
the agricultural committee would
bend its efforts to reduce the cost of
distribution they would find a prac-
tical method of keeping the cost to
the consumercat- a lower level and get
a better price for the farmer, and
therby induce more people to- remain
on the farms and increase production.
Farmers Receive Top Prices.
Lancaster county, Pa. which Is the
banner county of the United States
in the value Of its agricultural prod
ucts based ON prices paid to farmers,
has market in Lancaster In which
farmers receive the highest prices, ac-
cording to market reports. OF any
the people because they, deal more d.
rect with the farmers. pay; them s
cents . pound moro for their butter
than they are paying for creamery
butter. while hero country butter. sells
below creamery. Only recently q suc-
cessful manufacturer declared that
the public need not expect any reduc-
ton In the price Of clothing next fall
That the manufacturers based their
production on prices against orders
in. advance Of manufacture, so, they
know what their goods will bring be-
fore they are made. i. -.
II the Washington people want to
guard against prices reaching the Tex
orbitant levels" which Mr.. Bolgiano
fears. let them contract now before
planting begins with farmers at prices
which they will get the products for
next summer. By cooperative associa-
done. Instead Of paying 50 cents. q dozen
for sweet corn they can now contract
for from IS to IS centa The
farmer then won't have to get UP at
3 or 4 in the morning. pay 20 cents