Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-10-11
Continued From Third Page,l


the merchants For the Red Cross was
liberal, the Federal Government chip
ped in with loans for seed and feed,
and local charitable agencies contrib
uted until their Golfers were empty
Spring came, ard the catfish started
. biting Turnip seeds sprouted, and that
meant potlikker. Spring was followed
by the best growing season in years
and in three months the Arkansas
countryside resembled Washington 1rv-
1ng'S description of Herr Van TasSelS
homestead
Same With Other Towns.
What happened in that Arkansas
town. where there was a bread riot, IS
typical of what has taken place in
every hamlet in the drought area Of the
Mississippi Valley. This has been a
. "live at home" Summer for the farm
ers, the first since pioneer days. wren
lack of transportation ana distribution
caused store boughten" goods to be
unused for years. have been brought
out. scalded and filled with luscious
fruits and vegetables. Literally mil
lions Of new Jars have been bought.
With the first touch of frost there will
be "hog killings" "chitterling frys" and
sausage stuf1ngs, and the sharp odor Of
hickory will ooze from the cracks of
SInOkGtlOuSeS,
car garages but now serving their
original purpose. There will not be
much use for Chicago-cured hams and
I bacons in the back country this Fall.
Local citizens, who last Winter helped
{ the Red Cross with the burdensome
8 task of distributing aid to unfortunates,
have been deluged this last Summer
= with vegetables and fruit by these same
erstwhile starvelingS who now have
gardens of their own.
And now, as Winter approaches, the
drought section is preparing to send
at least part Of its surplus food to
the relief agencies in the congeSted
centers of the North Through the
local papers. farmers and townSpeople
alike are cautioned to can everything
possible and not to waste even a
scrawny beet, so that the surplus may
be sent to centers which were so good
to starving farmers last Winter. An
Arkansas editor. perhaps boastingly
remarks that Arkansas should do its
utmost to can and preserve as much
surplus food as possible, not necesSa-
rily for its own use-for apparently
enough of that has been laid by-but
to be turned over to relief organiza-
tons at the proper time to relieve
distress among the very people who last
Winter contributed a portion of the
money and food they then had so that
their neighbors in Arkansas might not
60 hungry
Caution Is Needed.
Throughout the section cursed by
last years drought the caution has
been needed. Those in touch with the
improved conditions in the farming
sections speak of millions of cans when
they talk about food preserved for home
III kan iofn
idea Of the surplus of canned goods
now available ii the drought section
may be had from the current reports
Of the American Red Cross. which has
been concerned both with the emer-
gency measures necessary to tide the
starving farmers over the Winter and
their rehabilitation during the last
Summer
Last Spring the Red Cross distrib-
uted $4,000 packages of garden seed
to 605,422 families in the drought area.
and each package contained enough
seed to plant garden that would pro-
vide fresh vegetables for a family of
i've through the Summer.
This seed distribution has produced
results More gardens have been
planted in the South than ever before
in the history of the country" says
John d. Cremer. ir., acting director of
the Red Cross disaster service. Re
ports from our local chapters indicate
that there Is an abundance of fresh
vegetables grown from these gardens in
most sections Of the drought area. Red
Cross chapter workers in cooperation
with home demonstration agents are
now engaged in a program to encour-
age farmers to can their surplus vege-
tables, fruits and meats. Reports in
01cete that already several million lars
OF foodstuffs have been canned
The educational value Of this pro-
gram is very great Farmers who here
tofore depended solely upon cotton or
some other cash crop for their liveli-
hood are now raising a large portion
OF the food for their tables Thus. If
their income-producing crops should
1atl they would still have fresh vege-
tables"
Aid of Red Cross.
This project has been participated in
py a large number of the LOO chap
ters which gave drought relief. and the
National Red Cross has furnished more
than a million cans and glass lars,
thousands Of volunteer workers. aided
by the Department of Agriculture.
Home Economics Bureau. and the State
extension groups have Joined in the
canning Of donated surpluses. some
times by carload lots Public stores of
canned eatahles have been produced,
and these will be distributed to the
needy this Winter.
Department of Agriculture workers
have for several years been placing
emphasis on the need for the produce
ton of more food at home. and during
the Summer the results of these teach
tngs have been accelerated.
The Tive at home campaign in
North Carolina last year" renorts
r. w Dunlap. Assistant Secretary W Of #
Agriculture, Caused an increase in
the value of food and feed which has
been estimated at $4,000 900 In
Georgia the banker-farrner work this
year has been devoted largely TO the
production Of food for the farm
families. Similar educational programs
are under way in other States More
than $4,000 farmers who received
Government seed loans this year were
required to sign an agreement to plant
a home garden before the loan was
approved. These forces. together with
the small amount Of cash available
among farmers and the extra supply
Of labor, believe, have been respon-
s1ole for this increase in home food
production
The Kentucky Agricultural Extension
service says that mo statistics can be
had as to how many millions of cans
are stored In the farm cellars of the
State, but reports OF county farm
agents and other observers indicate
that no chances are being taken so
Tar as the food supply is concerned for
the Winter months
County Agent w. C. tombstone of
McCracken County. Ky. reports that
~ carloads OF fruit Jars ard Al car
loads of sugar were received at Paducah
during June, July ard August. Five
hundred farm women attended demon
STATIONS in canning. The story Is
almost the same for every county in
the State
AS the Government and the various