Evening star., 1942-06-17
Feeding the-WorId
Found Prodigio!us Task
Writer Sees CIosh
Between High ldeols
And Population Figures,
Bu Gup IrDing Burch.

Ol lIlc WO1 III dS OllC VI tilC Sul GOV w oy .
of keeping the peace Such a program
will require a survey of the earth's re-
sources and a survey Of the worlds in
habitants
The few now available studies Of the
worlds people and how they live indi-
Gates that it will be no easy job to free
all of the inhabitants of the earth from
want, as suggested in the Atlantic
Charter.
For every single square mile OF the
land area of the earth's surface there
are now living over 40 human beings"
Raymond Pearl. Forty persons for
every square mile of the land OF the
world, good land, poor land and utterly
impossible land, is SOLDERING thought II
really grasped. 1t means that upwards
OF 2,074 100000 OF human beings are
right now struggling to get living on
this inexpansible earth. Each year the
world, already sorely burdened with its
troubles, takes on net load of 27,000, 900
new living human beings in addition to
those already alive, and hopefully strug-
Cling to keep alive and to get on"
Since Prof. Pearl made that statement
in 1886 number of people equal to the
entire population of the United States
has been added to the worlds inhab-
itants.
How the peoples OF the earth are get
ting on is suggested by the British SCI
enlist, Colin Clark, in his recent book
THE Conditions of Economic Progress"
This Cambridge scholar, who now Is an
oficial in the Australian government,
has worked out an international unit by
which he can measure the level OF living
in various countries Of the world. Sum-
marizing his conclusions Mr.. Clark found
that an average real income per worker
of less than $40 per week is the lot OF
81 per cent of the worlds population.
Scientists do not know how many peo-
pie there are in China, but nearly 400
0OO, 900 people were enumerated in India
in 1910. India has a very high death
rate and the average length OF life Of her
people is 26 years, compared to more
than 80 years for the people OF the
United States. Notwithstanding India's
high death rate and low average length
of life the popula ton increased 49,
900 900 between 1880 and 1910.
Forty-eight million people are more
than the entire population OF England,
or of France, or of Italy, yet that number
was added to the inhabitants of India in
a mere 10 years. If the death rate of
India could be lowered to the level Of
that of the United States, with her
present birth rate, the population of In
dia in 100 years would become several
times as large as the present population
of the entire world.
Vice President Wallace has suggested
that the object of this war is to make
sure that everybody in the world has the
privilege of drinking a quart OF milk
day" China, India and neighboring
Asiatic countries constitute more than
half the population of the earth. and
milk fruit and meat are practically un-
known to the great masses OF the people
in those countries. The Vice President
of the United States proposes to provide
these many people not only with more
food but also with such foods as milk,
fruit and meat.
The peoples of China, India Japan and
neighboring countries are the most EN-
cient food producers in the world. In
parts of China upwards of 90 bushels OF
wheat are produced per acre, compared
with 80 bushels in England and IS
bushels in Canada and Argentina. If
the peoples Of China. India and Japan
adopted our methods Of food producing,
especially as regards the production OF
milk, fruits and meat, 1t is safe to say
that half the peoples Of those countries
would starve.
Obviously the peoples Of the Eastern
countries have adopted an almost en-
tirely cereal diet because the population
Is exceptionally crowded and more people
can be kept alive on cereals. Where
practically every foot Of land is intensely
worked to produce food and hardly
enough food at that, it is impossible to
turn over acres and square miles OF land
for production of milk, fruits and meat.
1t Is rather optimistic to suggest that
the object of this war Is to make sure
that everybody in the world has the
privilege of drinking a quart of milk
day, when right here in the United
States, the richest country in the world.
the people do not enjoy such privilege.
No doubt Mr. Wallace used the phrase "a
quart of milk day" as symbol. but the
Department of Agriculture, of which Mr.
Wallace was Secretary, has worked out
a healthful diet for human beings. and
the average diet in the United States
falls far below these requirements.
If the population of the United States
were to be brought up to the optimum
diet formulated by the Department of
Agriculture, it would mean that America
would have to produce SO per cent more
milk, 43 per cent more eggs, 79 per cent
more fresh vegetables, 108 per cent more
butter.
When we are told by President Roose-
welt that third of the people of this
country are 'ill-fed, ill-clothed and ILL
housed" 1t is obvious that we have not
been able to establish freedom from
want" for the common man even in this
the richest country of the earth.
If world society could abolish war,
famine, pestilence, serious want and
other death-dealing scourges the popu-
lation of the planet would increase by
leaps and bounds or the birth rate would
have to be radically lowered. But the
birth rate cannot be lowered too radi-