Evening star., 1943-11-01

from nuIrlClOn STANDPOINT tne
civilian per capita food supply dur
ing this year of 1943 will compare
favorably with the average for the
prewar period 1885 to 1889
There have been inconveniences
10 the American dining table-even
shortages Of certain foods. But no
American has gone hungry-in fact
the American people as a whole
are eating more now than they did
before Pearl Harbor.
The American people realize that
unless every farmer does his share
to get full production and unless
every civilian plays fair and does
not seek to get more than his proper
share of the limited supply, they
may be deprlVlng some of our SOL
diers or fighting Allies of needed
food to sustain them in their strug-
gle.
Administration Of Program.
There has been loose talk in some
quarters about the need for food
car to have full control of food
including not only production and
distribution but prices. rationlng and
transportation. The fact is that the
production and ALLEGATION and dis
tribution of food of all kinds are all
now under the control of one man
the war food administrator
The War Food Administratio is
the agency which allocates available
supply of food to civilian, military
and lease-lend needs.
That part of the food supply
which is allocated to civilians. inso-
far as rationing and ceiling prices
are concerned, comes under the su-
pervision of the Once of Price Ad-
ministration. The Office of Price
Administration does not ration food
on its own initiative, but only on the
recommendation of the War Food
Administration. IN other words.
the War Food Administration de-
termines when the demand for food
of A certain kind so exceeds the
supply of that food that rationing
is required When such determina-
ton is made, the Office Of Price Ad-
minlstration takes charge of the &C
tual mechanics of rationing.
This is the most logical procedure.
because it places the actual ad-
minlstration of rationlng-the ra-
ton coupons. the ration cards, the
ration regulations-in the same
body of citizens that rations gaso-
line. fuel oil, shoes, and other prod
ucts, and it leaves the determina-
ton of the necessity for rationing
food in the War Food Administra-
ton. There can be no reason, in
logic or necessity, for setting up a
new ration board in all the locali-
ties in the United States for each
different product.
With respect to prices, it is true
that the War Food Administration
should be concerned with the fixing
OF price ceilings. 1t is. No price
ceiling on agricultural commodities
is fixed by the Office of Price Ad-
ministration without the concur
renee of the War Food Administra-
ton. In other words, the Office of
Price Administration and the War
Food Administration either agree on
price or any disagreement is set
tied by the director of economic
stabilization. In this way the food
administrator has great deal to
say about the price of food-but not
all. For the price of food should be
kept in proper relationship to the
prices of other commodities: and
therefore it has been deemed ad-
vlSable to put all price fixing and
enforcement in one agency. There
is no reason why the War Food Ad-
ministration should have its own
corps of price enforcement officials
to duplicate the work of other price
enforcement officials in the Office of
Price Administration.
With respect to transportation 1t
would be impossible to give the war
food administrator complete con-
troll over the transportation of food
because every car used to transport
food is car which is also greatly
in demand for the transportation
of other war products. Obviously
there must be an agency which ap-
portions the transportation facili-
ties among the various war needs
and it would disrupt prosecution of
the war and result in chaos if the
war food administrator were able
to take car needed for steel or
weapons or chemicals or equipment
and use it for food transportatio
The case is exactly the same for
prices as for transportation. We
cannot permit any part of the pro-
gram, food or rubber, or any other,
TO have free hand in bidding ma
terials and manpower away from
other equally essential parts of the
war effort. If in transportation
chaos would result how shall we
characterize the consequences on the
price front where the relationships
are even more complex and delicate
than in transportation?
The fact is that the administra-