Askov American. [volume] (Askov, Pine County, Minn.) 1914-current, 1943-03-25
Fact And Opinion
RatiOning Butter.
By E. c. Stengelsen.

BY +. e. StengelSen.
Rationing Butter.
So far, the public has apparently
accepted rationing with cheerful good
nature. There may have been some
evasion, in that all declarations have
not been wholly honest, and a black
market probably exists in at least
limited degree; but, on the whole,
l believe the program can be said to
have been fairly successful.
How extensive evasion and black
marketing become will depend on the
good sense the rationing authorities
show in selecting the items to come
under rationing control.
If they ration only those in which
an actual shortage exists or threat
ems to develop, and the public is
given facts which make the necessity
clear, rationing will meet little OPP
position.
But if they extend it to items which
the public does not believe come
under such heading, the success Of
the whole program may be threat
ened by widespread evasions and
violations.
! Such an item might be butter.
This is one of the foods which now
has come under rationing. The re-
port is that each individual will be
limited to II pounds per year
1t will be hard, particularly for
the midwest dairying section, to be-
lieve that there is any urgent neces-
sity for butter rationing. It is aware
that in the past, we have produced
enough, not only for our own needs,
but a substantial surplus for export
| Mid-WeSterners reasonably ask on
what information Washington author
tiles base their belief that shortage
is threatened.
Part of the answer may lie in de-
pleted dairy herds. But it may be
doubted whether anybody will &C
cept the claim that slaughtering of
dairy cows has been extensive. At
most farm auctions, the mich cows
have been bought by other dairy
farmers, who have used this means
of increasing their own herds, and
the cows have continued producing
| Unquestionably, the needs of our
armed forces have made consider
able inroads on our butter supply.
A soldier consumes more food while
in the service than he would as a
civilian.
But that this has been sufficient
to justify such penurious rationing
as that with which we are now
threatened, does not seem believable.
With increased purchasing power,
it is possible that Americans are con-
Stunning more butter than formerly
We may be eating better than we
did. But this is still not enough to
explain the shortage, actual or
threatened.
Nor will the Agricultural depart
ment's statistics explain it. At least,
not convincingly. They may be able
to show theoretical shortage. But
it will not be actual 1t is my guess
that had our butter production in
1889, for example, been divided by
the population, it would have been
found that we were then far short.
Actually, we weren't: A large
number didn't buy butter, and don't
now. They use substitutes, some
wholly, some in part.
| Lord Halifax said recently that
not one pound of American butter
had been sent to the British Isles
under the lend-lease program. 1t
must be presumed that he told the
truth.
| And it may be fairly assumed that
| precious cargo space on ships bound
| for Russia, China or Australia has
been used for something more i'm
portant than butter. Measured against
other things those countries desper-
ately need, butter becomes almost a
luxury.
With exceptions Of the Scandinav-
ians, dairy butter does not play near
ly the part in the diet of Europeans
that it does in America. This is par
ticularly true of the low income
groups. They use largely substitutes.
If, under these circumstances, it
is the plan of the lend-lease author
the business before it. The income
tax, gift tax and iron ore tax bills