The Wilmington morning star. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1909-1990, 1943-10-02
Washington
Report
BY HELEN ESSARY


finished feeding foreign peoples
there will be enough food to keep
me and mine from going hungry
this winter.
l have been assured. however,
by man who knows about eata-
bles, from prunes and peanuts 10
picked onions and pate da fois
gras, that we can feed all of Eu-
rope and not suffer the loss of one
personal calorie.
Naturally, we must feed Europe
out of our surplus. Not out of our
scarcity. Our wheat crop has been
so abundant that we can supply
flour to every country on the con-
tinent and the British Isles and not
be able to tell by our own loaf Of
bread that we have given away one
wheat kernel
1t is the same with dried foods
such as beans and peas. We can
dispatch these by the ship loads
and never miss them. Likewise.
condensed milk and those deny
drafted meats and processed what
nots Whlch do not interest Ameri-
cans yet. Indeed, we can send
across the Atlantic enough food 10
supply every hungry European
with the essential ration of 1000
calories day and improve the
American waistline n d vitality
thereby.
Already, so l am told, the United
States is feeding Sicily and the
lower part of Italy. So beautifully
timed and organized is the work
Of the American food people that
when the capture of Sicily was
announced, food ships were ready
to leave American docks immedi-
arely. Under conveys, of course.
Sicily has co-operated superbly
with American food adninistra-
tors. Her fruit and vegetable crop
has been gorgeous. Italian farm
ers down in the toe of the boot are
also toiling with their crops.
Every step in the feeding of Eu-
rope is being anxiously studied.
For example, the details of feed
ing France and Norway when The
German occupation is ended, have
been thought out by experts. Such
thickly populated places as Poland
are a special problem.
There is not chance, So I I'M
de- stand, that we will not cor
tinUe to feed the hungry in Europe.
After we have won the war with
guns, we mean to win the peace
with food. Returning travellers tell
me that the Germans have infuri-
ateG the people of the occupied
countries by taking their food
It's bad to be starving. Bad
for the body and spirit Americans
ore smart They know that we'll
nourished people are concerted
people, So l say. send all the dried
beans and foodstuffs we can spare.
I don't like dried beans and peas
anyhow.
Report on Washington as it is
today Mrs. A was sitting at her
desk virtuously writing a neWsy
letter to a distant relative when
Matte, the pretty new maid
came to the door to say there
were two men outside. They had
come to take out the phone. Take
out the phonel" exclaimed Mrs. A.
Yes, ma am. they had an order.
Mrs. A declared she had not given
any order to take out the phone.
She could not live without her
,,Lo,,o Che I,oI Mid l,or hill y
week before. 1t couldn't be that,
ASK the men to come in The
men came in, big fellows, the kind
that climb telephone poles with
their spikes on their heels ant
hammers and wrenches in their
pockets.
Here's the order lady" and
the foreman held out a long docu-
ment on which was written Mrs.
AS address and telephone num-
ber Mrs. A said no matter if the
telephone company was calling IN
equipment they could not V e
hers.
She argued so pitifully that the
telephone men left without wrench
ing out the phone wires. Then
Mrs. A tried to ask the telephone
company what was going on. She
found her phone was dead. 1t had
been cut off at the main office. The
phone stayed dead or several
hours.
Mrs. A, who had not planned to
dress for the street that morning,
reluctantly got herself to an out
side line and called the trouble
clerk. The trouble clerk could rot
understand what h d happened.
Said she'd do the best she could.
It was a lady trouble clerk.
Mrs. AS phone stayed dead until
the afternoon when its ring cut
the silence in its old-time way.
Mrs. A leapt to answer. A nice
voice said, This is the telephone
company We've got your phone
in order now 1t wa another
phone we meant to cut off 1t was
simply a case of the wrong num-
Der" Il see," said Mrs. A.
Wrong number"
Yes, wrong number. reDlicd
the telephone company and hung
up.