Smyrna times., 1944-03-30
FARM WORKERS
SAVE $64O,OOO
Emergency Workers L a S t
Summer Saved Badly Need
ed Food Crops
LABOR NEEDS GREATER

Emergency workers = boys and
girls out of school, adults on vaca-
tions, and others not employed in
essential industry : saved approx
mately S640,000 worth of food in
Delaware last year. This was re-
ported by j. Frank Gordy, emerg-
ency farm labor supervisor for the
Delaware Agricultural Extension
Service. Mr.. Gordy, who has just
returned from regional farm con-
ference in New York City, an
nounced that the 1914 emergency
farm labor program would be car
ried out along about the same lines
as last year.
File Requests
He made a strong plea that all
farmers who will need this type of
help again this year file their re-
quests Immediately. These re-
quests, he said, should be sent to
county agricultural agents-Ralph
M. Watson in New Castle County;
Russell E. Wilson, Kent County,
and William Henderson, Sussex
County.
Labor Needs Greater
Mr.. Gordy said labor needs are
expected to be much greater this
year, and supplies of experienced
labor will be even lower. "At pres
ent," he said, 1--WE have prospects
for larger fruit crop than we
have ever had, and fruit harvest
requires a great deal of labor. Food
goals are higher this year. In order
to meet these needs, arrangements
must be made in advance. In or
der to meet the expected needs, it
will be necessary to use much more
of the type of inexperienced labor
employed last year-boys and girls
out of school, working people on
vacation, and people who are not
employed in essential industry.
'Live-Ins" Sought
OI6 VI lll6 pSSL OCIo iol iiiiAiS
the need for year-round workers is
use of live-ins, an opportunity not
fully utilized last year. Live-ins
are workers, chiefly Inexperienced
boys and girls, who spend full time
on farms during the summer. They
were very satisfactory in the Sec
tions where they were used last
year. They learned easily, and
since they were staying for several
months, on many jobs, became
quite efficient. To get the food we
need produced this year." MI. .Gordy
continued, 1--WE must make the best
possible use of every facility we
can get. To make best use of
labor, farmers need to get orders in
to their county agents now"
Bahamians Promised
Meanwhile, George M. Worrilow,
associate director of the University
of Delaware Extension Service, de-
clared that to meet the farm labor
demand, which will vary during the
season from 500 to $500 workers,
the extension service hopes to pro-
cure labor from four sources: Ba-
hamians, prisoners of war, youths,
and other local people modified in
their communities. A group of 600
to 800 Bahamians has already been
promised, Mr.. Worrilow said. This
will be greatly in excess of the 300
Bahamians who came to Delaware
farms last year, Mr.. Worrilow said
that the Bahama workers proved
to be satisfactory farm laborers.
The extension service has request
ed 500 prisoners of war to work on
Delaware farms from May until
October.
To Recruit Youths
Arrangements have been made
with the Del-Mar-Va Council, Boy
Scouts of America, and with the
Wilmington public schools to re-
cruit youths to help on the farms
as they did last year. While plans
are not complete, there will be a
Boy Scout camp at Bridgeville, Mr..
Worrilow said. Committees are
being organized in all towns of the
state to aid in mobilizing local
manpower to help with the crops if
the need develops. The commit
tees are to be set up and prepared
to swing into immediate action
when a call goes out to them.