Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1945-05-11

as inviolable the domestic policies he
has inherited nor to preserve intact
the unavoidable mechanisms which
Mr.. Roosevelt devised to deal with
certain vital problems on the home
front. That would mean adoption
of several ill-conceived and imprac-
ticable theories. 1t also would per-
petuate mistakes the cost of which
it is hard to exaggerate and which
are responsible for what few can
deny is a general mess. Particular
reference Is here made to food.
Felt by Every Family.
Every family in America already
has felt the effects of the Intellectual
administration handling of the war
time production, distribution, pricing
and rationing of food
We know now that for the balance
Of this year and probably the next
many basic foods will be short. We
know that all kinds of food will be
harder to get than now, when it is
certainly hard enough. We know
that even If there is another bumper
food crop (the seventh in a row, as
Mr.. Laurence Sullivan points out in
the current Nations Business there
will be barely enough food for our
domestic needs, military necessities
and relief commitments.
Should a drought hit the country
really disastrous shortage could
follow.
In the meantime, the black market,
with its inflationary threat, grows
daily, and a special House commit
tee, laying the facts before President
Truman in a 7,000-word report,
earnestly asks him Immediately to
coordinate" all food programs
before things get out of hand.
This report on the domestic food
crisis followed closely that of Judge
Rosenman on the foreign food
shortage, in which he urged that
our machinery for allocating food
to liberated countries be "co-ordi-
mated"
1t is said that the President was
acutely concerned. He should be.
For, If ever a job was bungled this
Is the job. And, unless clear cut
action is taken, we are about to
pay pretty high price for the
bungling.,
From the very start food regu-
lation called for coordination. From
the start it was clear that what
was needed was a food car, high
ly qualified man with complete
power. Yet there never has been
anything even remotely resembling
coordination and never has any
one been given real authority.
One first class man named by Mr..
Roosevelt resigned after six months
solely because he found he did not
have the authority to do the job
and was not going to get it.
His successor Is in a similar situa-
ton, but holds on, though he must
be appalled, at the state of affairs.
As Mr.. Sullivan in his article as
sert&, instead OF having one re-
sponsible agency with definite
aim, we have nine agencies working
at cross purposes in an, attempt to
guide our food production and dis
tribution."
These are the Department of Ag-
riculture, the War Food Admin
istration, the Commodity Credit
Corp, the Defense Supplies Corp,
the Foreign Economic Administra-
ton, the once Of Price Administra-
ton, the War Production Board, the
War Manpower Commission and
finally the Rural Resettlement Ad-
ministration and Rural Electrical
ton Authority.
All nine of these agencies deal
with some phase Of food regulation.
Each of the nine is independent
of the other eight. There is no boss,
no co-ordinator and extremely
faulty cooperation.
Right and Left Hands.
The New York Herald Tribune
said the other day that the right
hand of production control belongs
to the War Food Administration,
but the left-hand price and supply
belongs to the OPA. In between are
the other seven agencies, each af-
fecting the problem one way or
another. None Of these are forced
to move in the same direction at
the same time-and few of them do.
The setup is almost incredibly
stupid. 1t utterly disregards the
successful experience in food regu-
lation of the last war. 1t promotes
confusion and discomfort. 1t is pri-
marily responsible for the black
markets and is completely indie
feasible.
Now there looms ahead demand
for food greater than we have ever
known-not only for our own peo-
pie and our own armies but for the
starving millions in the devastated
countries abroad. It Is unthinkable
that this Hydra-headed, sprawling
unco-ordinated, Intellectual ham
STANDARDIZATION