♦ 7- 



price is higher than at emy time since the 1930-31 season. 



Thftt the net decrease of apple holdings in the United States during 

 the month of IJarch amounted to about 6,000,000 bushels or 42^0 of the amount on 

 hand March 1? The net decreases during March for the five preceding years were 

 as follows: 1941 - 38?o, 1940 - 40^, 1939 - 40^/., 1938 - 38f», 1937 - 40f.. 



That American farmers throw away enough used baling wire each year 

 to build three battleships or 3,000 medium sized tanks? Much of the 100,000 

 tons of bailing wire used each year is allowed to rust away in the scrap heap 

 after being used but once. 



That more nitrogenous fertiliser is produced by lightning than is 

 produced in all the synthetic nitrogen factories in the world? It is estimated 

 that there are about 2,000,000,000 lightning strokes (about 7 for every square 

 mile of earth), which results in the annual production of 100,000,000 tons of 

 nitric acid. 



That more thaja three times as large a Tolume of mixed fertiliiers 

 was sold by a large Ilev: England distributor un to April 1, 1942, than was sold 

 during the same period, 1941? The amounts for the two years were approximately 

 8,000 tons and 2,300 tons, respectively. The 1942 sales of each of the fol- 

 lowing mixed fertilizers of fairly high nitrogen content, namely, 10-5-5, 

 10-10-10, and 7-7-7, have amounted to more than 2-|- times the 1941 sales. Less 

 than 755? as many tons of nitrogenous fertilizers were sold in New England up 

 to April 1 as in 1941. 



That American farmers will produce in 1942 enough 10-gallon cans of 

 milk to build 25 pyramids the size of the great pyramid of Egypt? They will 

 also produce enough eggs so that if you broke one every second it would take 

 1600 years to break them all. Enough peanuts and soy bean oil v/ill be pro- 

 duced to make more than 60 bars of soap as big as the RCA Building. The pro- 

 duction of hogs would make a solid procession, two abreast, clear around the 

 world. 



Gasoline for F armers 



On March 26, S. R. Parker, County Agent Leader, wrote to M. Clifford 

 Townsend, Director of the Office of Agricultural Defense Relations aind on 

 April 15 received the following report. It is apparent from this letter that 

 as far as the orders are concerned, supplies are provided for all farm uses. 

 It may be necessary for a farmer to file vrith his usual source of supply a cer- 

 tification sucii as is included here. 



"In your letter of Llarch 26, you pointed out that the Massachusetts State 

 USDA War Board is concerned about the proposed rationing of gasoline and is 

 afraid that farmers might not be able to get the supply they require for their 

 trac"t^rs and engine pumps under a rationing system. You may be sure that this 

 office will do whatever it can to protect the interests of farmers in this 

 matter. 



"It should be noted that Limitation Order L-70, wiiich was announced by the 

 V.'ar Production Board, limits the supply of motor fuel to distributors. Under 



