SOLDIERS OF THE SOIL 



279 



where the provision of such facilities 

 later in the season may be justified. 



In the southern half of the country 

 perhaps no crop has larger possibilities 

 for quick increase of production of food 

 for both men and animals than the sweet 

 potato. Methods of handling and stor- 

 ing this product, demonstrated and advo- 

 cated by the Department workers for 

 several years, make possible much fuller 

 utilization of it than has occurred gen- 

 erally in the past. 



The peanut, in many sections of the 

 South, also is capable of greatly enlarged 

 production, with little risk of oversupply, 

 as it is in demand for oil and peanut- 

 butter manufacture, as well as for direct 

 use as food, both for man and hogs. 



INCREASE FARM PRODUCTION OF VEGE- 

 TABLES AND POULTRY 



The high prices for foodstuffs that 

 have prevailed during the last few months 

 have stimulated interest in the increase 

 of home supplies of vegetables, poultry, 

 and dairy products on farms. 



This interest has been quickened most 

 noticeably in the South, where for several 

 years this Department and the States, 

 through their extension workers, have 

 urged such an increase as necessary for 

 economic reasons, even under normal 

 conditions. Other parts of the country 

 have responded to these appeals, but 

 emphasis on this feature should be con- 

 tinued by all agencies in position to op- 

 erate effectively. 



Through increased attention to poultry 

 on farms, it is possible to add quickly and 

 materially to the food supply. Because 

 of the importance of an increased supply 

 of eggs, under present exigencies, far- 

 mers should not market hens of the egg 

 breeds, such as the leghorns, which are 

 less than three years old, or of the larger 

 breeds which are less than two years old. 



By the immediate preservation of eggs 

 for home consumption through the use of 

 water glass or lime water, larger supplies 

 of fresh eggs may be made available for 

 marketing later in the season, when pro- 

 duction is less and prices higher'. 



Every person who raises chickens, from 

 the novice to the poultry husbandman, 



should see that infertile eggs are pro- 

 duced and all surplus marketed promptly, 

 so as to eliminate waste through spoilage. 



When conditions render it feasible, 

 small flocks of poultry should be kept by 

 families in villages, towns, and especially 

 in the suburbs of large cities. The need 

 for this extension of poultry-raising is 

 particularly great where consumption ex- 

 ceeds production, as in the Northeastern 

 States. 



Through utilization of table waste, 

 scraps, and other refuse as poultry feed, 

 much wholesome food in the form of 

 eggs and poultry for home use may be 

 produced at relatively low cost. 



Many families in the villages and on 

 the outskirts of cities also should con- 

 sider the advisability of keeping a pig, if 

 sanitary regulations permit. In most 

 cases, however, it will be profitable to 

 keep a pig only when a sufficient surplus 

 from the household and the garden is 

 available: to furnish a considerable por- 

 tion of, the pig's food. 



Consumers living in villages and in the 

 suburbs of cities do not appreciate suffi- 

 ciently the possibility of adding materially 

 to their food supply by utilizing suitable 

 idle soil in yards, vacant lots, and unused 

 outlying fields.' The total contribution to 

 the food supply of families and communi- 

 ties which can be brought about through 

 such activities is great. 



Gardening is peculiarly an activity in 

 which the family and the community may 

 share with resultant mutual helpfulness 

 and benefit. 



The duty of the individual farmer, at 

 this time, is to increase his production, 

 particularly of food crops. If he has 

 control of tillable land not in use, or 

 money lying idle, or labor unemployed, 

 he should extend his operations so as to 

 employ those resources to the fullest 

 extent. 



This does not mean that he should rob 

 his land, waste his capital, or expend his 

 labor fruitlessly, but that by wise plan- 

 ning and earnest effort he should turn 

 out a greater quantity of food crops than 

 ever before. He will not lose by it, and 

 he will perform an important service in 

 supporting his country in the task that 

 lies before it. 



