All these institutions have found flowers useful. They will be more useful 
to America today than ever before. 
We need especially to develop home life this year. Home surroundings 
should be made more attractive. Let us have more flowers in our gardens and in 
our windows than ever before. There will be fewer cars and fewer tires, and asa 
result more staying at home. Homes, where love and harmony prevail, where 
there are flowers, music, books and those things which feed the soul will be the 
sources of America’s courage, our poise. Our morale will overcome any tend- 
ency to hysteria which weak characters sometimes develop. 
In preparation for the demand, we have added many new bulbs to our 
stocks. Besides those added by purchase, we have released a lot of items that 
we were holding back for a greater increase in stock. They are needed now. 
We have omitted illustrations in order to give more complete culture advice. 
We can all contribute to the war effort. We can train our minds into a 
quality of poise and of morale that will make us more fit for our personal 
efforts. We can make a greater effort to maintain a high level of health. The 
exercise in a garden and the vitamins of vegetables and fruits will help that. 
We can buy Defense Bonds to the limit of our ability. We can pay our taxes 
honestly and without grumbling or evasion. We can cooperate in every manner 
with national as well as local authorities. We will do all that. 
There will be no unemployment because there is work for all, although 
adjustments will be necessary and some will suffer temporary inconvenience. 
There is something else to do even for automobile salesmen. Let us all work 
at our job—and I mean work. The man who likes work so well that he lies 
down and goes to sleep beside it must wake up. We must be alive. Our jobs 
are for America. They are more important than our wages. 
Now about buying Bonds. They are the best investment in the world. If 
they are not good your gold, silver, currency, real estate or industrial invest- 
ments are worthless. If State Socialism and the principle of the Right of Con- 
quest win, America and Democracy are doomed. 
In the meantime, let us hate no man or race or nation. Let that weakness 
belong to Germany and Japan. We must not be unjust to those races in 
America. One Japanese here died because of the shame he felt for Pearl 
Harbor. Little Tokyo in Los Angeles is loyal to America. They are buying 
Defense Bonds, making every effort to cooperate. 
I am wishing that this year may bring us all a high courage, good health, 
and peace. The wish, too, is for America because ‘‘we all’? are America. 
Sincerely, 
CECIL HOUDYSHEL 
FLASH 
A bulletin just received from the Department of Agriculture on the ‘‘Vic- 
tory Garden”’ program says, in brief, ‘‘People will be cautioned against plowing 
up lawns, backyards and parks. We recognize the importance of encouraging 
home gardens, lawns, shrubs and flowers as a ‘‘Morale Factor in Defense.”’ 
