Show By Ray Tucker W Nash as h- h Ington Whir Wh- Dr ig ig Telegrams Telegram's Correspondent Washington WASHINGTON The The American American American Amer Amer- ican people must reconcile themselves themselves themselves them them- selves right now to sharp rationing rationing rationing ra ra- ra- ra and restriction of many staple f foods o 0 o 0 d s although the pantry prohibition may be deferred deferred deferred de de- de- de for some months Leon Henderson believes the nation should be Informed in m gentle stages of pending privations The drain dram on the larder of democracy has become more burdensome than the experts ever anticipated Several Caribbean countries closely attached to our cause but severed by the submarine campaign will approach starvation starvation starvation tion conditions without immediate immediate immediate imme imme- diate assistance Deprived of the Ukraine and forced to mobilize the peasants Moscow has sent frantic appeals for food Running short of labor mechanical mechanical mechanical me me- equipment storage facilities fa facilities facilities fa- fa and railroad conveyance our own farmers may maybe be unable to move move the needed produce to domestic and foreign markets Washington does not wish to alarm housewives unduly or pre pre- maturely But the kitchen patriots patriots patriots pa pa- must prepare to cook dishes of which they have never heard and to whip up a tasty m meal al from ingredients once dis dis- dis- dis Here is a compact forecast forecast forecast fore fore- cast of prospective conditions on the stomach front Pork products of all kinds may soon be difficult to obtain We are now shipping 40 per percent percent percent cent of such commodities to Britain and the amount would be doubled if if ships were avail avail- able Oils and fats will disappear except for military uses meaning mean meaning mean mean- meaning ing scarcity of butter substitutes substitutes substitutes shortenings and perhaps soap Tea coffee and cocoa should be conserved It is only a question of time before canned stuff becomes unavailable The armed services have commandeered commandeered commandeered com com- the catch of fish Supplies of beef and and- lamb should be plentiful but spotty because of transportation dif dif- dif dif- There appears no likelihood ofa of ofa a dearth of wheat and corn potatoes poultry and dairy output output output out out- put local fruits and vegetables In brief we shall not lack Jack food but our eating habits always too Epicurean must undergo a revolution And to insure equal distribution distribution distribution tion at equitable prices the great American appetite must be put on a dole Investors who took a flier in billions of dollars' dollars worth of projects projects projects backed by government money in the early merry days of the New Deal now face a long moratorium on their interest payments It is a penalty they must accept in m the impending age which is not mentioned in federal works agency or reconstruction fi finance finance finance fi- fi nance nance corporation publicity These two bureaus advanced funds for such ventures as the Harrisburg turnpike the San Francisco bridge and the Key KeyWest KeyWest I West highway to mention only I Ia a few major und undertakings Their stakes alone total more than a billion and half dollars i Commonwealths and ties put up a proportionate share in return for outright grants grants' from Uncle Sam and and- they floated many additional billions which were sold to banks in insurance insurance insurance in- in companies trust funds and the public In almost every instance the securities consisted of self- self liquidating revenue bonds Buyers Buyers Buy Buy- ers receive principal and interest interest interest inter inter- est only if the enterprises pay through the ordinary course of business Under tire and gas rationing the traffic has dropped below the profit point and will soon decline further Thus no monetary monetary monetary mone mone- tary gain is likely unless the i issuing s s sui u i n g organizations state county city levy local taxes in lieu of normal income They will not because they cannot Everyone Every Every- one here concedes these losses but writes them off as casualties casualties casualties casual casual- ties of the conflict Meanwhile use of these roadways and bridges by h heavy e a v y wartime trucks will force costly postwar repair President Roosevelt's unexpected unexpected unexpected prediction on future synthetic synthetic synthetic syn syn- syn- syn tire possibilities stunned army navy and W P B higher- higher ups It ran counter to their public public pub pub- lic lie warnings and private anticipations antici antici- But it has had two ef effects effects effects ef- ef which may not have been accidental Politically the s statement tat e men t served as a reply to the Truman Truman Truman Tru Tru- man committees committee's charge that the administration was responsible responsible responsible sible for the shortage of rubber F D R spoke on the same ame day that the senatorial investigators returned their indictment Economically Economically Eco Eco- the pre presidential sid en t i a 1 promise may force his quibbling squabbling subordinates to do something besides talk about bout synthetic rubber Copyright 1942 McClure Syndicate |