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Show British Farm Wives Spur Drive for More Production LONDON. A hundred Canadian farmers' wives met in a village in 1897 to swap jam and preserving recipes. They had no intimation of the fact then that they were starting start-ing a world-wide association. However, the little meeting at Stoney Creek, Ont., was the beginning begin-ning of the Associated Country Women of the World with a current membership of 5.5 million. The as iuciation serves as the coordina ting body for the network of farm women's organizations all over the world. Major theme of the British unit is more production. Stoney Creek's idea of pooling knowledge of jam-making, jam-making, ' fruit preserving, home handicrafts, home welfare and farm production has been retained and enlarged upon. The clubs are still nonpolitical and nonsectarian. Part of the wide British scheme is a marketing committee to ad vise cottage gardeners in selling Iheir products cottage gardens being too small for inclusion in the Government marketing scheme. There is also a produce guild which in 1947-48 brought forth 4.000.000 extra pounds of potatoes. 31,000 new fruit plantings. 10 new pig clubs and 313 new rabbit clubs The pride' of the British insti tutes is Denman college, estab lished in Berkshire county house The fountainhead of the federation's educational activities, it offers courses in everything from tree grafting to classical literature. No part of the organization goes above the authority of the ordi nary village member, and in the monthly meeting each institute set ties by vote what it will do in the -next farming session. In the Cotswolds they may de cide to produce enormous quanti ties of plums; Wales may wish to have the champion choir; Devon may aim at a record honey yield All over Britain the institutes are deciding how to get the utmost production out of their home ground. The Institutes also have a social side dances, whist drives, drama clubs, fairs and shows. The main activity, however, Is conferences on subjects that most concern them. These include hous ing and education. |