31 MARCH 1917, Page 11

AMERICA AND OUR FOOD SUPPLY. [To THE EDITOR or THE

" SPECTATOR."]

Srs,—You tell us that " if only we can get a sufficient supply of food, nothing can now prevent the triumph of our arms." Could not America ensure this supply, both to England and France ? And could America do anything more urgent and more effectual for our common cause ? Whatever further delay may arise in making a formal declaration of war, could not the United States at once proceed to organize and ensure a steady supply of food to Great Britain and France ? If the plan (already suggested) of building standardized wooden ships were pressed on in the ship- building yards of the States, and meanwhile all available tonnage were organized into a regular transport service, and if the Ameri- can Navy set itself to convoy and proteot these food transports, sinking at sight any and every enemy submarine, would not America be saving the situation, and doing the very thing needed to ensure the triumph of the cause of liberty and civilization ?-