Food Reform Association, and newly created ones, the National Food
Economy League and the Patriotic Food League of Scotland, did a great
deal of active work on food saving. They aimed at instructing in
the scientific principles of the economical use of food, and issued
admirable leaflets and Handbooks for Housewives and Cookery Books.
A series of Exhibitions, often described as "Patriotic Housekeeping
Exhibitions" were held in different parts of the country, organized
generally by women's societies. One of the early ones I organized
in Salisbury. Later, the Public Trustee was chairman of an Official
Committee, which organized large Exhibitions in London and throughout
the country. These Exhibitions had stalls showing food values with
specimens, had exhibits of the most economical cooking stoves and
arrangements, and exhibited every manner of time and labour saving
device. They had wonderful exhibits of clothes for children made from
old clothes of grown-ups, of marvellous dresses and little jerseys and
caps and scarfs made from legs of old stockings. There were charming
dresses and underclothing made of the very simplest materials and
decorated artistically with stitching and embroidery. These were made
by school girls of seven and upwards for themselves, and the Glasgow
School of Art's work, done in schools there, was perfectly beautiful.
The cost was shown and it was incredibly small. All sorts of things
for the household in simple carpentry and upholstery, using up boxes
and wood, were shown, and old tins were converted into all sorts of
useful household things. Facts as to waste were made as striking as
possible by demonstration. Every exhibition had a War Savings Stall
and Certificates were often sold at these in large numbers, the Queen
buying the first sold at the first London Exhibition.

The great feature of the Exhibitions was Food Saving and Conservation.
Demonstrations in cooking and in hay-box cooking, were given and these