The start of the First World War focused society's attention on the limits of the public food supply and the need for food conservation to support the war-effort. Housewives of all classes, even those with little or no agricultural experience, were called upon to start Victory Gardens. With this call came the question of how to preserve these garden products for use throughout the year. In response, the art of canning and preserving once again came into vogue. To aid housewives with no prior experience in this area, Mary Catherine Hughes published this 1918 work, which provides clear instructions and recipes for canning and preserving using the simplified cold-pack method.