The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-06-17

I'd able, to be fashioned into farms for our people; and this vast area will be brought into cultivation without en-
 tailing the loss of single dollar to the National Treasury, as the land reclaim ed is assessed and the owner must re-
 turn to the Treasury the cost of re- clamation.
 Under this act the Government has constructed 1881 miles of canals, fifty
 six tunnels. and sI1 miles or wagon
 roads into heretofore inaccessible re
 gions. the expenditures In rnls work aggrssating nearly q; 100000 ,pes pes
 of the Reclamation Service eight new towns have been established. 100 miles of branch railroads have been con structed. and 14,000 people have al
 ready taken up their residence in the The Pension Bureau.
 The work of the Pension Bureau has
 been brought up-to-date. The laoor
 ministration during the last four years has decreased nearly $70O.OOO. Ihe force has been reduced from 1000 to r.
 400. and yet the number of certificates
 issued during the last twelve months
 has been greater than any previous
 twelve months since the Bureau was established, nearly 100000 having been
 issued during the past year.
 'The act of June 27, 1890. was the first disability law in the history or the world granting pension 10 soldiers l and sailors because of their need or ! help, without requiring proof of dis ability incurred in service in the line of duty. and the act of February D, 1907, granting pensions to all solclers and sailors who served in the Civli War and in the Mexican War, are measures of justice and generosity un- exampled in the annals of grateful people. The total number Of pension CTS on the rolls is now slightly In ex-
 cess of 1000. and the average amount nafd mansions in a month IS nearly thirteen million dollars, and in 1 1907. S13s,i55,4l2 were paid to pen sioners
 During the past four years the Postoffice Department has continued its beneficent work in the interest of all the people, until on the 1st of April 1908 free rural delivery was in, oper- ation on 39,037 routes from 16,30S post offices; complete rural service having been established in 793 counties, saw 1 ing s9.500.o00 in the discontinuance of postofices: and in every way car rying the blessings of the free de- I livery system to our rural population and thus promoting the happiness and contentment of the people.
 Tt is to be regretted that a mea- sure to provide for the carrying oi | our malls to the Orient and the South American countries in American ships should have failed, but It's passage in | 1 ed, The confession of Secretary Root lnpon his return from the South Amer l ican countries that During the past l summer I have entered all the great 1 ports of the Southern continent and saw only one ship besides the cruiser that carried me flying the American flag"
 "sThe best way to travel between
 the United States and South America Is to go by way of Europe, crossing the Atlantic twice
 'Tn the year ending June 30, 1905 there entered the port of Rio de Jan eiro steamers and sailing vessels. 12C flying the flag of Austro- Hungary, 14i of Norway. 1S5 of Italy, 264 of Argen- tina, 34s of France, 657 of Germany l.Ts5 of Great Britain, and only steamers and ! sailing vessels from the United States, of which were in distress Not one American steam ship runs to a South American port beyond the Caribbean.
 "Secretary Root concludes: Fms woeful deficiency in the means to carry on and enlarge our South American trade is but part of the general de- cline and feebleness of the Amerb can merchant marine, which has re- duced us from carrying over 90 pei cent of our export trade in our own ships to the carTiaSe oA per SSI
 of that trade and dependence upor foreign ship owners for the carriage | of e1 per cent ~This humiiiating condition shoulS | stimulate the American people to re newed and determined effort to re l establish a merchant marine, until VI | are able to carry American malls am | American merchandise under the Amer | ican flag to every port ot trade. Efficiency of Army.
 "The work of reorganizing and pro
 noting the efficiency of the Army has gone steadily forward until we havs