New Britain herald., 1918-08-13
MILLIONS 0F ACRES
 FOR OUR TROOPS
Congress to Be Asked to Make
 Land Available

Washington, Aug. 13.-When the soldier of 1865 laid down his arms to take up a civil occupation, he turned westward to a matChiesS public do- main which he helped to develop into the worlds richest farms and cities. The government was able to point the way to d method by which the re- turned soldier was able to turn his talents for a livelihood, and the gov ernment now is laying the ground work to have similar land available when the great war ends and the mil lions of American soldiers return to civil life.
 While the vast domain that awaited the Civil war veteran can not be du- 'plcated for those who return from the European battletields, there are millions of acres which can be made available with proper legislation and subsequent development, and which, according to the present plans, will be offered to the returning soldier with ample time to pay for the cost of de- Velopment if he desires to accept it.
 Congress will be asked for legis- lation to make this land available, according to the present plans of Sec retary Lane and congressional lead CTS.
 Secretary Lane has announced that it will be the policy of the department of the interior to ask for legislation by which arid lands of the West, cut over lands of the Northwest. and swamp lands in the middle west and the south, can be reclaimed and the soldier given a preferred status in it's allotment. Bills are now before con- gress on that subject, and the plan now is to weld into an administra- tion bill a measure embracing Sec retary's Lanes ideas, the legislation to be patterned after 8 bill now be- fore the house public lands commit tee by Representative Smith of Idaho.
 The amount of swamp and cut-over lands is extensive, reports from the departm ent of the interior indicate but just how extensive is not known. It is estimated that approxima tely 6O,000,0 900 acres of swam and over flow land can be made available for farming. Some of it has passed into private ownership. It lies chiefly in Florida, in the states along the At lantic and Gulf coasts. in the Mis- sissippi delta and in Missouri, Indi- ana, Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin and California.
 It is estimated that of the cut-over and logged-off land there is approxi- mately 2OOOO0,OOO acres suitable for agricultural development. A larger percentage of this land is now in pri- vate ownership, and it is shown that failure to develop it is due largely to inadequate methods of approach, says Secretary Lane. Unless new policy of development is worked out in CO., operation between the United States, the states and the individual owners a greater part of it will remain un- settled and uncultivated. The land lies chiefly in Washington and Ore- gon, Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Ala bama, Mississippi Louisiana and Texas.
 Other than the planning the de- velopment should be by the returned soldier, according to Secretary Lanes views.
 The dam or the irrigation project should be built by him." MT. Lane says. "The canals, the ditches, the breaking of the land and the building of the houses, should, under proper direction, be his occupation. He should be allowed to make his own home, cared for while he is doing it, and given an interest in the land for which he can pay through long period of years, perhaps thirty or forty years.
 ''So that the soldier on his return would have an opportunity to make a home for himself, to build home with money which we would advance and which he would repay and for the payment we would have an abun-