Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1918-12-03

| were put before the war 1t has not been
possible to remove ~ readily or go quickly
the control of foodstus1s and Of shipping,
because the world has still to be fed from
our granaries and the ships are st,l needed
70 send supplies to our men overseas
and to bring the men back rs fast as the
disturbed conditions on the other side OF
the water permit; but even there re-
straints are being relaxed os much rs
possible and more and more rs the weeks
so by.
PRAISES EFFICIENT BOARDS.
Never before have there been agencies
| in this country which knew so much of
the field of supply. Of labor and industry
rs the War Industries Board, the War
! Trade BOARD, the Labor Department, tn"
| Food Administration and the Fuei ad-
| mnistration have known since the labors
became thoroughly systemati1ed and they
| have not been isolated agencies; they have
been directed by men which represented
| the permanent departments Of the govern
ments and 50 have been the centers OF
| unified and cooperative oCtiou. II has
| heen the policy OF the executive, therefore
| sincc the armistice was assured (which Is
| in effect a corpietc submission OF the
cncmy}, 10 put the knowledge OF the-c
| bodies at the disposal 81 the business men
Of the count ~ and TO offer their Intelligent
| mcdiat ION Mt every point ana IN crory
| matter where IL was desired
4 Ii is surprising how fast the process Of
| return To a peace footing has moved III
the three weeks since the fighting stopped
| 1t promises 10 outrun any inquiry that
| NAV ho instituted and any AID that may
! be offered II will not he easy 10 direct u
any better than 1t will direct itseii
| The American business man Is Gtick oi
/ initiative.
URGES RESUMPTION oP PCBIIc WORK
The ordinary and normal processes Of
private initiative will not, however, provide
| imme late employment for al of the men
| of our returning armies. Those who re
| of trained capacity, those who arc skilled
| workrnen, those who have acquired
| familiarity with established businesses
those who are ready and willing to go 10
the farms, all those who's aputudoS are
| knowa, or will he sought out by employers.
will find no difficulty. IT Is safe 70 say,
in finding place and employment
But there will be others who will be at q
| loss where TO gain livelihood and unless
| pains are taken to guido them and put
| them in the way Of work, there will be
| large floating reslduum Of labor which
should not be wholly left 10 shift for itrrli
| II seems 70 me important therefore, that
| the development " the public works
| of every sort should be promptly resumed,
IN order that opportunities should tc
! created for unskilled labor In particular
| and that plans should he made for such
developments of our unused lands and
| our natural resources as VIC havc hitherto
| lacked stimulation 20 undertake
! TTH~
particularly direct vour attention e
the very practical plans which the Sec
rrtary al The Interior has developed in hE
annual report and before your committees
for the reclamation ot and, swamp and
ut-ovcrlands. which might, II the states
were willing and able, 10 oo-operaie- re
deem some three hundred million acr<
of land for Cultivat ion.
There are said to b. fifteen or twenty
million acres Of land in the woet AZ present
and, for who serc Clamation water is avail
able. II properly conserved There ART
about two hundred and thirty milhoI
acres from which the forests hsve beer
cut but which have never vet been cleared
for he plow and which lie wast~ and desc
late These lie scattered all over thC
Union
And there sre nearly eighty mlllior
acres Of land that liz unde. swamps o.
subject to periodical overflow or too we'
| FIR anything but grazing, which II Is per
irctly feasible ~ dram and protect ans
redeem
Tho Congress ran AZ once dire
thousands at the returnin soldier 4
he reclamation of the ARID lands, uhicl
II las already undertaken i II will bu
nlarge the plans and the appropriation
which 1t has entrusted TO the i>epaTtmcr
of the Interior. II Is impossible IN dealln
with our unused land 10 effect eT
| rural and agricultural develop r Wa G
will afford the best sport OF opportunit1
to men who want 70 help thcmselve-
and the Secretary OF the Interior hA
thought the possible methods out in
wsy which is worthy of your most frlendl
attention
MUST FyED THE HUNGRY
have spoken of the control whicI
must vet for while, perhaps for a lon
while, be exercised over shipping hecaus
of the priority OF service 70 which on
forces overseas are entitled and whICl
should also be accorded the shipment
which are 10 save recently liberated peopi
from starvation and many devastate'
regions from permanent ruin.
May ! not say 3 special word ab0U
the needs of Belgium and NortherI
France? No sums of money paid by va.
Of indemnity Will serve Of themselves f.
save them from hopeless disadvantage
for wears 10 come. Something more mus
be done than merely find the money
II they had money and raw material
In abundance tomorrow, they could no
resume their place in the industry of I'll
world tomorrow very impo<tan
place they held before the fame Of W.
swept across them. Many Of their IA
tories are raIed % the ground. Much O
their machinery If destroyed or has beei
taken away Their people are scattere'
and many of their best wOrbnen are dead
Their markets will he taken by Others,
they are not in some special way assigne'
TO rebuild their Factories aud replace thei
lust instruments Of manufacture
They should not be LETT u the v1csssl
tudes Of their competition for mateTlal
and for industrial facilities which IS nov
to set In.
I hope. therefore, that the Congre9
, pill not be unwilling, il 1t should becom
necessary, TO grant TO some agency as u
War Trade Board the right 70 establls
( prlorities oi export and supply for th
benefit OF these people whom We hay
? been 50 happy TO assist N saving from "a
German terror and whom we must nc
! now thoughtlessly leave 70 shift for then
selves IN pItiless competitive market
MUST LIFT TAX BUEDENS.
I For the steadying and faciE'A.ion ,
: Utzr own domestic ll.IsInpss rpan inst rurpf