The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1918-09-02
WILL PROVIDE Farm
FOR EHRY-~S0tD|ER

~aA1ffHGfoa. SepN- IA farm Tor
e~Ey retarn3ux soldier That n the
plan on which the interior department t
lis strAining every nerve tfseEe days.
When congress voted Se<1ptAry Lane !
100000 fer preliminary survey OF
the resources of Anor1cA-tn lands that
could be made ready for it's returning
soldiers when the war s4rUs1ld be ended
IL gave impetus to tina realization Of
a great ideal HIS brain had been faith
ering. He win go to- the incoming
| congress for additional rappropr iations
1T is all part and parceI Of the new
Americanisn this country II to see and
feel after the war said the secretary
today outlining new~devcaop merrtA- TT
means 4 homo for ovoEy returning sol
which he-vfu be given opportunity and
1 time to pay for. 1t identines-him with
the country and keeps him from be-
| coming a nomad
| This scheme. il no matter Of philan-
thropy. 1t is no charity II win enrich
1 the nation and make comfortable, self
| guppo kting and scif-respecting the men
1 who avail themselves of it And even
now It win mako these sarne men bet
ter soldiers In Europe X they know
I thAt when they cprne home the oppor-
tunity to support themselves and their
| families is awaiting them. A man fights
better for knowing his family is to have
the comforts ii needs"
Survey Organised.
Secretary Lane has organized his
survey from the reclamation service.
Director A. p. Davie OF that service,
has general charge of the new survey.
His chief Of construction is r. r. wey-
mouth. holding the same position in
| the reclamation service. w. T. Corey.
formerly with the Southern Pacif,c.
where he won fame by conauerins the
Salton sea. is in charge of preliminary
H. N~~,k
or stump lands IN the South. r. W.
Henna will do the same work in the
North and Elmwood Mead. formerly in
charge OF the land settlement work in
California will handle the details Of the
settlement problems.
/ This Organization was only recently
perfected. but ie now working at top
speed to discover just what land can
be made available to the returning SOL
diers.
From early reports estimate that
there are 1s,tee.ooe acres Of land, now
Arid or semi-arid chat is susceptible OF
irrigation" continued Mr.. Lane, There
Is plenty OF water for this. though In
| most eases II will be a storage prob
lem. Over half a million acres are
available in the Colorado river recla-
nation project Then there must be
1so.ooo.ooo acres Of cut-over lands
There the problem is to clear the land
100000 acres of swamp ana overflow
lands Tho problem on these In one OF
dyktng and ditching. but when drained
the lands are the richest in the world.
lunimpoverfshed alluviaI basins, en-
riched year by year for centuries by
the overflow.
Plan. For Reefsmsfson.
| we do not plan to do any OF the
reclamation work on these lands until
the boys. come home. But we do intend
TO have the necessary work planned
and everything ready TO start We
must have all the land located. plans
drawn for the dams and power plants,
for cement plants to be built right at
the sites OF the big dams. for the dykes
and bitches for the stumpage removal,
for school houses and homes on each
of the farms into which we will sub
! divide the great reclaimed tracts.
| Everything must be ready.
Then when the boys come back we
win say to them, come out 70 the
Colorado river reclamation project or
whatever pro1ect we may be hrst start
ing Go to work for the government
on IT at a wage which will meet your
! living requirements and allow a margin
which you can save against frst pay
ment on farm there. when the recla-
! nation work is done"
All the reclamation work will be
done by them. Then each can pick out
his farm. The government will have
| him do bis fencing and put up his
J buildings, paying him for the work and
furnishing the materials, II will stock
] his farm with animals and Implements
necessary and then sell II to him a
reasonable payment basis. with a small
| first payment down. which he will have
been enabled to save from his wages
while working on the reclamation pro-
ject
1T Will have handled all the hnanc- /
Z. Ing snd he will come into possession
Of farm already to operate for which
he will be allowed TO pay out of it's own
productivity !
) Forty acres will he enough for a I
good living and surplus to meet his Z
payments And there will be forty :
aeTes Of wonderfully rich reclaimed
Land Tor every soldier who deaires Il"