El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1918-12-14

WASHINGTON, D. c.. Dec. IL
w have spent the greater part Of
this week in the interior department
looking into Uncle Sans new project
for providing farm homes for the SOL
diers. The reclamation service has
the matter in hand, and congress viii
have appropriated $1,000, 900 for be-
binning the work before this letter
Is published. At least this is the out
look today. The scheme originated
with secretary Lane, and It has been
approved by the president It is
based upon 5O0.OoO,0OO acres Of
deserts, swamps andcutover lands
which our geological survey geograph-
ers and reclamation experts say can
be redeemed Today they are as bar
rem as no mans land between the
trenches or that devastated by the
Germans in Belgium or France. To-
morrow. using that word as syn
onym OF the future. a large part OF
them VIII be producing crops as DIE
as those we are now getting from the
reclamation projects Of the far west:
and at a not distant date they VIII
probably have added a new agricul-
tural empire and billions OF dollars 10
our national wealth.
One of the best informed men con-
nected with this class OF land i'm
provement IS Dr.. ElWood Mead civil
engineer. who has been engaged by
the government to help in this work.
Or. Mead has been employed upon
state and national reclamation
schemes for the most OF his life he
has been a part OF our great desert
projects and was chief OF the irriga-
ton and drainage Investigations car
ried on by the department OF Agrl-
culture during the decade which
ended IN 1907. After that he went to
Australia to aid in Transforming some
Of its great holdings into community
farm settlements like that planned for
the soldiers. and later came back to
California to act as chairman OF the
commission for the invest cation OF
certain subjects OF land colonization
In the latter position he has had to
do with the dividing up OF 5000 OF
1000 acres Of the great Stanford
ranch which lies under the shadow
OF Mount Shasta. and making IT into
a model farm settlement Dr. Mead
has also Travelled over a large part OF
the world studying national schemes
of q similar nature, and is thorough
" abreast OF all that our allies have
planned for their soldiers when they
come back from the war
Meets DR.. Mead.
7 met DR.. Mead in his office IN the
reclamation service OF the interior de-
partment The first subject discussed
was the plans our allies have Tor their
soldiers. said DR.. Mead:
~An OF the English speaking coun-
tries except the United States have
recently passed special soldier leglS-
Iatiou- Such Of them as have govern
ment lands are offering them to the
soldiers free OF charge Others are I
lending the men money to buy private 1
properties, and others are purchasing /
large tracts Of private land and divid- /
ing them up into blocks. The English /
and Canadians are ESTABLISHING !
central farms on which the soidiers
are 10 be employed to prepare the I
land and try out the crops, and they I
are laying out these farms into hold !
inEs OF different sizes 20 be given TO I
the men on easy terms OF payment, I
stocking the same with the outItt !
needed for farming Some OF the
countries are appointing agricultural
instructors to teach the soldiers how
10 farn1, and others are giving them
farm tools and farm animals, seeds J
and fertilizers at cost Some are Great Z
ing model farms, equipped with barns I
and houses. to be taken over by the /
soldiers when they are completed
IN all cases the improvements and 4
in most the lands are to be paid for Z
by the soldiers, but the payments are 4
stretched over long periods OF time /
In the Australian states the men
,
right at a low rate Of interest: while I
in New Zealand they have a leasing I
period Of Sc years. The rental is only /
; or 4 percent OF the capital value /
The adTancements for stock and farm I
outfits are payable In from ten to %
years
What Canadas Doing.
What Is Canada dofnE7" ] asked
The Dominion government has taken J
NJ the matter only quite recently, al
though several OF the provinces have been
planning such schemes since the begin
-InE Of the war L vas year ago last
august that the Canadian parliament
rassed & land act for the soldiers and
only last spring that the soldiers settle
rnent board was appointed Since then
$4,000 600 has been appropriated for
carrying out the act and each soldier has
been given the right 20 take up vacant
government land 70 he amount o. go
acres The government viii also lend
each soldier $500 at 5 percent interest
10 put up q house and buy tools and
seeds. taking a morteage upon the land
NHTTNNT n