Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1919-01-28
CONGRESS SLOW
PROVIDING FARMS
FOR SOLDIERS
Plan of Secretary Lane
Would Give Employment to
Thousands of Men When
Mustered Out of Service
BY E. C. RODGERS.

| Months before war ended Secretar!
of the Interior Lane asked congress t
| appropriate the money for grear
land reclamation project whlct
would increase the nations wealth
| produce food for millions of human
beings, and give good jobs ant
homes to every American soldier
who came from the war and wanted
to go on a farm of his own.
| Over a third of all American SOL
diers came from farms, and most OF
| them want to go back, not to the
| farm of their fathers or the farms
where they worked as hired men, but
| to their own farms, that they may
marry and raise families.
Thousands of these soldiers have
written to Secretary Lane begging
him to help them get farms. They
want to pay for the farms; they
don't ask charity in pension form.
Secretary Lane put all this before
congress.
Congress talked about it.
Congress appropriated a few
thousand dollars to investigate. The
reclamation service investigated and
reported back to congress.
Congress started talking about it
again.
Congress has done nothing more.
This congress has six weeks more
of life. 1t will have to be pushed,
and pushed hard, to do thing with
the farms-for-soldiers project.
Remember, Secretary Lane asked
congress long before the war ended
to get busy and do something for the
returned veterans!
The war ended. Thousands of SOL
diers are being discharged every day.
In every city and hamlet soldiers
are hunting work. Thousands are
hunting for farms they may buy
with what little money they have
and can borrow.
Land Spectators
Land spectators are holding them
up! Owners of vast tracts of good
farming land are trying to protiteer
on land sales.
How much of the congressional
failure to act may be due to the land
spectators influence 1 don't know.
Anyhow, congress hasn't done a
thing except talk.
Secretary Lane did everything he
could to persuade congress to hurry.
He sent messages to congress. He
went before the house committee. He
did what few cabinet members do,
appeared at an informal meeting OF
the house and told all about the
project.
And this is what he asks:
Congress to appropriate 100000
600 with which start could be made
building roads, draining SWampS, get
cut-over timber lands; this work TIC
be done by discharged soldiers, fed
and housed near their work and paiC
current wages.
AS rapidly as each project is com.
pleted the soldiers who worked on il
could make their farm selections. the
government furnishing the money
for buildings and farm machinery
and Stationing an agricultural agent
near to help the soldier-farmers.
These farms are not to be given
the soldiers. They don't want char
ity. They will pay for the farms,
starting after they have gotten well
of years. Thus they would get fine
farms. in whatever section of the
country they wanted live in, at an
approximate cost of IS, 900 each. Lane
spectators charge twice and three
times that much now.
What Canada Did.
Canada and Australia already have
these farms-for-sold projects
launched. Their legislative bodies
didn't waste their time. Their sol
diers are already at work. 8
If the United States was to put as
much money into this project as
Australia has done, national wealth
considered, we would spend four bill
lion dollars.
Secretary Lane wants more than
$100,000.000 to start with, but he says
he is afraid to ask for more, ever
though he and congress know that 1t
will be returned with interest.
Against the project are land specu-
lators and some selfish farmers who
fear their land values may be re-
duced if thousands of new farms are
opened. and who fear that an increase
of food products will lower their
prices.