White Bluffs spokesman. [volume] (White Bluffs, Wash.) 1907-1938, 1925-04-24
Land SETTLEMENT VIEWPOINT. OF DR.. J0NEz

it was a good proposition from a
: settlers viewpoint or not Therefore
at this point further colonization
!, work came to standstill with
about sixty tracts taken and forty
!, left vacant. Runors began to fly
: back and forth across the State that
the project was hopeless failure,
that it was poorly located, that the
power charges for the pumping OF
water were too high, and many such
rumors which caused the public to
begin to lose confidence. Mr.. Scott
thought at this time that if the wells
were dug on the unoccupied tracts,
machinery installed, houses built, the
land leveled and the tracts fenced,
thereby putting them into condition
for the settler to move right on, that
they would be taken up more quickly.
He did this on the remaining forty
vacant tracts at an expenditure of ap-
proximately $100,00C.00, this work
being done during the summer and
fall of last year. But the veterans
around the State had become fright
ened and no applications came in and
the tracts began to deteriorate thru
the action of the elements, as is al
ways the case on an unoccupied farm.
This lack of further settlement simply
caused an additional slump in public
confidence as to the ultimate success
Of the project.
So when The Department committee
met last December, Mr.. D. A. Scott
appeared before it and stated the
condition of affairs. The committee re-
allied that something must be done to
restore public confidence if the prof.
ect was to succeed, and suggested to
Mr.. Scott that he complete the settle
ment of the project at once with civil
ians, as he stated that he thought this
would be an easy matter. The COM
mittee figured that if the project was
once entirely settled the rumors would
stop and public confidence be restor-
ed, and in this way the veterans al
ready there would have their interests
protected, the committee feeling that
the most dangerous element to ulti-
mate success of the project was a
lack of public confidence.
But the civilians did not apply in
any large numbers and only three
took tracts. And when the 1925 legis-
latrre convened in January there
was much speculation as to what
should be done. Some of the legisla-
tors contended that the project was
failure and should be abandoned;
others felt that it could be made al
success if given an opportunity under
different management; but all felt
that the State should make "a
thorough impartial Investigation of
the project by committee, capable
through experience in irrigation farm
ing and business methods, and this
committee should report to the special
session of the legislature which is to
be called in November. After several
meetings of the appropriation COM
mittees of the House and Senate
with representatives 81 the American
Legion and settlers on the project,
the legislature appropriated $50,4o0. 90
to pay bills that had been contracted
against the project in the work of
leveling and fencing tracts. and for
the continuation of the project until
the November session of the legisia-
ture.
This is the present condition of af-
fairs. Rumors are Still making their
rounds and undoubtedly will continue
to do so until there is thorough in
vestigation made and the reports of
the committee published, which should
be done at once. And I feel that Mr..
Erie Barnes, recently appointed to
succeed Mr. Scott as Director of the
Department of Conservation and De-
velopment, will do this, as he is thor
oughly familiar with that section of
the country and with the project it.
self, having been reclamation farmer
and dealer in lands in the Priest Rap
ids and Yakima Valleys for number
of years.
While Department Commander last
year I of course felt vitality interested
in the success of the project, and,
due to the many differences of opinion
and complaints among the settlers,
spent a great deal of time endeavor-
ing to settle in my own mind the
questions of whether the project WIS
to BE- success, what was wrong with
it if ANYTHING, and if it was good
proposition to advise veteran to I'M
dertake the cultivation of one of the
tracts. During the year I made three
visits to the project accompanied by
the Land Settlement Committee of
last year, consisting of E. K. Brown,
Ellensburg, chairman; Fred Ins:ng-
err Tacoma. and Law Morrison, Ton