White Bluffs spokesman. [volume] (White Bluffs, Wash.) 1907-1938, 1925-08-21
LEGION CONVENTION
REJECTS PURDIN PLAN

Unbiased persons who have been
following the controversy between
the state and the settlers on the state
land settlement project here were
J not surprised when the American Lee
gion at its convention at Port Angel.
es last week turned down the sc
called "Purdip Plan" of settlement
conceived by some of the more rad.
ical among the settlers and sold" tc
the others on the plea that if they
asked for lot they might get little
The "Purdin Plan" presented by C.
H. Wooten, a land settler and one Of
the delegates from this Post, was re.
jected by the convention and another
plan of settlement proposed by Lloyd
Hill, outgoing state commander of the
Legion, was adopted. This plan pro-
vides for the selection of one man by
the~sGcvernor, one by the American
! Legion and these two to select third
man who shall be pioneer of the
Priest Rapids Valley, to compose a
committee who are to make a study
of each individual case and to recon-
mend to the legislature as they deem
just between the state and the
settler.
Wooten took the floor during the
closing hours of the convention Sat-
urday afternoon and in his character
istic style, according to the newspaper
accounts, hurled charges of "perpet-
ration of deliberate swindle by the
Department of State" "misrepresen-
tation of improvement costs and irri-
CATION expense by the state and other
interested parties" and "excoriated
members of the Legion who had been
instrumental in obtaining department
support to the project"
Fred M. We'll, E. K. Brown, Ste
phen Chadwick, DR.. Hinton Jonez
and others replied to MI Wooten.
All Of these men said they were ready,
anxious and willing to give their active
support in any effort of the settlers
to secure equitable adjustments with
the state in cases where adjustments
were coming, but that they did not
believe in the state organization of
the Legion being used as club to
sand bag the state into giving some
nothing or to assist in any plan that
was not fair and just to the public.
Since the closing of the land office
here few months ago, many of the
settle.E on the project have been fol-
lowing bad leadership, leadership that
in the end can only get them in bad
with everyone. By their actions dur
ing the past month or SO they have
brought about strained relations be-
tween themselves and their fellow
legionnaires, are challenging the conf
donce and friendship of all of the old
sr settlers and, if they persist in such
i'll conceived schemes as the Purdin
Plan of Settlement they will lose the
support of the American Legion. 1t
s not too late to change their leader
ship. Most of the boys on the project
are young and in ten years more will
look at the world through more ex-
7erienced eyes. To their credit it
should be said that not many Of them
Fundamentally endorsed the Purdin
Plan.
Everybody, old settlers. leoionnaires
the state organization Of the Ameri-
can Legion and state officials are an
xious to see that the settlers get
square deal. Mistakes have no doubt
been made and where adjustments
ar coming they should be made and
no doubt will be made if thew are
sanely presented to the right officials.
But the sandbagging method belongs
to the past and if the settlers are to
receive the assistance they should have
their claims will have to be presented
70 +te legislature in an intelligent,
Sepcih1e uyav