Evening star., 1934-10-11
j. S. TERRITORIES
| WELFARE SOUGHT
Chapman, in Radio Forum,
Tells of Plans to Make
Them Self Supporting.

and island possessions ana leave
them wholly self-supporting. accord
ing to Oscar Chapman, Assistant
Secretary of the Interior.
The little cabinet" offlcer out
lined these plans last night in an
address in the National Radio Forum.
arranged by The Washington Star
and broadcast over a coast-to-coast
network of the National Broadcasting
Co. The speech was heard locally
from WRC.
Singing out the Virgin Islands as
the most striking Illustration, Chap
man said President Roosevelt intends
to discover new methods and new
resources.
Would End Deficit.
Rehabilitation of agriculture and
industry and bid for increased tour
list traffic. Chapman asserted, should
eliminate in a few years the deficit
for island expenses that in the past
has taken about $250,000 annually
from the Federal Treasury. He out
lined rehabilitation work already ac-
complished in the islands through
projects of the Public Works Ad
ministration.
Turning to a discussion of Puerto
Rico, Chapman said:
1T is the Administrations desire
to shift the Puerto RicanS from the
ravageS of seasonal and meagerly paid
employment in the cane fields to all
year-round employment through dl-
versifcation of crops and the intro
duction of industry.
1T is the purpose to transform them
# possible from hopeless share CROP
pers whose share has been growing
steadily less into individual land and
home owners. Subsistence home
steads and hurricane proof, hygienic
dwellings of concrete are an integral
part of the program"
HOmesteads in Alaska.
Although similar acute problems are
lacking in Alaska and Hawaii, Chap
man continued, the administration is
no less concerned about their welfare
With about one inhabitant to every 10
square miles, Alaska presents the con-
verse Of Puerto RicO'S major problem
OF overpopulation, he asserted.
Chapman also indicated that the
administration might work out plan
to increase the density of the Alaskan
population with homesteaders from the
States.
Full Text Of Address.
The text of MIR. Chapmans speech
follows:
The Department of the Interior is
also Department of the Exterior. By
an executive order of President RooSe-
velt of last May 29, administrative
- jurisdiction over the four chief terri
tories of the United States lying out
side of the continental area of the
48 States, was vested in the depart
ment headed by Secretary Harold L.
Ickes. of which 1 have the honor to
be Assistant Secretary. A new di-
vision-the Division of Territories and
Island Possessions-was created for
the purpose of consolidating the af-
fairs of these far-hung domains. Its
first Extraordinarily appointed-is
Ernest Gruening.
The four territories in question,
Alaska, Hawaii the Virgin Islands
and Puerto Rico, occupy territory
of approximately 600, 1000 square miles.
They extend from the cold, clear white
reaches of the Arctic Circle, realm Of
the midnight sun and of the aurora
borealis, into the eternal warmth,
golden sunshine and fertility of the
tropics. In these territories dwell a
million and three-quarter American
citizens.
Alaska. territorially greatest of
these, now presided over by Gov. John
w. Troy, was purchased in 1857 from
Russia for the sum of 1920, 900. In
its earlier days under our nag. it was
successfully administered by the State,
War, Treasury and Navy Departments,
until in 1884, 1t was transferred to the
Department of the Interior. From
that time until the creation of this
new Division of Territories and Island
Possessions, with which we are par
ticularly concerned this evening, Alas
kan affairs were handled through the
chief clerk OF the department. 1t Is
startling but little appreciated fact,
revelatory of the vaStneSS OF this
northernmost American territory, that
when a map of Alaska is Superimposed
upon that of Continental United
States it touches the Atlantic and
Pacific Oceans to the East and West,
and the Canadian and Mexican boun-
daries to the North and South.
Islands Of Hawaii.
The territory of Hawaii, presided
over by Gov. Joseph Boyd Poindexter,
consists of eight major islands and
several hundred lesser ones. These
were formally annexed to the United
States in 1898, some four years after
group Of descendants Of New England
settlers had overthrown the island s
royal dynasty and set up republican
form of government HawaifS affairs
in the department up to the present
were handled similarly to those OF
Alaska. =,
The Virgin Islands. consisting OF the
three islands of st. Thomas, st. John
and st. Croix, were acquired by pur-
chase from Denmark for 5000, 600
in l917, for what at the time were
deemed good reasons of military
strategy. They were under the Juris-
diction Of the Navy Department until
1881, when they were transferred TO
the Department Of the Interior. Fney
represent the "farthest east OF
United States territory. Iher gov
aernor is Paul M. Pearson.
Finally, Puerto Rico, smallest OF tne
Greater Antilles, annexed TO the
United States by the treaty OF Paris
following the war with Spain in 1893,
was transferred to the jurisdiction OF
the new division by the same presi-
Dental executive order of last May
which created it. Puerto RICO
governor is Blanton Winship.
Thus, for the first time, practically
all the important overseas territories
of the United States have been con-
solidated under one directing head
and in one department Of the Federal
Government.
The purpose of this recent eonsoh-
dation is more effectively to foster the
welfare of the American citizens OF
these territories. Because OF their ter
ritorfal status, their inhabitants have
not had representation in the Congress
equal and corresponding to that OF
y