The Hardin tribune-herald. [volume] (Hardin, Mont.) 1925-1973, 1934-08-24

Is far more important than any ques-
don Of maintaining q channel In the
river. Obviously also. they point out,
the second purpose for which the prof
ect was planned-food control-would
be served just as effectively by d.
iverting the project to irrigation.
Farms Come First
Water impounded behind a big dam
for the purpose Of preventing a food
on the lower river a be used In
either way, they say. 1t can be re:
leased. as originally intended, at times
when the water level down stream Is
low. OF It can be distributed on arid
Land. The flood control function would
be served In either event. It is Just
a question Of whether the water would
be more valuable-used for irrigation
than II used for keeping the channel !.
navigable.
When the President realized this, he
decided quickly, his friends here say,
that the drouth aspect was far more {
important than the transportation diff
Guilty. 4
For one thing, they assert, the drouth
situation is new, and very menacing,
whereas the transportation problem
would merely be adding something to
transportation facilities already ade-
quate.
There Is very real fear on the part
Of many observers of the present
drouth situation that this year may
not e the end of 1t. The rainfall
in the. whole affected area has been
subnormal for ten years. Maybe the
curve will start swinging upward next
year. But maybe not. No one knows.
If the winds which formerly brought
rain to this region by way of the
Mackenzie river valley, and which
this year were diverted eastward,
down the Hudson Bay route, should
continue to blow that way next year
there is nothing that can be done
about it.
This Is the real explanation Of Presi-
dent Roosevelt's dream of the huge
forest belt so much discussed. He
wants some plan which would prevent
the northern Middle West from being
turned into q desert If it should de-
velop that a change in the wind cur-
rents points in that direction. -.
At any rate, If the upper Missouri
valley should become permanently
more arid than it has been, there
would be no particular use for a
navigable waterway up the Missouri.
Duce Does Not Want War
The most amazing thing about the
alleged threatening war clouds in Eu-
rope, from an inspection of which the
writer has just returned, is that Mus
solini is ever more firmly in the saddle
than at any time since his amazing
rise tospower, and that apparently the
duce does not wish a war at this mo-
ment.
So despite all the bad news from
Vienna, following on the heels Of the
bad news from Berlin, the strong prob
ability is that there will be no wal for
some little time to come.
Instead of provoking q war, the as
s%assination Of Dollfuss actually drove
the two most bitter enemies in Eu-
rope-Italy and France-into each
others arms. Each raj equally deter
mined that Germany should not alb
sorb Austria. It is the first time that
Italy and France have had q common
objective for twenty years or more,
leaving out Of the picture the agree
ment which brought Italy into the
World war on the side of the Allies.
But let no n think that the tenn
porary agreement Of Italy and France
means the beginning Of a beautiful
friendship. The feeling is still there.
1t is still nourished by a controlled
press in Italy especially and it Is apt
to provoke the next var
Italy still feels that she was badly
cheated at the council table at Yer
sailles. She thinks she got nothing
like her just deserts. She believes
France got the lions share.
The most encouraging feature is
that no other nation agrees with Italy
in this Interpretation. All her neigh.
bors to the east think she got far
more than she deserved.
British Fleet Ready
Nothing was printed about It in the
newspapers in Europe, but Britain
managed to get quite a feet together
in Greek waters, with q general holi-
day cruise idea, during the troubles
in Austria. The big airplane carrier
Furious, with ten d~estroyers, cast an
Choir in Corfu, the northernmost Greek
rrRk f~l~hk n4.oco Ah@ ka- 49,