Evening star., 1934-03-01
The New Relief Plan.

The administration new relief
plan, announced by the President yes
terday, Is as sketchy as to detail as
1t is broad in its general conception
Of the intricate problem of aiding the
unemployed. This is, of course. natu-
raj. The new plan will probably not
be applied in full before next Fall,
and there is a tremendous task in
store for those who will be charged
with carrying it into effect. They
must feel their way along. The new
plan is to be substituted gradually
for the C. w. A.. as the latter is dis
banded. But the substitution is ap-
parently not being sought so much
to lessen the drain on Federal funds.
1t is projected now because the
c. w. A. has demonstrated its inabil-
tty to deal adequately with the un-
employment problem as whole
The new plan, the White House
statement explains, is to face the un-
employment problem on three fronts.
These concern, first, the distressed
families in rural areas; second, the
stranded populations some of
the coal mining communities, where
the single industry supporting them
has folded up, and, third, the un-
employed in large cities.
In dealing with the rural families
the President explains that the at
tempt will be along the lines of re-
habilitation and development of their
means of self-support, rather than
furnishing emergency doles. The
stranded populations" will be shifted,
as far as possible, to new areas, where
q means of livelihood will be de-
veloped for them with Federal aid.
The unemployed in cities are ap-
parently to be aided by continual
ton, but in modified form, of the
G. w. A. plan of work relief, but
only one member of family will
receive such aid, and an individual
can expect help for only six months.
The work to be given the city un-
employed is the sort that would not
normally be undertaken by public
hNIioc h11t r-bi OF
time outside of the field of private
industry"
In Washington, as in other urban
communities, this last form of relief
will be of most immediate interest
and Importance. Because there are
no generally known precedents for
the form of relief planned for the
distressed families in rural commu-
mites, or for the so-called stranded
populations" the method of aiding
them will be largely experimental and
the progress of such experiments will
be along new paths. But in the cities
the c. w. A. system has already man
Nested its weaknesses and its fall
ures, and they are apparent to most
observers. One great difnQllty has
been in choosing the sort Of work
that would not normally be under
taken by public bodies, but which are
at the same time outside Of the field
Of private industry" When one elm
mates these two sources of work
there Is not much Of q really useful
character left. That explains why
some Of the c. w. A. projects have
been ridiculed as accomplishing moth
ing of benefit outside the provision
Of a weekly wage for the workers.
Here In Washington there are many
really useful and essential public i'm
provements that are being delayed
while G. w. A. manpower Is utilized
on luxuries that are not urgently
needed. This produces the anomaly
OF Budget Bureau disapproval Of
essentials because they are not in &C
cord with the economy program, while
non essentials are adopted as work
projects. There should be some way
Of combining the real need of public
improvements with the real demand
for work by the unemployed and pro-
ducing substantial benefits. That. it
Is to be hoped, will be one Of the fea-
lures Of the new relief plan for the
unemployed Of the cities.