The Hardin tribune-herald. [volume] (Hardin, Mont.) 1925-1973, 1934-06-01
Would Place Each Destitute Dry
lander on an SO-Acre
Irrigated Tract.

County Planning board, Monday
evening, at which Stanley A. Yer
gey, chairman, presided and Miss
Marian Brekke, secretary, report
ed the proceedings, a committee,
comprising Chairman S. A. YER
gey, County Agent George w.
Gustafson and County Attorney
Chas. c. Quinn was appointed and
delegated the power to take such
action a. can be taken and neces-
sary for the rehabilitation of the
dryland farmers on the relief rolls
of this county.
The committee, after a thorough
discussion of conditions, drew up
the following letter, a copy of
which was mailed to Senator B.
K. Wheeler and j. E. Erickson and
Congressman R. E. Ayers at WASH
ington, and to Robert Clarkson,
state rural rehabilitation chair
man, and T. C. S%paulding, state
director of relief, at Helena.
The committee urges every one
interested to wire the senators
and representatives at Washing
ton urging action by congress be-
fore that body adjourns, about,
June IS. Following is the letter,
which is self-explanatory:
1.-THE present emergency relief
rolls of the county contain the
names of 81 heads of families now
living on dryland farms, who are
now being aided by either direct
or work relief.
1T is estimated by this commit
tee that these rolls will be very
greatly increased between now
and fall, due to the fact that the
long continued drouth, which has
existed in this county this spring
has practically wiped out n
hope for the dryland farmer. Most
OF these farmers possess some
livestock with no prospects for
any feed to carry this livestock
over the coming winter. In addi-
ton there is no hope that these
farmers can even support their
own families under present condi-
lions and that they necessarily
Will all be subjects of aid the
coming winter. Most of these
farmers have come to the conclu-
sion that dryland farming will
never be successful.
There are thousands of acres Of
some of the best irrigated land in
eastern Montana lying idle and
unoccupied, under what is known
as the Crow Indian irrigation sys-
tenn. In one district alone-the
Big Horn district-there are 29, 900
acres of land classed as irrigable
and $4,000 acres of land classed
as subject to being put under irri-
cation, and the records show in
recent years that there are only
approximately forty white users of
this water in this district.
"The records show that in the
entire six or eight districts of the
entire system in 1928 only 235 In
dams were users of water. 1t can
thus be readily seen that there is
plenty of land for the use of all.
This land in the Big Horn dis
trict and in the Two Leggins dis
trict is traversed by good graveled
farm-to-market roads and lands
in all the other districts are
equally connected with markets.
These lands can afford each OF
these destitute farmers, and many
more farmers likewise situated, a
decent and comfortable living, if
each of these farmers were given
a unit Of eighty acres on a basis
OF a ten-year lease at the usual
and customary rental demanded
for these lands by the Indian al
lotees and the Indian bureau.
1T is our plan that the neces-
sary buildings to afford these
farmers a start may be erected
| by relief labor, the materials for