The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1936-01-09

76 Inches annually, and to electrify
Industries and homes in the interior.
Private power companies, including
two owned by foreign concerns, now
furnish power in some of the cities and
their surrounding areas, but the gov
eminent claims to have no intention
of competing with these in any way.
There are also several localities in
which power is now supplied by plants
owned and operated by the insular
government.
Fight Cattle Tick.
A project with the double purpose
of protecting Puerto Rican minor in
dustries and furnishing employment
will be the campaign to Danish the
cattle tick and the coconut budrot
This will get 100000.
Three projects combined aim at the
readjustment of Puerto Rico's principal
industry, sugar. The Jones' Costigan
act required a cut of 10000 tons in
the islands production of sugar. This
made the unemployment problem even
worse than it should have been. 1t
bbvatsad tbs e neeessy Ct Ct ndng g
other use for $1,000 acres of mar
ginal sugar land. The PRRA intends
to turn this land into demonstrating
and crop Investigation projects
Hammers will soon ring in the con-
struction of homes, schools and COM
munity buildings. The farmers now
in the city will he moved out onto
these lands and given opportunity to
become owners of the little farms
upon which they settle. The project
will cost nearly $6.0OO,0OO
Supplementing this project are two
others, that of rural resettlement on
marginal sugar lands (S1,S6S,OOO), and
that of resettlement ON good sugar
lands (S6,500,00O). The projects have
as one of their goals the cooperative
ownership Of processing plants and
systems of marketing. Eventually it
is hoped by this means to diminish the
amount of productive and profitable
land held by corporations in far-re-
moved localities and build up the
security of the Independent farmer
Nor is the ailing coffee-growing in
dustry to be left out in the cold. In
fact, coffee, along with tobacco and
citrus fruit farms, will receive a
larger allotment of funds than any
other of the projects, a total of almost
$S,OOO,0O0. Hurricanes and falling
prices have put these farmers into a
sorry state. This part of the rehabili-
tation scheme is intended to acquire
and redistribute thousands of small
parcels of land. which are now strug-
CLING under an unwieldy burden Of
debt, at one-half the appraised value.
Will Buy Processing Plants.
Under still another project, the
PRRA will seek to buy equipment for
the processing and preservation of
farm and community products. Such
equipment would include sugar GEN.
trails, coffee mills, warehouses and cold
storage plants. The estimated cost of
the venture is S4,OO0,OOO.
Amid all this bread-and-butter talk,
culture will not be overlooked by the
benefcent PRRA. It's program calls
for grant of approximately ST ,2OO,-
900 to the University of Puerto Rico, a
first rate cO-educational institution
founded more than 30 years ago in Rio
Piedras. Originally intended as
normal school. this seat Of learning
now embraces colleges of liberal arts.
law, agriculture and the mechanic arts,
pharmacy and the university high
school. 1t is known for its fine work
In tropical medicine, tropical agricu..
ture and Spanish and English Ian
guages. Graduated from its classes
are many Of the leaders of island life
and. in fact, many prominent persons
throughout Spanish America.
The PRRA administration wishes TO
attain permanent status. but so far
has not been able to secure the neces-
sary approval from Washington. Or
dinarily the FERA funds are endorsed
only up to June. 1897, but during the
last session of congress bill was in
troduced by which the funds of PRRA
might be extended three years past
that date. 1t didn't pass.
g Western Newspaper Union.