Evening star., 1936-10-12

great program waste and eXtrava-
gance. for they are the same lead
ers who, when their ovn State or
city or county was involved, were
the first to run to Washington
pleading for Federal aid. Consist
ency is word that cannot be
found in the Republican campaign
vocabulary and at that inconsist-
ency is q mild term to apply TO it.
Take the effective example Of
livestock. If We had had more
irrigation, more reservoirs in the
past. fewer cattle and sheep would
have been threatened with starva-
tion on the range during the
drought years.
Lack of foresight on the part of
former administrations compelled
us to buy up sheep and cattle which
otherwise would have died in their
tracks from lack of food and water.
This administration is proud that
1t spent money to buy cattle and
sheep in those days.
Republican leaders tell us that
this. too, was q policy of waste.
Who benefited? The stockman
who found market and was liter
ally saved from bankruptcy, the
banker who held the mortgage on
the stock, the merchant with whom
the stockman and the banker dealt,
the packer who processed the
meat, but above all, those who
benefited most were the unfortu-
nate men and women and children
on the relief rolls-hundreds of
thousands of families all over the
country-to whom the meat was
distributed. Even the hides Of
those animals we're saved. I cali
that work program and cattle buy
ing program an investment to pre-
serve America-the whole of Amer
can national life. Do you call 1t
wasted?
Much talk is heard about imports
hurting the cattle industry. The
truth is that cattle imports have
always been small and always will
be small as long as We have good
range in the West and maintain
our soil fertility in the corn belt.
Cattle imports were largest when
prices we're best. as in 1929. Cat
tie imports were smallest when
prices were lowest, as in early 1888.
The income to cattlemen in the
first six months of 1888. when
Canadian imports were less than
500 head, was less than one-half
of what it was in the first six
months of 1896, when Canadian
imports were larger. but still were
only trickle compared to domes-
tic production.
It has been q part of our pro-
gram from the very beginning to
conserve the water reservoirs Of the
country so that the beds Of the riv-
ers of all the important water
sheds of America will work for the
people of all the States through
which they run.
Fort Peck Dam
Portion of Dream.
Way back in the Summer of
1884, dedicating the Fort Peck
Dam in Montana, I said: People
talk about the Fort Peck Dam as
the fulfillment of dream. Why,
it is only a small portion of a
dream. The dream itself covers
all the important watersheds of
the States and one Of those water
sheds was that We call the water
shed Of the Missouri River, not only
the main stem of the Missouri, but
countless tributaries that run into
1t and countless of the tributaries
that run into those tributaries. Be-
fore man-before American men
and women get through with the
job. we are going to make every
ounce and every gallon of water
that flows from the heavens and
hills count before it makes its way
down to the Gulf of Mexico.
3 I want to see that day come
soon. 1t will help each and every
State which lies between here and
the Mississippi River. The work
which we have already put under
way to realize that dream Is but
q forerunner Of what we hope to
do in the days to come.
There are other great resources
Of this Western country, the de-
velopment of which we undertook
Is an important and necessary part
Of the rounded objective. Take
beet sugar for an example. I do
not have to recite the record Of
steadily declining income In that
industry before March, 1888. World
production of sugar had expanded
at such q rate that there was more
sugar than the world could possibly
consume. What we tried to do,
and what we succeeded in doing,
was to adjust the supply Of sugar
so that q farmer who raises 1t gets
more adequate return. And you,
the raisers of sugar beets, ! con-
gratulate on q substantial reduc-
tion in the employment Of hired
children In the. fields. In this word
Of thanks know am joined by
the fathers and mothers Of Amer
lea.
Take q final example-in these
great mountain chains which ex-
tend from our northern to our
southern border, exists . store
house Of enormous wealth, Its ult.
mate yield - yet unguessed.
The revival Of industry, Of farm.