Coulee City dispatch. [volume] (Coulee City, Wash.) 19??-19??, 1936-01-02
LAND USE ARTICLE NO. |

Land-the raw material of farm
forest and range-one of our mai
or sources of wealth. Hundreds OF
thousands of rural families are
now enduring a popeTty inconsis-
tent witr American standards Of
living largely because of failure
to use the land to it's best advan-
tage.
In areas such as denuded timber
regions of Washington, Idaho and
Oregon, where conditions of living
are particularly severe, one
reason for the present poverty is
to be found in the history Of land
use. The forests which formerly
provided the chief income for the
people of these areas, was cut off
without any care for the future
production of trees. The land is son
the whole too steep for. farming,
and cultivation merely aggravates
the problem by encouraging the
erosion of the fertile soil. The mar
row creek bottom and meagre
bench lands fail to supply enough
tillable land for successful farms.
With both the forest and top
soil destroyed, the people have be-
come econimically stranded" and
their standard of living has stead
lily declined. Housing is very poor.
consisting often of dilapidated,
leaky cabins which give incuffi-
Glen shelter, and enforce unhealthy
crowding. The food supply is so
limited that children suffer from
malnutrition. and easily farr prey
to disease. Education is necessarily
limited.
Socitey must decide whether
these conditions can be aolerated.
1t is especially important when we
realize that the poverty of the rur
VI slums means the dependence OF
large numbers of families upon
public charity and relief. Our OBJ
ective must not only be to restore
to these people chance to attain
an American standard of living,
but to make them once more cor
sumers and producers of economic
goods.
The Resettlement Administra-
ton is buying up tracts of land In
various problem areas in Washing
ton, Idaho and Oregon to help re-
store the natural forest Or grass
resources which, if properly cared
for, can again provide employment
TO local people. At the same time.
this work will put a stop to the
needless destruction Of soil fertil-
lily. which, If permitted to contin-
ue, would make the rehabilitation
of the people even more difficult
and costly.
Families who cannot be employ
forest work will be helped to
move out of the hills to fertile val
ley lands where they can become
self-supporting
A similar conversions of the
land to better uses is being under
aiken in other areas such as the
aldold forest regions of the Great
Lakes, Pacific Northwest. western
ploins, and deep south. Land that
is not fertile enough for farming
can be almost always utilized for
some other purpose, lake forestry
or recreation, or arazing.
The extent Of this work, and the
long time necessary to restore the
land, place it beyond the sphere Of
private enterprise. Governmental
action is essential unless thousands
Of families are o be abandoned to
permanent poverty, and great a.
reas of land relegated to ruin.
Editors Note The old frontiers
are gone. There are no longer
vast areas of new land on which
growing nation can settle and ex-
pand 1t is now up to us to con-
serve and depelop wisely the Lam
which we have. How this can be
done is described by l.. G. GRAY.
les of three articles, of which this
is the first.