Plentywood herald. [volume] (Plentywood, Mont.) 1908-current, 1937-07-22
COURT HOUSE PROJECT GIVEN APPROVAL
GETTING DOWN TO
"BKASS TACKS"

M. L. Wilson, first assistant secre-
tary of agriculture, has a plan by
which farmers in drouth-stricken
areas can be put to work, and, he
believes. affords the only hopeful
outlook for work projects in rural
districts.
Upon occasion of his visit to Plen-
tywood Friday, Mr.. Wilson, In a spe-
cial interview granted the publisher
of the Herald, carefully explained
the details of his suggestion. Stating
that he had found conditions in
northeastern Montana and north
western North Dakota "even worse
than l had expected" he said the
heads of the department Of agricul-
ture at Washington was In fullest
sympathy with existing conditions In
this section.
~ = =
The only solution, however-aha
the man who occupies a position
second only to Secretary Wallace
himself was very emphatic in this
conclusion-in being ablee to instit-
ute work projects for farmers is
through organization Of soil conser-
walton districts.
Wilson explained that the billion
and a half relief bill which had been
passed by Congress would scarcely
be sufficient to take care of the ac-
tual relief needs throughout the ma
ton, without giving any c%onsidera-
ton to the emergency which exists
in this and other segregated drouth
areas. and which had never been
contemplated when the general re-
lief appropriation bill was passed.
You can assure your people," he
explained, that there is a very de-
cided national consciousness of their
needs so far as both the President
and the department of agriculture is
concerned. But" he added, Sin
view of the fact that the relief bill
in the first place was very conserv-
alive, intended only to take care of
relief rehabilitation, it is going to be
very difficult to get any appreciable
amount from that appropriation for
drouth sufferers-an emergency not
even considered at the time the bill
was under discussion"
The secretary said it might be
surprising to people of the west Che
Is a Montanan, and feels this very
keenly) how hard it is to get Con-
2ressmen of eastern states to even
listen to solicitations for aid to "the
great plains states"
When you talk to them" he
said, "they point to the millions of
dollars in seed loans that remain un-
paid, the repeated crop failures, and
tell us it is only like pouring money
down a rathole'."
Then, he said, few people of other
sections realize there is any drouth.
Due to press reports that have re-
peatedly told how the "drouth is
broken" Of restoring rains "dren-
ching the dustbowl," and have pre-
dicted enormous wheat yields"
people even as nearby as Minneso-
ia, he said, cannot believe there is
an area where drouth has destroyed
every semblance of prospect for a
crop or even feed for the compar-
atively few remaining herds of live
stock on farms.
There has been some talk of a
appropriation in Washing
ton" Wilson said, but added that, in
view of the adverse attitude of men,
bers Of Congress it would be very
doubtful this could be gotten
through.
So far as work projects on farms
concerned, under the present
the secretary plainly stated
these were simply impossible. All
projects under WPA must be on
property. and there is simply
possibility, he said, of getting
anq kind OF a work program for the
on privately owned land.
There Is a way this can be done,
however, he told us. And then he ex-
the working Of the soil con-
servation districts. Unfortunately"
said Mr.. Wilson, 1.-THE Montana leg
did not see fit to pass the
soil conservation district law as the
department of agriculture had out
it, and as many other states
did, but there still Is opportunity to
at least take some advantage of
we were aiming at"
This now makes it possible, he
said, for farmers in any area to or
ganize soil conservation districts I'M
der the provisions of that law and
In that way obtain direct a%ppropri-
for work projects from the
already allotted to the de-
partment of agriculture for that