Evening star., 1940-03-03
Wallace Paints
Dismal Picture Of
CoIored Man in South
Close to Starvation,
He Tells Howard U.
Students and Alumni

hailing the seventy-third year Of
Negro advancement in the field OF
education at Howard University,
Secretary of Agriculture Wallace
last night painted . dismal picture
OF the colored mans present eco
nomic position in the Southern
States.
He said there are now fewer acres
under cultivation in the South than
there were in days of slavery, 1860
and "the average acre in far less
productive today"
UNFORTUNATELY this reduced acre
age and poorer soil have to sup
port twice as many families as In
1880" Secretary Wallace declared.
This situation is made worse by
mechanization and urban unem-
ployment. The dilema Is Of para
mount Importance to the Negro
race, because almost half the Amer
ican Negroes are Southern farmers.
and most of them are tenants and
sharecroppers in the lowest income
group.
Close to Starvation.
Much of the South is close to
starvation" the Secretary summed
IT,. Economically, this means that
much of the South is closed to the
American products for which we
are trying to find markets.
mo foreign dictatorship has
raised a higher barrier against
American goods than we have built
ourselves around much of our own
population"
Secretary Wallace spoke to hun
dreds of students and graduates
who packed Howard University's
gaily decorated gymnasium on the
73d anniversary of the institutions
founding. "A Nationwide radio
hookup carried the message to some
10000 alumni over the country, many
Of whom were gathered for similar
charter day dinners.
President Mordecai w. johnson
made a few remarks at the ban
quet: the University Glee Club pre-
sented program, and prominent
representatives of various graduate
classes delivered greetings. Earlier
IN the day H. S. Howard, son of
the university's founder, Gen. o. o.
Howard, spoke in reminiscence of
his father.
Discovered Path in Wilderness.
Secretary Wallace suggested that
the New Deal has discovered for the
colored Southern farmer "a path in
the wilderness that may lead out"
The Farm Security Administra-
ton, through rehabilitation loans,
Is doing the big job," he said. The
Government, under this program.
attempts to deal with the problems
OF each family, one by one. Thou
sands once on relief or close to it
are becoming self supporting and
independent.
sometimes they needed q plow.
harrow. a mule or a COW. In other
cases they needed a better kind
OF lease, or relief from debt. Ex-
cept for cost Of supervision this
plan Is almost self -liquidatinR-
families are not only getting back
on their feet, they are paying back
more than 80 per cent of their,
loans"
Stiu Have Surplus Families.
Mr.. Wallace added he was proud
to find that many of the families
that have made the most progress
under these programs are Negro
families. They have shown that.
given a chance. they will do their
part"
But the Southern colored farmer
Is not "out of the woods" Secretary
wallace warned. 1--WE still have the
surplus families on our hands"
He suggested that the answer for
them might be program of sub
sistence farming, accompanied by a
rural works program. Further, the
Secretary recalled that best esti-
mates" indicate that the South's
farmers need a million new homes.
"ConStruction of a million new
homes would Of itself do much to
cure the South's troubles" he de-
clared. "It would provide employ
ment for thousands of men,"