Evening star., 1941-04-03
100000 Migrants
Handicap Defense,
Committee Declares
Congress Is Asked
To Adopt Program
TO Meet Problem
By BLAIR BOLLES.

search of jobs at defense industry
centers and military communities
constitutes a grave potential handi-
cap to the development of the pre-
paredneSS program, Congress was
told today by the special House COM
mittee investigating the interstate
migration of destitute citizens.
The committee, estimating that
two or three migrants exist for every
Job available, urged that Congress
take immediate steps on a proposed
legislative program aimed at pro-
tecting the country from the serious
problems which the defenSe-born
migrancy threatens. The committee,
declaring the problem was the direct
concern of Congress, suggested that
three points be covered:
l. Enactment of measures to fore
stall as far as possible, unnecessary
changes of location by large groups
of people who are potential mi
grants.
2. Enactment of measures to all
leviate the condition of migrants
now on the road.
8. Enactment of measures de-
signed to assist these migrant people
to secure a new start or at least to
stop their wanderings.
Committee Gets Years Extension.
The committee, whose chairman
is Representative Tolan, Democrat,
of California, was given another
year of life by the House Mon
day and a new title, Special House
Committee to Investigate Defense
Migration. The House is expected
to assign the new committee $25 900
as starter for the years work.
The original committee was born
April %, 1910, and held hearings
in Washington, New York, Mont
gomery, Ala; Chicago; Lincoln,
Nebr.; Oklahoma City, San Fran
cisco and Los Angeles.
The migration, stirred during the
last 10 months by the Inauguration
of the preparedness program, will
vet be vastly increased in volume,
according to present signs, the COM
mittee predicted. In many in
stances, the committees field ad-
visers have reported, the migrants
wander haphazardly to the points
where Jobs are not available while
they pass by unknowingly places
where they could find work.
The migrants bring with them to
new communities social problems
relating to housing, public health
and recreation, the committee re-
ported, which in some instances are
serious enough to interfere with
the industrial economy Of the CEN
ters where they congregate, CEN
ters devoted nov to the advance OF
the factory aspect of the defense
program.
Some Urban-t to- Rural Flow.
On the question of misguided de-
fense-born migration the commit
tee stated:
.Rumors, advertising or scouts
are causing uncontrolled and fire.
ouently misguided migration to de-
fense centers. A certain
amount of urban-to-rural migra-
ton is occurring in connection with
the construction of Army camps,
rural powder plants and arsenals.
To such construction work have also
come tens of thousands OF rural
lob seekers. Unskilled, they are
in many instances unable to get a
iob. For small rural communities
these migrants are an immediate
problem. Housing, sanitation, police
force, school System-communlty
facilities in general-are made
quate."
Official attempts to anticipate the
social problems born of the defense
industrial boom are inadequate, the
committee reports. 1t declares with
regard to one major problem:
THE amount of public housing
approved in no way measures the
scope of the defense migration"
Action at Source Urged.
The Federal Government would
save much money now spent on
relief if it had some power to deal
with migration at its source, the
committee said 1t reported:
"The committee has observed
that if many of these (migrant)
families and individuals had been
able to secure assistance when they
first needed it the cost to public
agencies and especially to the Fed
eral Government would nave oeeh
much less in the long run.
Instead, these people find them
selves unable to stop moving In
search of work until they have eX-
hausted all their resources, not only
of personal belongings, means OF
transportation and the tools OF their
trade, but often of physical capacity
to provide for themselves"
The hapless migrants, most OF
them on the road in search of new
pastures through no fault of their
own. but on account of the forces
of economics, in the committee
opinion, lose in their migratlons
MANY of their constitutional rights
as citizens of the Republic. The
committee told Congress:
Whereas the founding fathers
had learned before 1889 that a free
flow of commerce between the States
was an indispensable element In tne
founding of the Federal Union, the
48 States are engaged in erecting
new and higher barriers against the
interstate flow of the American
people.
Reliefers Afraid to Move.
"These barriers are intended to
protect each State from assuming
the burden of supporting that vary
ing proportion of moving people who
may need public assistance. The
construction of these barriers actual
" works to foster the situation it is
intended to correct. Persons with
initiative who through circumstances
beyond their own control have fallen
on relief in one State are afraid to
leave such assistance in search of
employment elsewhere for fear of
losing their settlement rights"
The report said many of the mi
grants find when they return to
their original homes that by their
absence they have lost their legal
settlement" with its privileges in