Imperial Valley press., 1941-06-24

WASHINGTON. June "a - The
Farm Security Administration of
YOUR government, whose function 1t
is to get folks to go back to the
farm. is now having some ne"
troubles trying to keep them there.
FSA, you'll recall, is the OUTFIT
which started out in life as Rex
Tugwell's Resettlement Administra-
ton to build TugweiitoWns here
and there. was reorganized into the
Department of Agriculture in 1896
and had its name changed in 1887
to bury its past and start all over
again.
It's the defense program, OF
course. which is upSetting the even
tenor of FSA ways. Let a defense
project get started and what hap
pens? The poorer farmers who have
bad tough shedding, hear the call OF
those five -dollars-a day TO be
made on government jobs They
simply pick up and leave home
ANYTHING looks better to them than
facing the unexpired portion OF a
40-vear mortgage on little land
which may give security but never
wealth.
So they chase the pot of gold TO
the rainbow's end, ana when they
get thereto scramble a couple OF
metaphors-th cupboard is bare
as it always is.
What happened at Fort Bragg
near Fayetteville, N. c., is an eX-
ample. The farmers sWarmed IN.
Some of the first who could get
by as carpenters got jobs. The
rnskilled rest had to trek BACK
lone. When the construction job
was over, even the early comerS
were Gown on their luck and had
t. traipse back to their patch of
land.
HOLD THOSE ACRES
That situation woke up the Farm
Security people as to what was go
lIlS OIl anu olIICt tileii my i's''
been doing a good bit Of missionary
work among their 100000 or more
client farm families. The gist OF
the FSA argument to their people
, is this:
Some day this defense boom is
Going to be all over. When it is, the
bottom may fall out worse than
it did in 1882. You have here your
f.ouse and your land secured by
federal government loan at low
interest on long time terms. Why
, not l.ecp this 2s your reserve? II
YOU have some sons or daughters
, who can fit into the defense pic
, ture. fine-let them get their jobs
in the industrial centers. But keep
scme members of the family, Uncle
, Charlie or Brother Bill or even
6 grandpappy, on the place to make
sure it doesn't run down and you
don't lose your grub stake.
There is a further argument for
the tenant farmers welfare in per-
Suading them to fit their crops in
with the big vitamin campaign that
goes on under the nutrition pro-
gram. Raising Of garden truck tc
sell to these army camps, instead
+ OF putting all the land in wheat
OF cotton or tobacco. of which the
country already has 4 surplus, is
d something that now good many
c farmers still have To be taught
4 10 do
Farm Security Administration:
appropriation for next year is still
i before Congress. The House version
gives it $50 million, and the Sen
= ate $50 million, to which will b;
added Sl70 million of Reconstruc
: ton Finance Corporation money TO
rehabilitation loans and such. Thi
year, FSA has had $50 million plu
i 5000 million from RFC.
e OVER LOADED
LAND PROBLEM
To get the need for this program
|, you have to 90 back to the wa
u between the states and study tn
= war population problem. Land nov
i, under cultivation in the south
e eastern u. s. is as great as it wa
tnen-perhaps a little less due Il