The Waterbury Democrat., 1941-06-24

l ! wAamm ture in 1886 and had It's ma m ( changed in 1887 to bury It's past and start all over again. '.
 It's the defense program, of course, which is upsetting the even tenor of FSA ways. Let @ defense project get started and what hap pens? The poorer farmers who have had tough sledding, 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-year mort- gage on 6 little land. which may give security but never wealth.
 So they chase the pot of gold to the rainbow's end, and when they get thereto scramble couple of metaphorg-the cupboard is bare as 1t always 1t.
 What happened at Fort Bragg, near Fayetteville, N. C., IS an ex- ample. The farmers Swar1ned in. Some of the first who could get by as carpenters got jobs. The unSkilled rest had to trek back home. When the construction job was over, even the early corners were down on theis luck and had to traipSe back to their patch of land.
 HOLD
 THOSE ACRES!
 That situation woke Up the Farm Security people as to what was 90. ing on and since then they have been doing Q 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 go- ing to be all over. When 1t is, the bottom may fall out worse than 1t did in 1o32. You have here your house and your land, secured by c federal government loan ct low in. terest on long time terms. Why not keep this as your reserve? If you have some sons or daughters who can At into the defense picture, fine Jet them get their jobs in the in- duStrlal centers. But keep some members of the family, Uncle Charlie or Brother Bill or even grandpappy, on the place to make sure 1t doesn't run down and you don't lose your grub stake. A
 There is & further argument for the tenant farmers welfare in per- suading them to At their crops In with the big vitamin campaign that goes on under the nutrition pro. gram. Raising of garden truck to sell to these army camps, instead of putting all the land to wheat or cot- ton or tobacco, of which the country already has e surplus, Is something that Q good many farmers still have to be taught to do.
 Farm Security Administration's appropriation for next year Is still before Congress. The House version gives 1t $50 million, and the Senate S60 million, to which will be added $i70 million of Reconstruction Finance Corporation money for re- mobilization loans and such. This year, FsA has had $50 million plus s200 million from REC.
 OVERLOADED LAND PROBLEM V
 To get the need for this program, you have to 90 back to the war be- tween the states and study the war population problem. Land now under cultivation in the southeastern U. s. Is as great aS 1t was then - perhaps Q little less due to soil gro. sion--but the population on 1t has doubled.
 In the World War there was a big migration of labor from this area to Detroit and Akron and the industrial centers. When the war was over, they had to 60 back home their silk shirts in rags and tatterS, and they damned Up on the land.
 F9A now has loans outstanding to some 100000 families iil this south eastern-Appalachian area alone. Perhaps 25,000 to 5000 0people from these 100000 families have already left to take defense jobs. The in. duStrial centerS have again become the frontiers to which the pioneers want to flock and it's going to be a job to keep them put.
 On top of this general reSettle- hlert problem is the old problem of migratory labor, which Is another FSA baby that has to be have It's nursing formula changed by the de. fenee collie. The old pre.war harvest hand migration of the midwest has of course been killed by the com. bine tractor, but the citrus-fruit- truck farm inigrationS from Florida to Maine and back, and the citrus cotton .truck-frJit haryesters' migTa. tionS from the Rio drande to the Canadian border are essential to the harvesting of seasonal crops, and the labor suply for tllis job must be maintained.
 The big worry now is that there won't be enough Okies to 90 round. Some Of these sons of Okies have been tinkering with model T Fords 50 long they've become pretty fair mechanics and tho west coast air. craft factories are after 'efa.
 Times certainly have changed.
 
 Tu.~~AMk TAaaAak