The Waterbury Democrat. [volume] (Waterbury, Conn.) 1917-1946, 1943-03-03

began to explore and get better
line on the resources of the North
African colonies, 1t was found that
the farmers of the region had con-
siderable quantities of wheat hidden
away on their farms. The African
farmers had held back this wheat
from the Nazi purchasing agents
because there was nothing In the
native stores for the farmers to buy.
To remedy this situation some
bright boys, who will probably for
ever remain unidentified, thought
up an idea. Instead Of shipping in
shipload after shipload OF wheat
for the native bakers, 1t was pro-
posed to ship In a relatively small
quantity OF merchandise to stock
the native stores.
Farmers would then bring their
wheat into town. sell 1t for cash
and use the cash to buy the goods
on shopkeepers' shelves, providing
merchants with cash to buy more
goods or sell to farmers who would
bring In more wheat, and so on. In
other words, normal trade would
begin TO function again.
PERMANENT RELIEF
OBJECTIVE
This one simple little lesson Is
spelled out here In detail because 1t
Is perfect example Of the basic
problem which faces OFRRO, the
alphabet abbreviation for the Office
OF Foreign Relief and Rehabilitation
Operations set up In the State De-
partment under the direction Of ex-
Gov Herbert H. Lehman Of New
York.
The general assumption has prob
ably been that the relief end OF
the misunderstanding starving Eur
ope after the war is over--would
be the principal business which
OFRRO would do. That Is import
ant and 1t comes first, but since
Governor Lehman has been active
In organizing his staff, studying the
problems ahead of him and making
a start In field operations, one fact
becomes clearer every day.
The rehabilitation" end OF
postwar relief Is destined to be-
come more important and In the
long run may be more hunani-
tartan than the mere giving away
Of food to the hungry In the name
Of Uncle Sam and sweet charity.
Perhaps no one will begrudge one
nickel spent on food for Europes
undernourished millions. But re-
Mobilization, going far beyond tenn
porary relief, Is something else
again. When you pick bum out
of the gutter and fill his belly with
hot soup, give him a bath and
shave and buy him q new suit Of
clothes, you can't expect him to be
o new man the instant you turn
him loose. He must be given job
as well, and that Is rehabilitation.
You rehabilitate the bum so that
you don't have to keep on buying
him meal tickets.
HOW MUCH AND
HOW FAR?
The big question ahead for
OFRRO is how much money Con-
gress will be willing to appropriate
for foreign rehabilitation. Just now,
Governor Lehman's operations are
financed by other peoples money
the Presidents emergency funds and
Lend-Lease appropriations. Depart
ment of Agriculture's Marketing Ad-
ministration and similar agencies
do the buying on OFRRO orders.
Eventually, OFRRO will do its own
distributing.
How far OFRRO goes in dis
tributing rehabilitation depends up
on its appropriation. Relief may
encompass food, clothing, medicine,
temporary shelter. Rehabilitation
might mean more permanent shell
ter. seed, fertilizer, draft animals,
new dairy stock, and livestock herds,
new stock for the empty shelves,
new machinery and raw materials
for them to chew up.
Once the war is ended, Governor
Lehman's first big job will be to
convince Congress that this rehabili-
tation is to be administered an
business like basis with some show
of return more tangible than the
extension of credit and the building
up of war debts which will never
be repaid. He will have to make
case that rehabilitation is cheaper
and more lasting than mere relief.
Let OFRRO get the name OF an
international WPA, passing out
leaf-raking projects and free food