The Waterbury Democrat., 1943-02-10

bHAIN0 VA CAhuAN miles have degenerated into @ kind of international No Mans Land.
 Every effort by third parties to settle this century y-and-a-quarter- old squabble failed--until the third meeting of American foreign ministers in Rio last January. Then Ecuador and Peru got-together and agreed to end their war, Ecuador getting some So000 square kilomet- CTS of territory and Peru withdraw ing its troops just a year ago.
 That was the beginning. Ecua- dor wanted to colonize the area but had no money and lacked techni- cal experts. So, last March @ deal was made with the Institute of 1r- ter American Affairs, a Rockefeller oftice subsidiary corporation, to lend a hand. A U. 8. mission of engi- neers, specialists in tropical medi- cine, agricultural economists, nurs- ing administrators, sanitary engi- neers, relief workers and assorted experts was recruited to 60 into the area.
 STRICTLY FROM SCRATCH
 Forty thousand colonists were ready to move in, but were totally lacking in equipment and know-how. Nearly 90 per cent of these people had tropical dysentery and malaria which had to be cured before any. thing could be accomplished. They had no food to last till they could get their own crops producing, no seed, few tools. It was strictly from scratch. The list of supplies for the colonists included everything from 2000 machetes, to cooking utensils, to 8000O pounds of food-prncipal- ly rice, beans, lard.
 It was midsummer before the first colonists moved in and the six months that have elapsed since the Fl Orc expedition got going haven't given enough time to tell how this Is all going to work out. Allen R. Edwards, in charge of the U. 8. tech- nical mission, came back to WaSh- ington recently. He was hopeful. The country has rich soil and agri- cultural resources, he says. The land can be made to produce rubber, quinine, hemp. foods, f1bers.
 Already the Ecuadoreans have iIa- proved the little harbor of Puerto Bolivar at the mouth of the Guayas river as a trade center. A hoSpi- tai and medical training center have been opened. A model stock farm Is being established, demonstration farms set up.
 DOING IT ALL AROUND
 This is the type of rehabilitation work which this Institute of Inter. American Affairs IS tackling in other distress areas of Latin America as part of the Rockefeller office pro- gram of Basic Economy. The whole thing is an effort to help these countries which have lost their ex- port trade become self-sufticient.
 In Costa Rica it's @ food-raising program to supply U. s. forces In the Panama Canal zone.
 In Honduras it's a trans-isthi1ius building program.
 Tn Peru it's sanitary engineering preliminary to development Of the Chimbote coal and iron fields.
 In Haiti it's an effort to shift the country away from coffee, sugar and bananas to production of fibers, spices, essential oils and hardwoods.
 In Brazil there's a $4 million de- velopment. half financed by the U. S., half by Brazil, to raise food for the rubber tapperS.
 Agricultural experiment stations on the American pattern have been started in five countries. In all, there are more than 100 rehabilita- ton and food developments already functioning.