Evening Star Newspaper, September 7, 1936, Page 4

THE EVENING STAR, Text of President Roosevelt’s Speech Describes Drought Devastation in Nine States and Announces Allocation of $2,500,000 to U. S. Employment Service. By the Associated Press. The text of President Roosevelt's mdio speech, delivered from the White House last night, follows: I have been on a journey of hus- bandry. I went primarily to see at first hand conditions in the drought States; to see how effectively Federal and local authorities are taking care of pressing problems of relief and also Dow they are to work together to defend the people of this country against the effects of future droughts. I saw drought devastation in nine tes. I talked with families who had lost their wheat crop, lost their corn crop, Jost their live stock, lost the water in their well, lost their garden and come through to the end of the Bummer without $1 of cash resources, facing a Winter without feed or food— facing a planting season without seed to put in the ground. ‘That was the extreme case, but there are thousands and thousands of families on Western farms who share the same difficulties. I saw cattle men who because of fack of grass or lack of Winter feed have been compelled to sell all but their breeding stock and will need help to carry even these through the eoming Winter. I saw live stock kept alive only because water had been brought to them long distances in tank cars. I saw other farm families who have not lost their everything but who because they have made only partial crops must have some form of help if they are to continue farming mext Spring. Corn Stunted, Earless, Btripped of Leaves. I shall never forget the fields of Wheat so blasted by heat that they cannot be harvested. I shall never forget field after field of corn stunted, earless and stripped of leaves, for what the sun left the grasshoppers took. I saw brown pastures which Would not keep a cow on 50 acres. Yet I would not have you think for & single minute that there is perma- nent disaster in these drought regions, or that the picture I saw meant de- Ppopulating these areas. No cracked ®arth, no blistering sun, no burning wind, no grasshoppers are a perma- $ient match for the indomitable Amer- fcan farmers and stockmen and their Wives and children, who have carried bn through desperate days, and in- #pire us with their self-reliance, their tenacity and their courage. It was £heir fathers’ task to make homes; it #5 their task to keep those homes; it 4s our task to help them with their fight. # Pirst, let me talk for a minute about this Autumn and the coming Winter. We have the option, in the case of families who need actual subsistence, of putting them on the dole or putting | them to work. They do not want to €0 on the dole and they are 1,000 per cent right. We agree, therefore, that | we must put them to work for a decent wage, and when we reach that decision we kill two birds with one stone, because these families will earn enough by working, not only to sub- sist themselves, but to buy food for gheir stock, and seed for next year's planting. Into this scheme of things there fit, of course, the Government lending agencies, which next year, as in the past, will help with production Joans. Governors in Full Accord With Program. Every Governor with whom I have talked is in full accord with this pro- gram of providing work for these farm families, just as every Governor agrees that the individual States will take care of their unemployables, but that the cost of employing those who are entirely able and willing to work must be borne by the Federal Government. If then we know, as we do today, the approximate number of farm Jamilies who will require some form of work-relief from now on through | the Winter, we face the question of what kind of work they should do. Let me make it clear that this is hot a new question, because it has ‘plready been answered to a greater or less extent in every one of the @rought communities. Beginning in 1934, when we also had serious drought ¢onditions, the State and Federal gov- ernments co-operated in planning a Jarge number of projects—many of them directly aimed at the alleviation of future drought conditions. In accordance with that program, lit- grally thousands of ponds or small reservoirs have been built in order to supply water for stock and to lift the level of the underground water to protect wells from going dry. Thou- sands of wells have been drilled or deepened; community lakes have been greated and irrigation projects are being pushed. Water conservation by means such &s these is being expended as a re- sult of this new drought all through the great plains area, the Western corn belt and in the States that lie further south. In the Middle West ‘water conservation is not so pressing ® problem. Here the work projects run more to soil erosion control and the building of farm to market roads. Spending like this is not waste. It would spell future waste if we did not #pend for such things now. These emergency work projects provide money to buy food and clothing for the Winter; they keep the live stock on the farm; they provide seed for a new crop, and, best of all, they will conserve soil and water in the future in those areas most frequently hit by drought. If, for example, in some local area the water table continues to drop and the top soil to blow away, the land wvalues will disappear with the water and the soil. People on the farms will drift into the nearby cities; the eities will have no farm trade and the workers in the city factories and stores will have no jobs. Property yalues in the cities will decline. If, on the other hand, the farms within that area remain as farms with bet- ter water supply and no erosion, the farm population will stay on the land 4&nd prosper and the nearby cities will per, too. Property values will in- ase instead of disappearing. That 4 why it is worth our while as a &Nation to spend money in order to save money. Al States Do Business ‘With Each Other. # I have, however, used the argu- fnent in relation only to a small #rea—it holds good in its effect on 4he Nation as a whole. Every State 4n the drought area is now doing and slways will do business with every #Btate outside it. The very existence ©f the men and women working in #he clothing factories of New York, amaking clothes worn by-farmers and #heir families; of the workers in the #teel mills in Pittsburgh, in the au- Mdomobile factories of Detroit, and in | and leather. President Roosevelt, as he night. delivered his radio speech last Underwood & Underwood Photo. duce. In the same way it is the purchasing power of the workers in these factories in the cities that enables them and their wives and children to 'eat more beef, more pork, more wheat, more corn, more fruit and more dairy products, and to buy more clothing made from cotton, wool In a physical and prop- erty sense, as well as in a spiritual sense, we are members one of an- other. I want to make it clear that no simple panacea can be applied to the drought problem in the whole of the drought area. Plans must depend on local conditions, for these vary with annual rainfall, soil character- istics, altitude and topography. Water and soil conservation methods may differ in one county from those in an adjoining county. Work to be done in the cattle and sheep country differs in type from work in the wheat coun- try or work in the corn belt. The Great Plains Drougnt Area | Committee has given me its prelim- inary recommendations for a long- time program for that region. Using that report as a basis, we are co- operating successfully and in entire accord with the Governors and State Planning Boards. As we get this pro- gram into operation the people more and more will be able to maintain themselves securely on the land. That will mean a steady decline in the relief burdens which the Federal Gov- ernment and States have had to as- sume in time of drought, but more important it will mean a greater con- tribution to general national pros- perity by these regions which have been hit by drought. It will con- serve and improve not only property values but human values. The peo- ple in the drought area do not want to be dependent on Federal, State or any other kind of charity. They want for themselves and their families an opportunity to share fairly by their own efforts in the progress of Amer- ica. The farmers of America want a sound national agricultural policy in which a permanent land-use program will have an importanc place. They want assurance against another year like 1932, when tiiey made good crops but had to sell them for prices that meant ruin just as surely as did the drought. Sound policy must main- tain farm prices in good crop years as well as in oad crop years. It must function when we have drought. It must also function when we have bumper crops. Maintenance of Price Equilibrium Is Aim. The maintenance of a fair equilib- rium between farm orices and the prices of industrial products is an aim which we must keep ever before us, just as we must give constant thought to the sufficiency of the tood supply of the Nation even in bad years. Our modern civilization can and should devise a wmore successful means by which the excess supplies of bumper years can be conserved for use in lean years. On my trip I have been deeply im- pressed with the general efficiency of those agencies of the Federal, State and local governments which have moved in on the immediate task cre- ated by the drought. In 1934 none of us had preparation; we worked without blueprints and made the mis- takes of inexperience. Hindsight shows us this. But as time has gone on we have been making fewer mis- takes. Remember that the Federal and State Governments have done only broad planning. Actual work on a given project originates in the local community. Local needs are listed from local information. Local proj- ects are decided on only after ob- taining the recommendations and help of those in the local community who are best able to give it. And it is worthy of note that on my entire trip, though 1 asked the question doszens of times, I heard no complaint against the character of a single works-relief project. The elected heads of the States con- cerned, together with their State offi- cials and their experts from agricul- tural colleges and State planning boards have shown co-operation with and approval of the work which the Federal Government has headed up. 1 am grateful also to the men and women in all these States who have accepted leadership in the work in their locality. In the drought area people are not afraid to use new methods to meet changes in natfire, and to correct mis- takes of the past. If over-grazing has injured range lands, they are willing to reduce the grazing. If certain wheat lands should be returned to pasture, they are willing to co-operate. If trees should be planted as wind- breaks or to stop erosion, they will work with us. If terracing or Summer fallowing or crop rotation is called for, they will carry them out. They stand ready to fit, and not to fight, the ways of nature. We are helping, and shall con- tinue to help the farmer to do those things, through local soil conserva= tion commitiees and other’ co-oper- ative local State and Federal agen- cies of government. % Plan Defenses Against ’ Low Prices and Drought. I have not the time tonight o deal with other and more comprehensive JShe lurvum factories of Illinois, de- pend ‘upon the farmers’ ability to Jpurchase the commodities they pro- agricultural policies. g With this fine help we are tiding over the present emergency. We are A going to conserve soil, conserve wa- ter and conserve life. We are go- ing to have long-time defenses againsi both low prices and drought. We are going to have a farm policy that will serve the national welfare, This is our hope for the future. There are two reasons why I want to end by talking about re-employ- ment. Tomorrow is Labor day. The WASHINGTON, D. C, MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 7, 1936. with hand or brain as different from brave spirit with which so many mil- | operative State and Federal enterprise, lions of working people are winning their way out of depression deserves respect and admiration. It is like the courage of the farmers in the drought areas. That is my first reason. The sece ond is that healthy employment cone ditions stand equally with healthy agricultural conditions as a buttress of national prosperity. Dependable employment at fair wages is just as important to the people in the towns and cities as good farm income is to agriculture. Our people must have the ability to buy the goods they man- ufacture and the crops they produce. Thus city wages and farm buying power are the two strong legs that carry the Natlon forward. Re-employment in Industry is proe ceeding rapidly. Government spend- ing was in large part responsible for keeping industry going and putting it in & position to make this re-em- ployment possible. Government or- ders were the back log of heavy in- dustry, Government wages turned over and over again to make consumer purchasing power and to sustain every merchant in the community. Busi- ness men with their business, small and large, had to be saved. Private enterprise is necessary to any na- tion which seeks to maintain the democratic form of government. In their case, just as certainly as in the case of drought-stricken farmers, Goverment spending has saved. Government having spent wisely to save it, private industry begins to take workers off the rolls of the Govern- ment relief program. Until this ad- ministration we had no free employ- ment service, except in a few States and cities. Because there was no uni- fled employment service, the worker, forced to move as industry moved, often traveled over the country, wan- dering after jobs which seemed always to travel just a little faster than he did. He was often victimized by fraudulent practices of employment clearing houses, and the facts of em- ployment opportunities were at the disposal neither of himself nor of the employer. Federal-State Co-operation Has Been Splendid. In 1933 the United States Employ- ment Service was created. A co- through which the Federal Govern= ment matches dollar for dollar the funds provided by the States for reg- istering the occupations and skills of ‘workers and for actually finding jobs for these registered workers in prie vate industry. The Federal-State co- operation has been splendid. Already employment services are operating in 32 States, and the areas not covered by them are served by the Federal Government. We have developed a Nation-wide service with 700 district offices and 1,000 branch offices, thus providing facilities through which labor can learn of jobs available and employers can find workers. Last Spring I expressed the hope that employers would realize their deep responsibility to take men off the relief rolls and give them jobs in private enterprises. Subsequently I was told by many employers that they were not satisfled with the informa- tion available concerning the skill and experience of the workers on the relief rolls. On August 25 I allocated a relatively small sum to the employ- ment service for the purpose of get- ting better and more recent informa- tion in regard to those now actively at work on W. P. A. projects—infor- mation as to their skills and previous occupations—and to keep the records of such men and women up to date for maximum service in making them available to industry. Tonight I am announcing the allocation of $2,500,- 000 more to enable the employment service to make an even more inten- sive search than it has yet been equipped to make, to find opportuni- ties in private employment for work- ers registered with it. ‘Tonight I urge the workers to co- operate with and take full advantage of this intensification of the work of the employment service. This does not mean that there will be any lessening of our efforts under our W. P. A. and P. W. A. and other work-relief programs until all workers have decent jobs in private employ- ment at decent wages. We do not surrender our responsibility to the un- employed. We have had ample proof that it is the will of the American people that those who represent them in national, State and local govern- High Lights of Roosevelt’s Drou ght-] ob By the Assoclated Pres: “No ci Radio S peech cked elnh no blistering mn no burning wind, no grass- happers are & permanent match for the indomitable American farmers. ® * * It is our task to help them win their fight.” “® ® & Workers in the stecl mills * * * depend upon the farmers’ ability to purchase the commodities they produce. * ¢ ¢ In a physical and a property sense, as well 8s in a spiritual sense, we are members one of anotker.” “® ® * No simple panacea can be applied to the drought problem.” “On my entire trip, though I I heard no complaint against the project.” asked the question dozens of times, character of a single works relief ‘Re-employment in industry is proceeding rapidly. Government spending was in large part responsible for keeping industry going and putting it in position to make this re-employment possible.” “Private enterprise is necessary to any nation which seeks to main- tain the democratic form of government.” “In this country we insist, as an essential of the American way of life, that the employer-employe relationship should be one between free men and equals.” “There are those who fail to read both the signs of the times and American history. They would try to refuse the worker any effective power to bargain collectively, to earn a decent livelihood and to ac- quire security, * * ** “It is those, not labor, who threaten this country with that class dissension which in other countries has led to dictatorship * * *.” “Labor day symbolizes the hope of all Americans. Any one who calls it a class holiday challenges the whole concept of American democracy.” ment should continue as long as necessary to discharge that responsi- bility. But it does mean that the Government wants to use resource to get private work for those now em- ployed on Government work, and thus to curtail to a minimum the Govern- ment expenditures for direct em- ployment, Tonight T ask employers, large and small, throughout the Nation to use | the help of the State and Federal | employment service whenever in the general pick-up of business they re- quire more workers, Tomorrow is Labor day. Labor day in this country has never been a class holiday. It has always been a national holiday. It has never had more significance as a national holiday than it has now. In other countries the relationship of employer and employe has been more or less ac- cepted” as a class relationship not readily to be broken through. In this country we insist, as an essential of | that the | employer-employe relationship should | be one between free men and equals. | the American way of life, We refuse to regard those who work | challenges or inferior to those who live from their property. We insist that labor is entitled to as much respect as property. But our workers with hand and brain deserve more than respect for their labor, They deserve practi- cal protection in the opportunity to use their labor at a return adequate to support them at a decent and con- stantly rising standard of living, and to accumulate a margin of security against the inevitable vicissitudes of life. T Fold Opportunity Necessary For Man. . The average man must have that two-fold opportunity if we are to avoid growth of a class-conscious so- clety in the country. There are those who fail to read both the signs of the times and American history. They would try to refuse the worker any effective power to bargain collectively, to earn a decent livelihood and to acquire se- curity. It is those shortsighted ones, not labor, who threaten this country with that class dissension which in other countries has led to dictatorship and the establishment of fear and hatred as the dominant emotions in human life. All American workers, brain workers and manual workers alike, and all the rest of us whose well-being depends on theirs, know that our needs are one in building an orderly economic democracy in which all can profit and in which all can be secure from the kind of faulty economic direction which brought us to the brink of common ruin seven years ago. There is no cleavage between white- collar workers and manual workers, between artist and artisans, musi- cians and mechanics, lawyers and ac- countants and architects and miners. Tomorrow, Labor day, belongs to all of us. Tomorrow, Labor day, sym- bolizes the hope of all Americans. 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