Brownsville herald. [volume], February 19, 1933, EARLY SUNDAY EDITION, Page ELEVEN, Image 11

About Brownsville herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1910-current

Image provided by: University of North Texas; Denton, TX

                
For Return to Farms and Ownership of Same By Heads
of Families of the Unemjrioyed.
_Hi
I |
ALICE TEXAS FEBRUARY 16 1933
i
COLONEL SAM A. ROBERTSON
SAN BENITO TEXAS
YOU MAY QUOTE ME AS IN FULL ACCORD
WITH SLIM S PLAN TO CARE FOR EVERY
FAMILY WILLING TO WORK BY HELPING
THEM TO HELP THEMSELVES ON SMALL
FARMS STOP
I AM OPPOSED TO ANYTHING
RESEMBLING A DOLE AND BELIEVE
THATTanE ONLY WAY TO HELP ANYONE
IS TO HELPsIilM TO HELP HIMSELF STOP
MEXICO HASSVCCESSFULLY CARED FOR
MANY THOUSANIVRETURNING
IMMIGRANTS IN THIS WAY AND IF
MEIXCO CAN WE CAN STOP I HEARTILY
APPROVE YOUR SENTIMENT THAT SUCH
A PLAN CAN BEST BE WORKED GUT
IN THE SOUTH WHERI THE CLIMATE
FITS THE CLOTHES STOP THERE IS NO
BETTER PLACE TO W^RK SUCH A PLAN
THAN THE RIO GRANDE VALLEY STOT
IF ELECTED TO CONGRESS I SHALL DO
EVERYTHING THAT IS PROPER AND
RIGHT TO HELP PUT YOUR IDEAS INTO
EXECUTION AND AT THE S^ME TIME
NOT INJURE ANYOfE NOW ENGAGED IN
AGRICULTURAL PURSUITS.
I MILTON H. WEST
..L. . -.-.
A STATEMENT—
I am only interested in Mr. West be
cause I think him the most capable man
1 know of to carry out the idea which I am
interested in. If he is elected he will owe
me nothing. I will ask no job for myself
or friends. I will certify to the compe
tency or incompetency of those wrhom I
know. I never have, nor ever will ask
political favors. When Sheriff of this
County most of my deputies opposed my
election, and showed their good judgment
thereby.
Respectfully Submitted,
SAM A. ROBERTSON
f
"* /
^ThREE million competent
M men to be selected in units of 10,
^^^000. Lands to be paf chased or ac
quired by the LT. S.X?overnment
from States, which States have accjfvired the
\ands through tax sales. Land to be soid at ac
tual worth, based on values they will earn and
nay taxes on, said values being from $2.00 to
150.00 per acre, depending on location a\ul
Quality. Government to subdivide these lands
Iito tracts of from 5 to 40 acres, depending otX
tuality. Finance for owners of rude but sani-\
A ary comfortable houses of logs, sod, adobe, l
/stone or an old time Texas border ranch house,
for as Mexicans call them “jacals”, built of poles I
* / and sticks, mud mixed with tree moss or swamp I
j grass to close cracks; caliche floors, thatch roof,*
f whitewashed inside and out, parchment win-/
/Hows to keep out cold but let in light, screened*
doors and windows, sanitary army laterines*
water supply cistern, well or pipe line. /
United States District Engineer to have geii
eral charge of construction, he to detail Seconfi
Lieutenant and five (5) non coins, engineer sol
diers to supervise each group of 500 horns.
These engineer soldiers are competent and ha*e
to be paid anyway. Army tents should he loan
V ed to families, while homes are being built. *A|11
"Kmstruction work to be done by colonists arid
paiaT^P^inU. S. commissary checks, not to lie
transferable^ud good only if presented by
colonists at protect commissary. Commissary
to he on groundlin charge of a Q. M. Sergeant
of Army: supnlils to be purchased by O. M.
Corps and sold zjt cost including overhead. To
preserve the self Jrespect of the high class people
who will seek the>e homes, there should be no
taint of charity: all should he strictlv business.
Countv Agricultural Agent to furnish technical,
agricultural direction.
For each group of 1,000 Home Owners, a Fed
eral Inspector or Superintendent, with salary of
about $1800.00 per annum, with (5) assistants
at about $900.00 per annum, to supervise colon
ists. Administration expenses to be charged
against faritiers and paid for bv them. This is
a business pjlan, no charity or foolish idealism.
Land and equipment and advances for food,
seed, etc. to cqst from $500.00 to $900.00, depend
ing on location .and size of family. The Gov
ernment to sell to colojli^ts on credit, payment
to he on or before tC* (10) veHrs, interest 3T,
payable semi-annually, no State or County tax
for 5 years. These houses are to be artistic in
looks, comfortable and sanitary, real homes.
Alany were built in France by officers and sol
diers of 16th Engineers Ry. and 22nd Engineers
L. R. and praised by the French press for their ar
tistic appearance, cost and comfort. There are
several Engineer officers still in the U. S. Army
who helped on this work in France, who can or
ganize an efficient camnaign of the kind, which
I would be carried out honestly, economically
and efficiently. In a hundred and fifty vears
there has been no proven grafter amon" the of
ficers of the Corns of Engineers U. S. Army,
except Cantain Oberlin Carter, and he went to
the pen 40 or more years ago. Construction
labor to be done by colonists on piece work and
- J>aid in l\ S. Commissary Checks.
R^Hew Government Bureaus necessary —
\
Agricultural Department could take charge of
administration, but place salaries of their em
ployees on a par with earnings of colonists and
small farmers and business men of equal abil
ity, not like the princely salaries of Post Office
janitors and Nigger Railorad Brakemen.
The following shows approximate cost to the
owner of farms, tools, seed, live stock, food ad
vances, etc., of a suggested typical Rio Grande
Valley farm:
5 acres of land ..$250.00
2 milk goats. 3.00
Interest in community male animals 3.00
1 sow pig . 2.00
6 liens and 1 rooster. 2.00
2 pair of rabbits. 2.00
2 dozen baby chickens. 2.00
2 pair of ducks .. 1.50
Clearing and grubbing land.40.00
Labor, house and home construction 30.00
Material, nails, parchment building
paper for 3 room house. 35.00
Sanitary cistern, well or piped
water supply.42.00
90 days provisions for families in excess
of what head of family can earn on
construction work. 45.00
Seeds. 35.00
Plow, harrow, garden tools, pack saddle
for freight transportation. 50.00
Fruit trees and ornamental shrubs,
vines and flowers. 12.50
Incidentals. 30.00
Construction Superintendance by Army
Enginer officer and his non corns ... 7.50
Supervision first year by civilians
employees . 7.50
Gasoline, tires and tubes. 0.00
$600.00
This $600.00 would furnish a much better
home tfotn most of us older people were raised
in, and the**? would be a more comfortable home
life.
For 50 years the writer has associated with
tramps and hoboes, not bums or vagi, speaks
their language and knows there is as much pa
triotism and found sense among them as there
is in any class of people. For four years, know
ing the crisis was coming, I have talked with
thousands of fine working men on the bum;
80^ of the intelligent ones are advocating the
adoption of this plan, Slim’s Plan as described
herein. Other similar plans are called Atlanta
Plan, MacFaden Plan, etc.
Slim B*-, the man who gave me most of
the idea, was an overseas Engineers soldier,
later and until recently a tramp. He is now
carrying out the plan for himself without Gov
ernment or ether help, and he finds it workable.
I know nothing of National or International
Finance. I ijo well to finance tortillas and
friioles for ntv family. But it seems to me that
a $2.000.000,060.00 Federal Bond Issue with'
three million *!ittle farms like those described
herein, and tjiree million men with the “guts’*
and labor of such men as mv old friends Slim
and O’Hooligan, should make such a good
security tha'Sconservative old birds as Jim
Hollingswoi #h would buy them, if they could
raise the mcMev.
Respertfnllv submitted.
SAM A. ROBERTSON
f Political Advertising)