This calculation shows that the corporation ends its twentieth year with $825,305,526, Deduct from this amount the original $200,000,000 capital with which the corporation started would leave $625,305,526. Under this calculation we have assumed that the corporation has foreclosed 15 per cent of its loans or foreclosed on 300,000 of the 2,000,000 loans made; thus leaving it with 1,700,000 borrowers. Dividing the surplus capital of the corporation equally among these borrowers would give them $367 each, and the corporation might credit this amount on each loan without impairing its original capital of $200,000,000.

PART 37.

SOLDIERS' ADJUSTED COMPENSATION.

COMMITTEE ON WAYS AND MEANS,

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,

Washington, D. C., Wednesday, March 10, 1920.

The committee this day met, Hon. Joseph W. Fordney (chairman) presiding.

Mr. GREEN. Before Mr. Mondell is heard, on account of the sickness of my wife, who has been recently operated on, I would like to say that I have not been able to attend the hearings in the past two days, and I fear I will not be able to remain this morning, so that I trust my colleagues who are here presenting their bills will understand why I am unable to remain.

The CHAIRMAN. Mr. Mondell, the gentlemen of the committee know that you have introduced a bill relating to this matter before the committee, and we will be glad to hear you this morning.

STATEMENT OF HON. FRANK W. MONDELL, A REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF WYOMING.

Mr. MONDELL. Mr. Chairman, at the meeting of the American Legion at Minneapolis last November, a committee was appointed whose duty it was to formulate or agree upon legislation providing for soldier land settlements. That committee was appointed, and my understanding is that that committee has approved or adopted in substance as their bill H. R. 487, a bill which has sometimes been called the Lane-Mondell bill, or the Mondell-Lane bill, a bill introduced by me and reported some time ago by the Committee on the Public Lands. I have been asked to appear before the committee and explain the provisions of that legislation.

Mr. HAWLEY. That bill was really referred to the Public Lands Committee, which has reported on it, and it is now on the calendar of the House. Under those circumstances, is your bill now before this committee?

Mr. MONDELL. A bill has been introduced by Mr. Sinnott, Chairman of the Committee on the Public Lands, and referred to this committee, which is H. R. 487, as reported by his committee, so that there is a bill before you now which is this bill, as reported by the committee.

Mr. GARNER. And even if that bill was not before this committee, the whole question of the consideration of its true obligations to the soldier is before the committee, and the methods by which we should meet them, which I think included every conceivable proposition, not only the land settlement, but the insurance, the vocational education, the homestead, bonus, and all the other elements that go into the various suggestions that have been made to the committee.

Mr. HAWLEY. My question was directed merely to a parliamentary situation.

173925 -20-24

Mr. MONDELL. A variety of suggestions have been made at one time or another, which may have not been embodied in legislation, or legislative proposals, but your committee will, I assume, consider all of the phases and features of the general subject referred to

you.

I said to those who asked me to appear before your committee that I would be very glad to appear and explain the bill, if it was understood that I did not appear before you as a special advocate of this or any other particular legislation at this time, or to urge any special action on your part. I appear rather as a friend of the court, at the suggestion of these people, to give you any information which you may desire to have in regard to this particular piece of legislation.

The bill carries no appropriations, but authorizes appropriations from time to time in a sum not in excess of $500,000,000. It has been the thought of those who have studied the subject that these appropriations would approximate $75,000,000 a year, perhaps, for four or five years. As appropriations are made from time to time, it would be the duty of the Secretary of the Interior to secure lands in the various States suitable for and in area sufficient to make possible the establishment of a comparatively independent farming community. That would involve tracts of land anywhere from perhaps from 10,000 to 50,000 or more acres, depending upon the locality and the character of the agricultural operations to be carried

on.

In the far West, in the arid sections, these areas would in the main be areas of public lands, or lands partly in public and partly in private ownership, and requiring reclamation through irrigation. The investment upon the lands in that region would be comparatively small. In many cases there would be no investment whatever in lands on the part of the General Government, as the lands are now in public ownership.

In the far East, New England, for instance, the areas sought to be reclaimed and made highly productive would necessarily be smaller than in the West. But it is well known that in the New England States, and in New York, and even in Pennsylvania there are very considerable areas that, for one reason and another, become unproductive, areas which it is believed could, at a reasonable cost, be made highly productive.

In the South the areas would be in the main of two classes: First, lands that need more or less drainage, and that, without drainage, are not particularly productive and valuable except for their natural grass product; second, lands that have been cut over and that under the existing conditions do not for various reasons invite development by individuals through private enterprise.

In the Northwest or the central Northwest, there would also be some areas of cut-over lands. In the far Northwest there would be some areas of that sort, although in that region the cut-over lands are in many cases not available for agricultural purposes, because of the prohibitive cost of clearing. Those who have studied the matter are of the opinion that in almost every State in the Union there are unused, fertile lands, with the possible exception of fortunately located States like Illinois, Iowa, eastern Nebraska, and eastern Kansas. It is possible that in such States it would not be possible

to find areas that could be utilized, but in almost every other State in the Union there are areas that have either never been cultivated, which could be brought under cultivation at a reasonable cost and made very productive, or there are areas that, for one reason or another, have been abandoned or partially abandoned, or allowed to relapse into a condition in which their only value is for timber of no great value, occasionally cut from them, or the use to a greater or less extent of the natural grass.'

Last summer I visited an area in the vicinity of a tract which had been purchased by the Government, within 25 miles of Baltimore, on the main line, or approximately on the main line, of two great transcontinental railroads, and on navigable waters-navigable for small boats. I found areas running into thousands of acres, some of which had been purchased by the Government but not now needed, more or less abandoned, for one reason or another, partly because in times past rich men had bought the more favorably located of those areas on the water front, for shooting purposes, and by reason of these uses the adjacent areas became less attractive. I was told a number of people had moved away because conditions had arisen under which it was difficult to get school facilities for the children.. It is as fair and potentially as fertile a tract as one need wish. I can think of few more ideal places to live.

Mr. YOUNG. You refer to upland; it is not swamp land?

Mr. MONDELL. There are areas that will need drainage; yes, a number of areas that will require the construction of comparatively short ditches, and of course those areas, when drained, will be the best part of the land. Those areas never were drained, and one native told me that one reason why some of those areas were not particularly attractive was that the mosquitoes were in such numbers in these swamp areas that they made life a burden in the adja

cent areas.

Now, right there, right in the midst of things, not off somewhere out of the world, but right in the midst of things is an area of as fine a country as one could wish that is producing practically nothing. You say, “Why does not private enterprise develop these and like areas?" Well, there are a variety of reasons, each peculiar to the locality. It is a remarkable thing that in this great land of ours, with its very wonderful development along agricultural as well as industrial lines, we have passed by and passed over and abandoned in the most thickly settled sections of the country lands that can be made reasonably fertile and productive and as attractive as lands anywhere.

Mr. TILSON. Has there been any estimate or census taken of these lands?

Mr. MONDELL. The Secretary of the Interior had an appropriation of $100,000 last year with which he made an examination, and the result of that examination has been printed in House Document No. 262, Sixty-sixth Congress, first session. That House document does not contain the maps and plats which accompanied the report. I think that is regrettable, but at the time the report was printed the Secretary was anxious to have it out as speedily as possible, and there was no time nor available funds for the maps and plats, and so they do not accompany the report. That report calls attention to tracts in the South, in the East, in the Middle States, and in the West.