THE BEND BULLETIN, BEND, OREGON
THURSDAY, JULY 21, 1949
PAGE FOUR
THE BEND BULLETIN
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MITCHELL ON THE CVA
The United Press has secured and there are printed in The
Bulletin today arguments for and against the proposed Co
lumbia valley administration. The argument in favor is by
Washington's first congressional district representative,
Hugh B. Mitchell. As senator on appointment by Governor
Walgren, Mitchell introduced a CVA bill in the 79th congress.
One may suppose that Representative Mitchell gave the
best that he knew in favor of the pending CVA bill. For those
who know the facts there is so much in his presentation that
is misleading, exaggerated, confusing and even downright
wrong that his whole argument falls. His is, indeed, a sorry
case when he finds it necessary to bolster it with this sort of
thing.
We hope that our readers will save the Mitchell statement
for reference as the discussion that we propose to undertake
in this column proceeds. Space is lacking to do the job all at
one time. It will take several days.
Let us begin today with the first of the Mitchell assertions :
1. We have an unemployment situation three times icorse
than the national average (and in Washington) em
ployment continues to show "unmistakable signs of falter
ing." To make this point Mr. Mitchell "has had to go back to the
figures for last winter when, we agree, there was an unusual
degree of unemployment. By May, however, the situation was
not three times worse. Indeed, in Washington it was no worse
than the national average and in Oregon and Idaho it was
better. At the same time in the heart of the TVA region it
was around twice as bad as the national average. Now,
according to a recent news report, the situation is worse in
the New England states. And not only in Washington but all
over the country "employment shows 'unmistakable signs
of faltering.'"
-- Why does the Washington representative take selected fig
ures and selected periods to support his argument?
The fact is that the power that will energize the industry
that will provide employment in the northwest will come as
easily and as readily if it is provided by reclamation or engi
neer dams and plants as if by a CVA. All that is needed is
money from the congress.
Private ''capital, too, can develop power and wants to do so
if government agencies will permit Look at Pelton.
In any case, however, power is not going to provide con
stant employment So long as weather conditions force shut
downs there will be unemployment in certain activities. For
large groups, too, there will always be seasonal unemploy
ment No, this Mitchell unemployment argument in support of a
CVA is weak.
LOYDE BLAKLEY, GAME COMMISSIONER
In his appointment of Loyde S. Blakley of Bend as a mem
ber of Oregon's new game commission, Governor Douglas
McKay has made an admirable choice, one which, we are sure,
will receive general' approval. Long time residence in Bend,
center of one of Oregon's greatest wild life areas, prominent
identification with the lumber industry, in which close ac
quaintance with the out-of-doors and its denizens comes nat
urally, are among Loyde Blakley's qualifications. Beyond
these, he is a fine sportsman. By this we mean not only one
who enjoys hunting and fishing and who keeps within the
letter of the statutes ; we mean also one who is keenly aware
of the importance of the state's fish and game resources and
of the need for increasing as well as maintaining them and
who is willing to work to bring these things to reality.
Recognition of his ability and constructive interest has
already been made in a number of ways. As reviewed in the
news, his assignment on the Bend chamber of commerce
board of directors has been in connection with the organi
zation s fish and game committee. He is currently a state
director of the Izaak Walton league and formerly held a like
position in the Oregon Wildlife federation.
Loyde Blakley's job is a bigger one now. He is a member
of a brand-new commission, equipped with new legislation
He and his associates will face, problems which have been be
coming more and more serious as Oregon s popularity as a
vacation country increases and as its own population gains.
It is a tough assignment m which the reward is the oppor
tunity for correspondingly great achievement. But it is not
his .first tough job and we think he will do well at it.
Our best wishes to him and to his fellow commissioners.
Fact and Fancy
By Ken Hicks
Rent decontrol is becoming an
issue in Oregon. Governor Mc
Kay already has approved decon
trol for Ashland, but now Salem,
Eugene and Medford are demand
ing similar treatment.
The city councils of the latter
three cities have petitioned for de
control, but considerable opposi
tion also has developed. In the
case of Medford the central labor
council and the veterans council
went on record as opposing de
control. It Is understandable that some
groups of our citizens feel the
need for low rent, and regard the
law as a means of achieving this
condition. Yet it is contrary to de
mocracy and American ideas of
fair play to penalize one group
for the benefit of another. And
that is exactly what rent control
now that there no longer is a
war-time emergency has done.
All other .groups and" classes
were permitted to benefit from
operation of the law of "supply
and demand,',' .when inflation was
In its ascendency; This was true
of organized labor, the farmers
and business men. Yet, owners of
rental property for years were
compelled to take a "fixed price"
for their facilities, in the face of
rising costs for everything in
volved In maintenance and repair.
One result of this condilion has
been inequitable distribution of
existing rental facilities. In thous
ands of instances couples today
are occupying four and five room
apartments, when larger families
should have such accommoda
tions. With rents frozen at ridicu
lously low levels there has been
no incentive to move.
Another bad feature of rent
control until congress finally
got around to making allowances
for improvements was the vir
tual strike of landlords inso
far as renovation or remodeling
were concerned. The law also
took no account of the fact that
furniture and equipment wore
out, and that replacement costs
were ah much as 200 per cent
above the pre-war level. Thus
many "'furnished' 'apartments
and there is real need for this
type of housing became that In
name only.
Certainly money that would be
spent now for refurnishing and;
renovation would constitute an
important "shot in the arm" to
business, were rent decontrol to
become more general.
i
"'What we need most are house
rentals." Real estate men will at-
t test this fact. Classified advertise
ments in many newspapers, offer
ing rewards up to $50 or S100 (or
rental of "a modern, unfurnished
house," affirm that a great many
persons desire such living quar
ters. . " ;
.In the big cities, under rent
control, house owners found it
far more profitable to sell, at in
flated prices, than to rent. That
created and still is creating a
shortage of house rentals.
Why are not more new houses
built for rent? Well, the stand
ard rule of investment, of one
per cent a month, plus current
construction costs of around $10
a square foot, Just about elimin
ates such building. A good three
bedroom house, with basement,
today will cost from $10,000 to
$12,000, depending on square foot
age. That would necessitate from
$100 to $120 a month rent un.
furnished and without utilities!
Only the exceptional family can
Legislators Offer
CVA Arguments
Mitchell Sees Need for
Administration to Solve
Unemployment Situation
By Hop. Hugh B. Mitchell
tWrittan for tha Uniud t'reaa) ,
Seattle, July 21 iUiVhy docs
the Pacific northwest need a Co
lumbia valley administration? To
day we are considering this ques
tion under the shadow of the
gravest problems In our region's
history.
Let's take a look at these prob
lems which threaten the future
of all of us In the Pacific north
west.
1. We have an unemployment
situation three times worse than
the national average with ap
proximately 200.000 persons out
of work.
Twelve per cent of Washing
ton's labor force was idle this
spring, and the latest release
from the state employment secur
ity department says employment
continues to show "unmistakable
signs of faltering."
2. We are the only section in
the United States with a power
shortage, although our waters
contain 42 per cent of the na
tion's "white coal" of hydro-electricity.
Industries Turned Away
What does this shortage mean
to our wage-earners? Last winter,
135.000 men were laid off because
of the power brown-out. And the
Ponneville power administration
had to turn away 20 new indus
tries in 1948 because it couldn't
promise them an adequate power
supply.
A We have the second worst
soil erosion conditions in the na
tion, according to the U. S. soil
conservation service. Last year
100 million tons of our precious
topsoil washed out to sea, and
each year the problem gets steadi
ly worse.
4. We have increasingly serious
flood problems. Each year some
portion of the Pacific northwest
is run over by rampaging flood
waters. And we always face the
tnreat ol other vanports.
federal responsibility for mul
tipurpose resource development
of the Columbia Is an established
fact, not open to question.
CVAS opponents freely admit
this, but they insist however, that
existing federal agencies are do
ing a good, efficient job.
i contend they are not. And the
Hoover commission agrees.
S3 Agencies ,
Today we have 33 federal agen
cies attempting to manage north
west resources. No one of them
has the over-all authority to di
rect this complex job. As a re
sult, we have bureaucratic bick
ering and jurisdictional strife
impeding the progress of our region.
If you were an employer, would
you put 33 men to work on an
Important job without a definite
plan and without supervisory di
rection? We are doing just that
afford to pay such rentals.
Eliminate rent controls, how
ever, and many of the older
houses now being offered for sale
will come back on the rental mar
ket. And with only $5,000 or
$6,000 invested in these houses,
owners can afford to rent them at
a more reasonable figure. Cer
tainly $50 or $60 a month rent is
not exorbitant, for a good house,
compared to other prices nowa
days. Rent control served its purpose,
during the war emergency, but
the time has come to eliminate it.
This already would have been
done, we suspect, were It not for
the lactMhat controls are political
ly popular.
In other words there are more
tenants than landlords!
Hall Views Suggestion
As Blueprint for New,
All-Powerful Agency
By Tom Hall
Washington State Senator
lAj Wriltan tor United I'rau)
Olympla. July 21 "U The Co.
lumbla valley administration pro
posal is presented oy its propon'
ents as a master-plan for the
development of the Columbia
river region and its resources.
Actually, it is a blueprint for an
all-powerful superstate empow
ered to reshape and control vir
tually every aspect of the econ
nomic and industrial life ot the
people of the Paellic northwest.
All this is to be accomplished
not by deliberate, self-imposed
discipline and evolution through
established democratic processes
but by regimentation under the
dictatorial powers of a sacrosanct
federal corporation. Insulated
from public opinion, operating
without adequate controls by con-
fress, and with only the "advice"
to be accepted only when "prac
ticable") of the state and local
governments.
It Is easy to speak of such a
gigantic undertaking in sweeping
generalities and to orate, as the
proponents of C.V.A. are now do
ing, about the "progress and de
velopment" they forecce under
their magic formula.
Encroachment Seen .
But let's be specific. Let us
take a long and thoughtful look
at the bill itself and see in what
myriad ways it encroaches upon
the economic and social life of
this entire area and how deeply
it affects Mr. Average Citizen.
Under the terms of the pending
legislation, C.V.A. would be em
powered to "construct, operate
and maintain" projects for the
promotion of navigation, for
flood control, for reclamation, and
for the generauon of power; for
In the northwest today.
To place responsibility and as
sure direction, President Truman
asked congress to create the CVA.
He asks this to provide the need
ed mechanism to make the fed
eral agencies function together.
immediately the cry went up
from certain quarters (which also
opposed the Bonneville and Grand
Coulee dams) that the CVA
would create a "socialistic superstate."
Record Cited
This fear is expressed merely
to confuse the problem. The long
record of the Tennessee valley
authority is a complete answer to
this charge. The TVA has the en
dorsement of that region's seven
governors, its leading business
men (republicans and democrats
alike), its workers, farmers and
clergy.
' I have talked with them. I
know they believe that the TVA
has been the greatest thing for
private enterprise in their re
gion's history.
Like TVA. the CVA will apply
the sound principles of business
management to our natural re
source problems. It will be a dy
namic, democratic way of getting
the Job done the power provided
for more industry and the floods
and erosion checked.
Instead of having all decisions
made by cabinet officers in Wash
ington, D. C, (who are respon
sible to all 48 states), CVA will
bring responsiiblity home. By
establishing CVA, we will have
for the first time a government
agency that will work exclusively
in and for the Pacific northwest.
We who advocate a CVA be
lieve it is the only proved way to
make regional resource develop
ment by the federal government
more efficient, more democratic
and more responsive to the needs
of the Pacific northwest.
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WETLE'S
Tho Place to Trado
the conservation of forest, mln
erul, fish anil wildlife resources;
for the development and conserva
tion of recreational resources anil
for the promotion of sanitation
ami pollution control, it would
bo authorized to prepare pro
grams (or sustained-yield man
agement, for tho miiitagiMiHMit of
grazing uml forest lands, of recre
ational areas, even ot wildlife
sanctuaries. As it this were not
enough, Its broud programming
powers would bo stretched to
cover, In tho vague lunguugc of
tho bill, "other resources" which
remain undelinett.
Arguments Itcfutvd
Proponents of. the rosea to C. V,
A. plan Imply that this great area
of ours has been lumollng ami
bumbling along with a virtual
horse-and-buggy economy, that It
cannot progress without this all
powerful supremo agency.
What are the lucuY From
earliest pioneer days our people
have shaped their destiny unci
inunnged their own u (fairs.
Through their Industry, their en
terprise ami their indomitable will
to progress they have built the
Pacific northwest Into one of the
most progressive ureas In tho en
tire nation. They have capital
ized on their store of natural re
sources and forged steadily ahead.
The people ol the 1'uctlic north
west are not unmindful ot the
pare which the federal govern
ment has played In this develop
ment. LiKcwlse, they recognize
the interest of the federal govern
ment in our natural resources as
they relate to national defense,
flood control and similar prob
lems. They are appreciative of
the contributions winch have been
made by established constitution
al agencies under surveillance of
congress, working in cooperation
with tho states and with full rec
ognition of state and local rights.
We have worked well with
these experienced and cawible fed
eral agencies and they huve our
confidence. Now we are being
asked to accept, Instead, a pater
nalistic regime with control over
virtually every face of our Indi
vidual uml collective lives. Shall
we discard our established sys
tem of checks and balances, In
which the people ol this area play
an active part? Or shall we
Out on the Farm
By Ha S. (irant
July 21 The barley got Us
final sprinkling last night. The
Chief says thai, from now on.
moving tlit sprinkler pipes would
do more harm limn good. The
grain is ripening, ami the slalkn
are getting brittle. If the field
were corrugated, ho would Irri
gate once more.
The barley field la turning yel
low In streaks. In a few mora
weeks, It will lie ready for thresh
ing, ami Just as surely as night
follows day, Indian summer will
be upon us.
Last night we pulled up one
of the potato plants, to estimate
what the yield will be. There
were ten Utile potatoes In the
hill. Not very big, hut smooth
and round. The Chief says thai
they're Just starting to grow, sml
will be sizable by digging time.
I put tho tiny tubers In my pock
et and took them to thn house,
ostensibly (or the kettle. Thought
I'd look tonight for two or three
pods of peas to go with them.
The gophers arc wreaking
havoc In the potatoes. In an area
about 10 feet square, they've
worked underground, cutting off
the potatoes and leaving the tops
to die. They'vo cut down little
patches of barley, too. They must
have stored tho grain in their
tunnels, because the straw was
led near the mounds that cover
their front doors.
We'll huve to put out poisoned
grain. We hud hoped we could
get along without It, because
sometimes a dog or cat will eat
one of the dead rodents and die
from the poison, too,
T'okksFcloSkiT
Roscburg, July 21 ni Only
porsons with crmlt.i will be al
lowed to enter the area west of
lioseburg along the top of the
Coast range from Klklon south to
lieston'anil west Into Coos county.
The Douglas Forest Protective
association announced today the
ami will be closed because of
three recent forest fires.
as I maintain we must cau
tiously reject this excursion Into
reglmentulion ami autocratic
control?
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Here', the whole "moving" story
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