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Show INDUSTRY URGED i Reconstruction Defined by Secretary Houston! j in Address to Agricul-' I tural Editors in East i By Associated Prase. WASHINGTON, Nov. 27. construction plans, in me upmiuii 01 nevmary or Agriculture Agri-culture HouHton, should include resumption of highway construction construc-tion under the federal aid road act. creation of a system of personal credit unions for farmers, systematic supervision of land settlement, provisions pro-visions for safeguarding the rights of tenants and encouragement of farm nanurslilii, Mi.atma.iiee n ginem. i ment supervision of etockyarda and related Industries, and extension ofi the benefits of modern medicine and j s.i n Ha Hon to rural districts. These views of the secretary, eg-1 pressed In confidence to agricultural editors of the country st a meeting' her. several days ago. were author-Ised author-Ised for publication today. ! FARMERS WERE READY; 1 Confidence waa expressed by Mr Houston that agriculture, which he ' aald "probably waa the best prepared pre-pared Intereat In the nation when! t ie war came." would he one of thei firat to readjust Itself to a pence .evermeiess. he aad th, rarmer and the farm cannot go back to the prewar state. The public highways. Secretary Houston told the editors, will be a j in reconstruction I Period. for that reaeon. he eald highway construction should he started as soon aa H.r,o. Tnder (the federal aid rod net. federal and Mate funds, appropriated for road building rind not expended owing to the etnppMge of construction hy the wlM amount this year to about $.5.0A0.0fl0. Hoad building he termed a worthy project for employment of the surplue labor supply expected to reeult from demobilization of the army. j 'PERSONAL CREDIT PLAN. Though farmers wlih proper aecur-Ity aecur-Ity may now obtain loans through the farm loan1 banks. Ferretary Houston I said some meana must be devised for furnishing financial assistance for 4ha farmers, who cannot offer lend aa collateral. Rata b I is h ment of personal per-sonal credit unions, preferably by the atatea, would meet this problem he said. Discussing the possibility th)lt many of the returning aoldiera may wish to take up farming, the aecre-tary aecre-tary said It would be desirable to facilitate land aettlement in more systematic fashion. This, he aald haa too long been left "to the haphazard hap-hazard Intervention of private enterprises enter-prises and tha nation has Buffered not a little from irresponaihle private direction." di-rection." Both federal and state governments gov-ernments should furnish, in his opinion, opin-ion, reliable Information and agriul-tl1-g'tMnee to beginning firmere and should promote well considered settlement plans. URGE LAND OWNERSHIP. Particularly vital, Mr. Houston held. J la that the process of acquiring ! ownership of farms be encouraged j and hastened. Tenancy should be protected, "for It is a step towards ownership. 4 ' The restoration and maintenance of j conditlona which will justify confl-dence confl-dence In the livestock markets and the meat packing Industry, the sec- i leUlV iMimd the grrafst single need In the present meat situation in the1 1'nfted States. The economic welfare of meat production and distribution! would be promoted, he aald, by the continuation and development of gome form of supervision over the packing pack-ing Industry. He urged that the 1 necessary legislation be enacted at the earliest posatble moment. j FOOD PRICES HIGH. ' Discussing the world food situation. situa-tion. Secretary Houston aaid It appeared ap-peared "highly probable that prices for current supplies, for the harvesta 1 of thia year, both because of large foreign needs and of con tin u Wig domestic do-mestic demands, will remain reasonably reason-ably high and remunerative to producers.' pro-ducers.' It waa yet too early, he aaid, to advise regarding planting next spring, aa no one can foretell ! tha supply and demand and the! price a year hence I |