Show I 1 P american know how aids in development of nations by BAUKHAGE news and when the various departments of the government began to gather data for the president to be used as the basis for preliminary legislation for his bold new program of establishing tab lishing the machinery of world cooperation for the development of undeveloped countries it was a surprise to many to learn than many of these agencies are by no means starting from scratch the department of agriculture of course has had the longest and most successful record in this linea line a good 10 years in 1939 it had become all too evident that in a world where the tree free how flow of trade was threatened by rising antidemocratic anti democratic hegemonies les we had bad to look to our nearer neighbors neighbor for many things which we did not produce at home and which they could but did not produce themselves congest was quite willing to authorize auth oriza the department of agriculture to lend i some of its technicians to other countries and to help such guch countries as were willing to coi operate to set up agricultural a s t a eions lor for the purpose p 0 a e ot of putting american techniques into action for those who m may a y have questioned the expenditure in this connect tion there Is some satisfaction in noting that the experiment paid from the standpoint of all concerned including the peoples of the countries involved on the average the united states puts out one dollar for each three dollars spent by the other countries in 1943 latin american countries were expending in 1948 they invested the countries in which the stations are located an official of the department explained supplies applies land buildings associate technicians office and service personnel equipment and supplies available available within the country and funds f for or operating expenses the ile united states supplies the know how and the specialized equipment necessary the plan pays out the department explains this way assistance in raising crops such as cocoa cottee coffee certain fibres fabres medical plants tea and rubber has increased the revenue from them they are products in demand in this country we dont or cant raise the dollars they earn are turned into many manufactured products which these countries purchase from us in the last special report issued by the american military government on the licensed press of germany we have an example of another type of experience which the united states has had in attempting to provide the know now how for a foreign nation some of the seeds which have been planted and which it Is hoped win will grow thanks to the application of american techniques are those which should produce a f free or e e and democratic press in germany it would be somewhat rash to try to teach the germans all about the publishing business after all gutenburg who invented printing was a german and ever since his bis time the germans have taken the lead in many of the mechanical processes connected with the publishing business but when the american occupation forces moved in there was nothing that resembled a free press in germany and if there had been it hardly could have flourished under the conditions which then existed even today the best we can expect Is a nearly tree free press and that is what it admittedly Is in the united states zone and in berlin there are now 56 58 newspapers licensed by the united states these papers own a cooperatively operated news agency these publications are not and never have been vre pre censored 11 they are carefully read by the military government officials and some have been suspended after warning but these occasions have been few the mission of the military government in the field of the press as planned and applied to date has tor for its first point to help democratically minded and trustworthy german publishers and editors to build an objective tree free democratic press in the U S zone in germany and to prevent the resurgence of nazism militarism racism pan or nationalism in the newspaper and news agency field the special report explains that controls which were imposed when the papers were first established in order to conserve scarce materials supplies and equipment and in order to train editors publishers and journalists in the tradition of a democratic tree free press have been progressively lifted so that for or two years at least the U S zone has had a nearly tree free press the eventual goal has been from the start an absolutely free press to the extent that this condition obtains in the united states and great britain or other democratic countries what have been the results in the view of the military government democratically minded and trustworthy german editors and publishers have established a solid core of independent an and it democratic newspapers in the V U B S area of occupation they have been encouraged to maintain their independence and objectivity against all attacks and to resist the encroachment ot of government or of other special interest groups and protect their right to bring the news of germany and the world to the people of germany and to comment upon it the question that remains however is this when the controls and the existing regulations are removed will the germans graduate from a nearly tree free press which the americans have encouraged to a genuinely free press which americans consider an essential of democracy will the germans who for centuries have accepted control and regiment regimentation atlon from above be able to start out afresh and make use of the democratic techniques to which we have attempted to expose them that is one kind of know how it is hard to pass on whips winter blizzards the winter storms which attacked the range country and presented what looked for awhile like a major tragedy to the cattle industry turn out to be as bad as some people feared but it might have been considerably sider ably worse if it been for what happened in the pacific islands in world Worl dWar war II 11 the japs used to say that the americans most kerible weapon was the bulldozer and of course the sea bees wrote epic history on a clean slate the same might be said of the air force so far as the snowbound ranchers especially those in nevada were concerned there the baylift took them over the first worst hump of the storms the great plains always have furnished hazards unknown to other parts of the north american continent As C warren Thorn walte soll oil conservation expert of the department of agriculture says of the great plains in a desert you know what to expect of the climate and plan accordingly the same Is true of 0 humid regions men dien have been badly fooled by the semiarid regions because they are sometimes humid sometimes arid and sometimes a cross between the two yet tet it Is possible to make allowances tor for this too once the climate is understood one of the worst blows in the winter storms was struck in the southwestern part of the area affected southern nevada and northern arizona where ordinarily there is all winter feeding there are low altitude ranges there which make it unnecessary under normal conditions to provide winter teed feed when these were cut off there just any teed feed available the early settlers who struck west were suspicious of odthe the plains they realize that the gama and the buffalo grass which covered those plains and provided plenty of sustenance tor for the millions of buffalo which roamed them unmolested could resist drought as efficiently as it does for miles there would be no water in sight to the men in the prairie schooners ners so they took tor for granted the land was not likeable live able and pushed on to the coast the grass as long as it was there and the buffalo were good conservationists and overgraze it reduced the runoff run off oft alter after rains and prevented erosion but the first adventurers had westward ho written in their hats halt anyhow and they headed toward the coast then came the farmers the cattlemen were driven further west the plow broke the plains and dug the dust bowl but agriculture is a closer knit industry now and it had many means ot of assistance besides the army upon which to draw to help combat the recent blizzards help which the early plainsmen plainsman plains men have the department of agriculture hai had its organization the foresters had bad equipment easily pressed into service |