Chapter 205
Using Work-for-Relief Programs: A Dilemma Resolved
Chapter 205 Using Work-for-Relief Programs: A Dilemma Resolved
In the abandoned miners' outpost on the outskirts of Denver, Colorado.
The flame of the kerosene lamp flickered, casting an alternating light and shadow on the huge state map on the wall.
The map was filled with red circles and blue lines, marking drought-stricken areas and dried-up rivers.
Arthur stood in front of the map, holding a pencil in his hand.
Governor Adams sat on a wooden crate next to him, holding a cup of coffee that had gone cold.
Arthur began, "Governor, your current predicament can actually be broken down into two problems."
"On one hand, there are unemployed people and homeless people who are about to starve to death, and on the other hand, the state's finances are unable to provide relief."
Governor Adams shook his head with a wry smile.
"You're right. So what? It's a dead end."
Arthur shook his head and corrected him, "No. These two problems can be solved with one key."
Adams frowned. "What do you mean?"
Arthur explained, "Work relief solves the dilemma. What you need is not to keep these people alive, but to get them to work."
Adams paused for a moment.
"Work? What kind of work? The mines have shut down, the factories have closed, and we can't farm the land."
Arthur turned around and tapped the river on the map heavily with his finger.
That is a major tributary of the Colorado River.
"Do this."
"Build a dam?"
"Yes. But it's not about building a dam."
Arthur walked back to the map and drew dense red dots with a pencil.
"It's about building dozens, maybe a hundred small dams. Not like the Boulder Gorge project that's about to start, which costs tens of millions and takes several years to complete."
"What we want to build is the kind of small dam that can be constructed with stones and cement and completed by a few dozen people in a few months."
His pencil moved swiftly across the map, drawing a red dot with each stroke.
"Here, here, here, and here. These places are located near the Rocky Mountains, on the upper reaches of the Colorado River, as well as the Platte River and the Arkansas River. They have large drops and rapid currents, making them suitable for dam construction."
Each dam can irrigate thousands of acres downstream. Dozens of dams connected together could solve drought problems in half the state.
Adams' eyes slowly brightened.
"But—but these projects cost money. A lot of money. My state's finances are already bankrupt, and the federal government—"
Arthur interrupted him.
"I'll handle the federal government."
He pulled a piece of paper from his pocket; it was a draft he had just written, titled "An Open Letter to the Federal Bureau of Reclamation: Colorado Water Self-Rescue Project Plan."
"Governor, federal bureaucrats fear two things the most. One is improper procedures, and the other is uncontrollable public opinion."
He handed the paper to Adams.
"We need to package this plan. If Colorado can intercept the spring floods in the Rocky Mountains, several surrounding states will benefit, and it could even help solve desertification problems in the region. This is saving the foundation of American agriculture."
Adams took the paper and read it line by line. The more he read, the brighter his eyes became.
"And this too." Arthur pulled out another piece of paper.
"This is a private letter to the head of the Federal Bureau of Reclamation. If he doesn't approve the money, I'll write an article in the New York Herald titled 'Who Turned Colorado into a Graveyard?'"
"In the article, I will list in detail every ineffective expenditure he has approved over the years, and by the way, ask where that money went? It was used to build highways for Wall Street bankers' vacation homes."
Adams thought for a moment, then asked, "But Kennedy, even if the cost of materials is covered, what about the wages? You can't expect those homeless people, those unemployed miners, to work for free, can you?"
Arthur nodded.
"That's a good question. Wages are not paid in cash."
Adams paused, then asked, "Not cash? What are you going to do?"
"Issuance of ration coupons."
"These coupons aren't money, but they can be used to buy things. You can use the state government's name to purchase food and supplies from farmers and merchants throughout the state, and then tell them that these coupons can be used to offset taxes later."
"If they don't cooperate, you tell them that stores that refuse to accept ration coupons will not get any contracts from the state government in the future."
Merchants who have goods but can't sell them are not like homeless people.
"I've heard a saying that it's always the farmers who rebel, never the merchants."
Adams burst into laughter: "Kennedy, what's wrong with your brain?"
For the next three days, the sound of Arthur's typewriter clicking away was almost constant.
In his open letter to the Federal Bureau of Reclamation, he used the sharpest language to depict Colorado's predicament as an apocalyptic scene.
He wrote "The Colorado Water Self-Rescue Project Plan," using the most rigorous data to demonstrate the return on investment for each small dam.
He wrote "A Letter to All the Citizens of Colorado," using the most inflammatory language to call on unemployed miners and bankrupt farmers to pick up shovels and tame the raging rivers.
Every letter and every article was sent to New York, Washington, and major newspapers across the United States as quickly as possible.
Three days later, the front page of The New York Herald featured a lengthy article.
The title is: "Waiting for death outside the barbed wire fence, or picking up a shovel to save yourself?"
In the article, Arthur, using the first-person perspective, describes in detail the horrific scene in front of the barbed wire fence on the Colorado border.
He wrote in the article:
The money in America should rot in Wall Street's bad debts, allowing those bankers to continue throwing parties with taxpayers' money.
Or should it be transformed into a dam at the foot of the Rocky Mountains, allowing those farmlands that have been thirsty for five years to drink water again?
Is it to leave those displaced people to become corpses in front of the barbed wire fence, waiting for the morgue to haul them away in trucks?
Or should we let them become the tamers of the river, the masters of this land?
Washington bigwigs, please answer.
Arthur Kennedy, on the Colorado front
The day after the article was published, the Federal Bureau of Reclamation's phone lines were ringing off the hook.
Telegrams from all over the United States came in like snowflakes, some supporting, some opposing, some cursing, and some praising.
What gave the chief the biggest headache was the calls from Congress, questioning why Colorado's application hadn't been approved yet.
On the third day, the Federal Bureau of Reclamation relented.
"We are considering an initial allocation of $500,000 for materials. Engineering and technical personnel will be dispatched from the federal government. Construction supervision will be the responsibility of the state government."
As soon as Governor Adams received the telegram, he rushed to Arthur: "Kennedy! It's approved! They're processing the paperwork!"
Arthur nodded and said, "Now that the money issue is resolved, what do you plan to do with the 50,000 people outside?"
Adams paused for a moment, then said, "Is that even a question? Let them in and let them work on the dam!"
Arthur shook his head.
"Bring them all in? If 50,000 people flood in at the same time, you won't even have a place to house them. Besides, not everyone can do the dam construction work. What about the elderly? What about the children? What about those who can't do heavy work?"
Adams fell silent.
Arthur pointed to the desolate hillsides on the map.
"This is the second thing I want to tell you."
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