Establishment of a Jewish homeland of one hundred square miles in Peru was advocated on the floor of the House of Representatives yesterday by Rep. Compton I. White, Idaho Dem.
White interrupted a speech by Rep. Joseph E. Talbot, Conn. Rep, against the Palestine White Paper, with the question: “Would the gentleman consider the possibility of establishing a Jewish homeland in the Western Hemisphere, on the coast of Peru? On the Pacific side there is a plain there it does not rain but it is very fertile. By bringing the waters from the head of the Amazon it would make very valuable land. There are 100 square miles in there of what is the most fertile land in the world, in one of the finest climates of the world.
“I have been trying to find time, “White continued, “to make the necessary investigation. As chairman of the Committee on Irrigation and Reclamation of the case, I am going to propose a project for the establishment of the Jews in Peru at a point that is not now inhabited. It is one of the finest countries in the world, if thy only had water. It seems to me the Jews should look into the possibilities of that project.”
Talbot outlined the contributions of Palestine Jews to the war effort, and talked American support of the Balfour Declaration. He made no response to a question from Rep. Samuel Dickstein New York Dem, on whether he would be willing to admit there persecuted Jews to this country. When Rep. Emmanuel Celler, N. Y. Dem., suggested that the White Paper violated our treaty with Britain, recognizing the Palestine Mandate, Talbot agreed.
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