1940: Louisiana

Area and Population.

Louisiana has an area of 48,506 sq. mi., a third of which is farm land. The population of the state, according to the 1940 census, is 2,363,880, a gain of 12.5 per cent since 1930. The largest cities are New Orleans, with a population of 494,537, Shreveport with 98,167, and Baton Rouge, the capital and an industrial center, with a population of 34,719.

Education.

Louisiana has a total of 619,475 school children, of whom 382,711 are whites and 236,764 are Negroes. Of this number 212,022 white children are enrolled in 989 public elementary schools and 82,435 are enrolled in 446 high schools. In addition 157,522 Negroes are enrolled in 1,686 elementary schools and 14,757 in 110 high schools. The remainder are enrolled in private and parochial schools.

Teachers' salaries on the average show a small but steady increase throughout the state. The average annual salary for white teachers for the 1939-40 session totaled $923.64 for teachers of the elementary grades, and $1,265.46 for those in high schools. Negro teachers received average annual salaries of $358.04 in the elementary schools and $617.14 in the high schools.

State educational support for 1939-40 reached a total of $14,137,113.30. These funds provided for free textbooks in both public and private schools, for current expenses, and for free library books, paper, and pencils.

Louisiana State University, which had suffered a loss of prestige in 1939 through the resignation, flight to Canada, and subsequent conviction of the president, James Monroe Smith, made educational progress in 1940 under direction of the acting president, Paul M. Hebert. The Louisiana Legislature, meeting in regular session in May, passed a law designed to remove the University from politics through extension of the terms of board members to 14 years and removal of the Governor as ex-officio chairman of the board. Appointment of an entire new board of supervisors for the University was made by Governor Jones. The members are to serve staggered terms.

An academic survey of the University was conducted by the American Council of Education, which made suggestions for sweeping changes in the academic set-up of the institution. These changes are being made as rapidly as possible. The University was put on probation in April by the Southern Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools.

Agriculture.

Louisiana agriculture suffered serious setbacks during 1940, because of weather conditions. Heavy rains in the early spring and summer seriously damaged the sugar-cane crop, and the grinding season was one of the shortest on record as a heavy freeze in early November ruined great quantities of cane still standing in the fields and necessitated the windrowing (cutting and covering) of the remainder. The cane crop was only 50 per cent of normal.

Cotton was equally damaged by excessive rainfall. A series of severe storms which struck sections of Louisiana in the spring brought death to thousands of head of cattle. The cash income from farm crops in 1940 showed a drop from the preceding year, as it totaled about $75,000,000 as compared with $77,000,000 in 1939. Income from livestock was approximately $25,000,000 for the year.

At least one new crop was cultivated in Louisiana during the year. Arthur Denes, 'king of the paprika industry in Yugoslavia,' settled in Louisiana and introduced there the production of paprika peppers. Louisiana soil proved ideal and the first year's crop was highly successful.

An additional outlet for the sweet potato crop was found in the establishment of starch mills in the historic Feliciana areas, where the manufacture of starch from sweet potatoes is proving a profitable industry.

Industry.

Industrial expansion continued during 1940, as new investments made during the past two years reached the hundred-million mark. The Standard Oil Company at Baton Rouge began a several-million dollar expansion program, including a new buna rubber plant. Construction is proceeding rapidly and actual manufacture of rubber is expected to begin early in 1941. A two-million dollar expansion program was also inaugurated at the Solvay Process plant where soda ash is manufactured.

National Defense.

National defense brought considerable construction to Louisiana, as the national Government expects to spend millions there in the next four years. Construction of camps in the Alexandria area at a cost of some $10,000,000 has already begun, and probably will be completed early in 1941. As Louisiana was selected for yearly maneuvers, 70,000 soldiers were stationed in the Alexandria area during the fall.

Major-General Campbell Blackshear Hodges, a Louisianian, who was placed in command of the Fifth Division, will have under his command eventually a total of 425,000 men, stationed at Camp Beauregard and other camps in the Alexandria section.

The selection of Baton Rouge as the location of a pursuit air-squadron speeded work on the new Baton Rouge airport, which will be headquarters for the squadron. The year also brought expansion of the New Orleans airport and tentative selection of Leesville as the permanent site of one of the Army's new armored divisions.

Mineral Products.

Sixth among the states for the total value of its mineral products, which amounted in 1938 to $172,306,761, Louisiana attains that rank chiefly through extensive petroleum resources. These in 1939 furnished 93,869,000 bbl., a slight reduction from the yield in 1938 of 95,208,000 bbl. with a value of $110,100,000, the state ranking fourth in the Union for that product. The output of natural gas in 1939 was the highest ever for Louisiana, totaling 402,751,000 M. cu. ft. Sulphur, in which the state ranks next to Texas, the leading state, amounted in 1939 to 422,600,000 tons; and 1,072,540 tons of salt added $2,830,331 to the state's mineral assets.

Legislative Matters.

Governor Earl Long, seeking re-election after leading the field in a first primary, called a special session of the Legislature in January 1940. The proposed amendments, including repeal of the sales tax and of the so-called dictator laws, were subsequently defeated when submitted to the people at the request of Governor Jones, following his election in April.

The regular legislative session of 1940 was particularly important. Major legislation enacted was the reorganization bill, which provided complete overhauling of the governmental system and reduced the number of state agencies and boards from 170 to 20. This reorganization is now under way, following adoption of amendments to the Constitution at the election in early November.

Of equal importance was the fiscal code providing a new state financial set-up with a finance director in charge, and requiring central purchasing and a pre-audit of expenditures. This likewise is being put into effect.

The solons adopted a state civil-service system, provided for repeal of the sales tax on December 31, levied a new tax on natural gas and pulpwood, increased the tax on incomes and allotted all receipts of the severance tax to the public schools. The income tax proposal, a Constitutional amendment, was subsequently voted down by the people in early November. A new registration law was enacted and the use of voting machines made mandatory in New Orleans and optional elsewhere in the state. A measure eliminating the poll receipt as a requisite for voting was also adopted.

Former Governor Leche was brought to trial in Alexandria on a deal involving the purchase of trucks by the Louisiana Highway Commission, in which two associates had already pleaded guilty. Leche was found guilty and sentenced and is now appealing the case.

Finance.

Despite the chaotic condition of Louisiana politics, the state's finances were in excellent shape during the year, and the state sold highway bonds at a record low interest rate of 3.0347 per cent. All bond obligations were met.

The state's present financial outlook, however, is not so bright. Repeal of the sales tax on Dec. 31, and failure of the income tax amendment, designed to replace revenue from the sales tax, created a big problem for 1941. Over-appropriation by the Legislature is also resulting in a deficit of some $8,000,000 in state funds.

Social Welfare.

The state in 1940 spent a total of $10,643,074.10 for relief to the needy aged and blind, to dependent children, and unemployables. The division of employment security reported that approximately 57,000 placements were made by the Louisiana State Employment Service during 1940. The unemployment compensation section distributed 850,000 jobless insurance checks, totaling $6,600,000. When construction work on national defense projects opened in the fall, upwards of 16,000 workers were given jobs on Army camps.

Events of the Year.

Highway construction moved along steadily during 1940. An important event of the year was the opening of a new bridge over the Mississippi River at Baton Rouge, the second such span in the state. Also completed was the airline highway entering New Orleans from the north. Another notable event of the year was the inauguration of a $2,500,000 building program at the United States Marine Hospital for lepers at Carville.

The year 1940 brought the final downfall of the firmly entrenched Long administration, which had been in power in Louisiana for more than a decade. The present head of Louisiana's government is Sam Houston Jones, Lake Charles attorney, who was elected Governor in April, after a bitter political campaign which began in September 1939, and ended with a second primary in February 1940. He defeated the powerful machine built up by Senator Huey P. Long, and headed by Gov. Earl K. Long, youngest brother of the deceased Senator, who had become chief executive following the resignation of Gov. Richard W. Leche in June 1939. Swept into office among others, with the Jones 'reform' ticket in the second primary, was John E. Coxe, state Superintendent of Education, who defeated Supt. T. H. Harris, for 30 years head of the state's public school system.

State Officers.

Governor, Sam Houston Jones; Lieutenant Governor, Dr. Marc M. Mouton; Secretary of State, James A. Gremillion; Treasurer, A. P. Tugwell; Auditor, L. B. Baynard; Attorney General, Eugene Stanley; Superintendent of Education, John E. Coxe.

United States Senators:

John H. Overton, Allen J. Ellender.