lems confronting our underdeveloped Western counties were problems
facing the entire Appalachian area. It was my thought that all of the
states with portions of their territory in the Appalachians should get
together and form some kind of regional organization to aid them in
overcoming common obstacles. Such an organization was set up, and we
believe the studies it conducted and the reports it made were factors
which influenced the President and his advisers to formulate the pro-
gram of area redevelopment and establish the Area Redevelopment
Administration to administer it. In fact, the chairman of our Economic
Development Commission, Mr. Harry A. Boswell, who worked so ener-
getically to keep the Appalachian Conference rolling, was a member
of the task force which prepared the ARA legislation.

As a result of our knowledge of, and early participation in, the pro-
gram, Maryland has moved faster than most states in taking advantage
of the assistance the federal government is offering. We were one of the
first states to be assigned a full-time coordinator to aid us in securing
federal assistance to promote job opportunities in distressed areas, and
incidentally to help prevent the spread of distress to other areas. It is
unfortunate that some communities of Maryland are not sharing in the
general prosperity of the State. Garrett County and the cities of Cam-
bridge, Cumberland and Hagerstown have been designated as "depressed
areas" and thus are eligible for benefits under the program. Of the
many hundreds of applications filed with ARA, two of the four Mary-
land areas were among the first eight to receive favorable responses
from the agency. And one of these two applications—from Cambridge—
resulted in the second ARA grant to be given in the United States.
Cambridge was allotted $213, 000 to expand its sewer facilities to new
industries which are locating there.

With this federal assistance, with the continued help of the state
government and, of course, with the indispensable cooperation of the
communities themselves, I have great confidence that distressed areas
will vanish from our Maryland scene. And I have abiding faith, too, in
Maryland's ability to remain in the front ranks in the march toward an
expanded economy and a greater prosperity for all the people of this
country.

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