Times | 29 Giugno, 1935

Duce’s Visit To Pontine Marshes FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT ROME, JUNE 28 Signor Mussolini yesterday made his annual visit to the reclaimed lands of Littoria and Sabaudia in the Pontine Marshes. In 1932 the harvest at Littoria was 43,065 quintals from an area of 4,115 hectares; this year the figure -will exceed 140,000 quintals from 14,102 hectares. In the same period the population has risen from 5,116 to 22,648. At Littoria, where there was a parade of 250 of its men who have volunteered for service in East Africa, Signor Musso- lini first laid. the foundation-stone of a beet sugar factory which represents the first attempt to give an industrial turn to the development of the reclaimed areas.

At Borgo Pasubio, Signor Mussolini mounted on to a threshing-machine and for over an hour, to the accompaniment of simple harvest songs from the peasant women and men working around him, fed the sheaves of corn into the machine. Before leaving for Pontinia, which is being rapidly built, he sat down among the peasants and shared their frugal meal. From Pontinia the Duce went to a farm at Sabaudia where he worked stripped to the waist at threshing the first grain. 1f Picture on page 1S. DUCE’S VISIT TO PONTINE MARSHES THRESHING THE HARVEST