Show N NEWS E W S B BEHIND E H I N D THE NEWS NEW S By Ray Tucker Telegrams Telegram's Washington Columnist WASHINGTON Topnotch o 0 ers P ers M-ers are studying intensIvely intensively intensively a series of recommendations designed to break w war a r production bottlenecks in every key industry The suggestions have come from men who ought to know the present and future problems that is from the producers producers producers pro pro- of raw materials and the fabricators of manufactured goods These experts point out that they cannot build additional plant capacity for steel alumInum aluminum aluminum num tin rubber etc in time timeto timeto timeto to meet out all-out needs of national national na national na- na defense and full aid to Britain They warn that even if I they could the required expansion expansion ex expansion ex- ex would aggravate postwar postwar postwar post post- war problems As an alternative they suggest suggest sug sug- suggest gest that t the h he e manufacture of the civilian goods involving use of critical materials be suspended suspend suspend- ed or at l least ast curtailed by from 60 to 75 per cent Almost every article now needed for ordinary peacetime purposes including e even en replacements would be bann banned d from pr du Our people would have to get along with their present clothes household utensils an and furniture furni furni- ture automobiles radios refrigerators refrigerators refrigerators etc Perhaps third one-third of all industry and particularly particular particular- ly the smaller factories would be forced to turn to armament production or be driven out of business The 0 ers P ers M-ers are scratching scratching scratch scratch- scratching ing their heads and tugging at their forelocks over these hard proposals even even though they have seen them coming They may stall for a time before ap approving approving approving ap- ap proving them but their acceptance acceptance acceptance accept accept- ance and effectuation by au au- au- au are regarded as almost inevitable How to inaugurate this system of no guns butter without producing dangerous dangerous dangerous dan dan- price inflation is a problem problem problem lem which not even Leon Henderson Henderson Henderson Hen Hen- derson has solved The ultimate consumer ap appears appears ap- ap appears pears pears to have become the forgotten forgotten forgotten for gotten man In fri t the h e present emergency Washington agencies agen agen- cies are cluttered with consumers consumers consumers con sumers' sumers counsels and their staffs but these concede that they are only vestigial tos They possess neither power nor influence Dr Harriet Elliott represents consumers' consumers interests on 0 O P PM M but she has no authority A re respected respected respected re- re educator s she h e spends most of her time making hopeful hopeful hope hope- hopeful ful speeches Don M Montgomery on t g om ery AAA watchdog for buyers issues pretty pam pamphlets pamphlets' while the price of food increases every month Price e Fixer Leon Henderson has set ceilings for numerous defense items but in each in instance instance in- in stan stance e his m maximum a x i m mum u m approaches approaches approaches ap ap- ap- ap the highest price re recorded recorded recorded re- re corded in the market But the prize illustration is provided by the nomination of Dr Luther Harr of Philadelphia as consumers' consumers counsel on the coat coal commission Dr Harr is conceded to be an able man even by senate objectors There was no opposition when Senator Senator Sena Sena- Senator tor Guffey recommended h his I s appointment Then it developed that Dr Harr intends to retain his job as Philadelphia city treasurer until his present term expires next January Meanwhile he will do double f duty Ignoring senate protests that his coal clients will suffer However he was confirmed in spite of the Guffey duffey coal act providing providing providing pro pro- viding that the counsel shall not actively engage in any other business vocation or employ employ- ment Senate Foreign Relations Chairman George recently was reminded that he still is unpopular unpopular unpopular un un- popular in certain high He wanted to have the new southeastern air base located near his home town of Vienna Ga But he lost out because ac according according ac- ac according cording to the official explanation explanation tion such a site would bring this important aviation center within miles of the coast Eventually it went to a place near Macon which is only miles from the Atlantic ocean But Macon is on the edge of the district represented by Representative Representative Representative Rep Rep- Carl Vinson chairman chairman chairman chair chair- man of the house naval affairs committee I It It Itis is costing Sweden lion kronor kroner this year t to remain neutral A krona kron is worth a tr trifle le less than 25 cents so the national defense expenditure of the little Scandinavian country is running around half a billion billion billion bil bil- bil- bil lion dollars in excess of the she spent for the purpose before her next-door next neighbors came to blows Without Without Without With With- out any war boom to build up national income she is having to go in debt for some eighty per cent of the increase Unimpressive as a billion dollars may seem in these days of almost grotesque public ex expenditures expenditures expenditures ex- ex the Spanish Ameri can war was won before the U. U S. S spent that much in any twelvemonth for all federal purposes including the army and the navy The lengths to which Sweden is going give earnest of h her e r intention to tomake tomake tomake make the results unpleasant for anybody who forces her hand For those who still have no conception what out all-out war means in a nation that cannot even approximate economic sufficiency self-sufficiency the clothes ra rationing rationing ra- ra systems in Germany and England offer some pointers The subject matter of course is much less dramatic than bomb ings and not so important as starving by malnutrition But here there is an exact measure measure- ment The British are proud and happy because their are able to buy one suit and andone andone andone one overcoat a and ii d then have enough left over on their coupon coupon coupon cou cou- pon books to wangle a suit of pajamas two shirts two pairs of socks and third one of a hand hand- kerchief That is not the normal distribution of the 66 coup coupons ms allowed but exemplifies exemplifies I a method of utilizing utilizing- them m. m In In practice a suit and an overcoat overcoat over over- overcoat coat would not be the same year so the coupons not used for that purpose could be spread over some collars and extra socks ties handkerchiefs etc Germans the British ar are reminded cannot buy buya a suit and a raincoat durin during t the h e same twelvemonth and must have special permits to buy overcoats overcoats over over- coats at all It is not a matter of present present scarcity or of price It is possible possible pos pos- sible to get iet an excellent suit in London for 13 or 15 while women's women spring clothes range from to for those who must count their shillings The control is designed to avert inflation to release workers from textile plants so so that they can serve in armament production production tion and to conserve shipping space Copyright 1941 McClure Syn Syn- |