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Show Commerce Head j Is Optimistic Of ! Rubber Situation A statement that the production rate of synthetic rubber would reach "something like" one million mil-lion tons annually by the end of Xi43 was attributed to Secretary of Commerce Jesse Jones Tuesday as nation-wide rationing of gasoline gaso-line went into effect to save tires. Jones' estimate considerably higher than goals previously discussed dis-cussed was disclosed by Chairman Chair-man Steagall (D), Alabama, after an executive session of the house banking and currency committee. Steagall said the government now had a rubber stockpile of between be-tween 600,000 and 700,000 tons, and added: "This is my personal opinion 1 think that kve ought to be pretty well out of the woods as far as rubber is concerned by the middle of next year." Just how far the expanded production pro-duction of synthetic rubber, if realized, would go toward meeting the rubber shortage obviously would be dependent upon the needs of the military. There have been estimates that the nation's needs in normal times amount to nearly 700,000 tons. Meanwhile, the banking committee com-mittee swiftly and unanimously approved a measure increasing the Reconstruction Finance corporation's cor-poration's loaning authority by an additional $5,000,000,000. Jones, behind closed doors, outlined out-lined the RFC's need, but declined de-clined after the session to specify the uses to which the additional loans would be put beyond saying that they would be "entirely for war purposes." However, in view of his reference refer-ence to the rubber situation made public by Steagall, it appeared that some of the money would be used to develop the -synthetic rubber rub-ber program. Jones will appear before the senate banking committee Wednesday. Wed-nesday. While the house banking committee com-mittee was meeting, a house interstate) in-terstate) commerce subcommittee was concluding a 10-day study of the rubber and oil situation with! a practical demonstration on how the average automobile tire may be used without an inner tube. |