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Show FRANCE SLOW IN WAIM OP Did Not Realize Imperative Need of War Materials Until Battle of Marne. ESTIMATE INSUFFICIENT Fabulous Profits Reaped by Manufacturers at Beginning Begin-ning of the War. PARIS, April 6. (Correspondence of the Associated Press) It was not until the battle of the Marne was at Its height when war munitions were running low that the French government govern-ment realized the imperative need of an immense production of war materials, materi-als, according to statements made by Albert Thomas, minister of munitions, in tho chamber of deputies. M. Thomas Thom-as was speaking in reply to criticisms of the conditions under which war material ma-terial had been supplied to the French army. From his assertions, it appears that the French war department had estimated esti-mated before the war that It would be necessary for state arsenals to produce pro-duce not more than 13,000 shells a day. In tho belief that the conflict would be short, no provision whatever was made for the production of ox-plosives ox-plosives during the hostilities. When It was discovered, during the battle of the Marne, that this estimate was insufficient, Alexandre Millerand, then minister of war, summoned to Bordeaux the heads of all manufacturing manufactur-ing establishments available and organized orga-nized them into groups for tho rapid production of 3-inch shells. Netlher the government nor the manufacturers had then any basis for figuring the costs. Tho exceptional conditions and tho groat need of immediately im-mediately replenishing the supply, M. Thomas said, accounted for the abnormal abnor-mal prices and for the fabulous profits pro-fits reaped by the manufacturers. Three-Inch shells at that time cost the government fifteen francs each. Today they are purchased at prices ranging from six francs and fifty centimes cen-times to seven francs and fifty "centimes. "centi-mes. Tho government has established ton new gun foundries since Septombor, 1014, and has enlarged eighteen others, oth-ers, it developed In the debate. oo |