Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1917-01-29
H-WATER MARK PASSED
IN MAKING OF MUNITIONS
england Now Sees Need OF Turning
I" More Useful Lines OF bones
tic Production and Export.
WOULD CHECK GOLD OUTFLOW
1923 Factories and Works Taken
Over by Govcrnmcnt-I'eOplc En-
pl0ycd Constitute Large PcrCcn-
tagc Of Total Working Population.

N'"-r TottoTieS anu WORKS taken
Over by Govcrnmcnt-PeOple En-
rl0ycd Constitute Large Pcrccn-
tagc Of Total Working Population.
LONDON. January :S-rhc high
water mark has now been reached ana
passed III making British guns. shells
and all kinds of ammunition for the
allied armies, and this fact now pre-,
senis the large problem OF divcrtinE
this production into new and usefuI
channels. by which England Will again
supply the outside world with goods.
mus diminishing the steady outflow or
gold and checking the decline in the
british exchange rate.
At tho Ministry OF Munitions and the
Board OF Trade. Inquiries by the As
sociated Press brought out some inter.
csting facts on tn. maximum point
reached in gun and shell production.
and tho need now Of turning 10 nor,
useful lines Of domestic production ana
exports. A. the Ministry 81 Munitions
these facts were stated:
There arc uow 1893 private factories
ana works, ordinarily employed in va
rious useful Kinds Of metal production.
which have been taken over by The
government and are now controlled"
regular government factories
There arc 100000 employees work
ing In these controlled" and govern
nent factories. making cAclusively
GUNS and sheis
This enormous production has now
reached n point where the equipment
"f the arm" is approximately complete
In some Il the main lines. such a,
light field p."res so that the iaanurac-
ture OF eighteen FOUNDER guns has had
10 br slackened IN the last few weeks
instead OF further Increased The es-
Establishment OF pieces OF the 5-calib"r
~ also practically complete. In trench
mortar ammunition and rrcundes. also.
The production has been SO developed
hat any further increase seems un-
necessary
COMPARISON WITH
NORMAL. CONDITIONS
What the foregoing figures mean. in
showing the extent to which this pro-
duction Of ammunition has been car.
ricd. can only I've understood by com
partson with the normal conditions
The number or "controiled" factories
making the one articl. Of munitions is
more than half OF all the factorie.
usually employed IN metal industry
making all kinds o.: iron and steel
goods, from a nal! UP 70 steel beams
steel rails and all kinds ot machinery.
rs well as tho Infinite variety OF small
metal goods usually exported by Eng
land.
The number OF people employed in
this one industry Of gun and she'll
making Is large percentage of the
total British working populations The
entire membership OF all tho trad.-
unions last year WAS about : 900. COO
while those now working in gun = nd
shcl!mak king IS :.25O.oUN. or alnos,
half OF IN" full trad"-uuion strength.
which includes abuut half o, all the
WaEe-earners Befor" the war there
were about 10000 uniouisi workers In
all the various metal trades which ~
only one-fourth the number Of thnse
now employed in the single industry
Of making guns and shells.
The extent 10 which this gun and
shell output has grown Is shown by
The figures given at the Ministry OF
Munitions. The comparison IS made
between June. 1915. when tho war
had Just got under way. and The pro
duction to-day. For every heavy
hoWitzcr produced then. Their. are 3e2
produced now. For every field howi,-
ger produced then there are .orty-six
produced nov. FOR every medium gun
then. there az. siN;y-Six now. The
output OF sikty-pound.rs and six-inch
guns went UP cishtecufoId and has
now dropped back 10 tw-lvcfold. as the
supply Is too great A. q whole. the
production Of guns Of all caliher has
Increased forty-oncfold on those OF
medium weight, and tw.lvefold on
the heavier guns There is the same
remarkable expansion in the output OF
all the other various types OF amrnu-
milton. machine guns, explosives etc.
About tn" only exception is ia small
arms, as the increase "f regulation
rifles ts particularly difficult ana has
not much more than doubled since The
began. The shell production.
however. has taken such leap that
the production for heavy guns in n
single day equals the entire years pro-
duction during the first year OF III.
war; and on rrojectiles for field howi,-
zers and - millimcter guns the week
~ output now equals the whole. years
output during the first year Of the
war. In single week recently from
November 10 10 20. the shell output
was 30 per cent greater than the entire
reserve stock of ammunition held at
the outbreak OF the war.
II Is because this high-water mark
in the output OF ammunition has been
reached and passed. that attention
is now being given To gradually di-
verting labor 10 other lines so that the
trade and export war may h" carried
on. This is the reason for the crea-
ton OF a new member Of the ministry.
Neville Chamberlain. rs Director OF
Service. Mr.. Chamberla ms chief du-
ties are TO divide occupations into
essentials and "nonesscntals." and
TO gradually divert labor from the
nonessential Industries. turning out
luxurics. 10 the essential Industries
which turn out those articles on which
England's great export trade is based
in normal times
At the BOARD or Trade the returns
show that the scale is already turning
favorably. and that exports are stead
lily increasing and the heavy trade