The Meridian times. (Meridian, Idaho) 1909-1938, 1918-02-01
Astounding Order by Garfield
Stops Nations Industries
for Five Days.
CAUSED BY The COAL famine
Nine Additional Holidays Decreed-
Storm of Protests is UnaVailing-At-
tacks an Secretary Baker Continue
Central Powers Reject Russian
Peace Proposals.
BY EDWARD w. PlcKARD.

at is the earnest desire of the fuel
administration to prevent entirely any
iislocation of industry or of labor"
With these words, Fuel Administrator
Garfield closed his summary of the
most drastic and startling experiment
In domestic and war economy made by
this or any other government. For five
days beginning January Is every fac
tory and workshop in the region east of
the Mississippi and including all of
Louisiana and Minnesota, was ordered
closed, with the exception of those
manufacturing perishable food or food
for immediate consumption. Ten sue
cesstve Mondays beginning January q
are ordered to be observed as holidays
when the consumption of coal shall
cease except in specified cases.
Doctor Garfield stated that he ex-
pected to save 3O,00O,000 tons of coal
by his order Very likely he will, but
his plan, announced without Warming,
brought a tremendous storm about his
head. Innumerable business men,
whose affairs were dislocated despite
the earnest desire of the administra-
tor. flooded Washington with protests
and requests for revocation of the
order but it had been issued after con
sultation with and by direction of
President Wilson and the walters had
no chance for relief save in those indi-
vidual instances where it was neces-
sary to prevent injury to health or de-
struction of property.
Another and most important angle TO
the situation was the enforced loss of
millions of dollars in wages to work
ers. Some big concerns did not deduct
anything from the pay of their EN-
ployees, but it was beyond hope that
this example would be followed by any
considerable number of employers.
Congress, startled out of its usual
deliberative calm, got into action i'm
mediately. The senate committee on
manufacturers called Doctor Garfield
before it and heard an explanation
that did not explain, and the senate
| thereupon adopted a resolution asking
that the order be delayed for five days
for investigation. This Administers
! tor Garfield, on advice of the president
| ignored. In the house various res0lu
| ions were introduced, but immediate
action was blocked by certain Demo
| Gratis.
AS finally issued, the order per
rnitted ship yards and essential war in
dustries to get coal and remain IL
operation during the five worthless
lays
la
The metropolitan press of the coun
try in general bitterly scored Docto
Garfield for his order aud declare,
that 1t not only was a CHASTITY mistake
but exposed to the world the utter in
competence of America to meet con
dition that throughout the war ha
confronted the nations allied with u
and vet has called for no such panickl
action by any one of them. The sever,
winter weather which paralyzed traffic
and the extraordinary demands 70
fuel due to wartime conditions ar
,ited by Doctor Garfield as the cause
making necessary his order. tn
miners blame the railroads for the Goa
shortage, and the railroads blame tn
starvation policy of the government
toward them for the last generation
More coal was mined in the Unite
States last year than ever before, tn
output exceeding that of 1916 by 10
100000 tons of anthracite and $4,000
700 tons of bitSminous. OF the outpu