Bisbee daily review., 1918-02-06
IMPORT VOLUME
 NAY BE REDUCED
 TOSAVE TONNAGE
Washington Authorities Con- sidering Cutting Unessen- tial Imports In Order to Pro- vide Addition Shipping.
Rr Review Leased wlrel

WASHINGTON, Feb. "A 50 per cent reduction in the volume of i'm | ports is one of the measures unde. I consideration by the administration Co 1 make available ships for transporting | troops to France.
 Overseas transportation is recOg- nized as the real problem facing the ] government in its effort to put on the firing line a big fighting force and keep it in supplies. Estimates of the amount of tonnage necessary tO keen an army supplied vary all the way from four to seven tons in continuous service for each man engaged. Tne United States now has in all services about four million tons of shipping. sJi which probably One-fOurth is engaged in bringing materials heretofore re garded as essential to the national in dustrial life.
 If negotiations now under way with neutral countries are concluded sue cessfully a large amount of neutral tonnage will be used to supplau. A.r- erican ships engaged in non-hazardous trades. IL is regarded as likely that the entire one million tons of AmeTi- can ships engaged will be put ;ntO -he | ships to supply insofar as possible the sap made. The general opinion Is that about 50 per cent of the shortage will not be supplied.
 In addition to its efforts 10 obtain neutral tonnage the government eX- poets soon to take over all American
 sailing ships and a large number Q, French sailing ships, all of which wiii be put in nOn-haZardOus trades. This move will add some tonnage to that ! available for bringing in imports. i Nitrates and Manganese
 If a cut in imports is made the gov ernment will select for elimination a 1 list of articles which it regards as not essential in the prosecution of the war !! Imports of certain materials, inciui- | ing nitrateS and manganese. must be kept up to a maximum The country
 will need this year about 1.500. .0O0 tons of nitrates from Chile and fully 75O, 900 tons of manganese from Brazil. Officials who are working out de | tails of the transportation of troops [ have not disclosed to what extent the allies are ready to assist with loan of tonnage, but American soldiers will go abroad in allied vessels. This was arranged for in the inter-allied confer
 ence at Paris and was announced or. the return to the United States of
 Colonel Edward NJ. House
 Shipping board officials estimate I Americas shipping output during 1918 at from 100000 to 5,00O.0O0 tons, much of which they expect to become available in the summer. Production in the latter half of the year is expect ed to be more than double that during the first half and officials say the ship ping situation will grow steadily more favorable as the year advances.
 Supplies for the allies and for the American army abroad still are pilins up faster than they can be transported
 and it is estimated that more than a
 million tons of cargo arc awaiting ship
 ment along the Atlantic seabOard. Ev'
 en had the country's production of ma terials come up to expectations and had the railroads been able to trans port it, no more goods. officials say
 could have been transported across
 the seas.
 The shipping board, realizing the situation. is redoubling its efforts to
 speed up the building of ships. With l peed up the building of ships. Withs
 the assistance of the labor department
 they are creating a reserve of shipyard labor. which they expect to place in
 the yards as fast as it can be absorbed