The Washington herald., 1918-08-03
AFIELD WITH
THE
OBSERVER


not too hot here for any number
of business men and residenters to
be thinking most perspiringly of
their chances of obtaining coal
when the winter comes.
The subject seems to have pre-
cedence over every other subject.
The people are stirred UP over it.
They are in favor of leaving it to
Garfield-but they want coal and
they want to have It in abundance
when winter comes.
Drummers from New York and
some of the big business men from
there who have stopped here lately
have thrown a scare into the city
by insisting that the coal situation
is and will continue to be very
grave and that perhaps when winter
comes there will be no way at all
to remedy It.
Numbers of the business managers
can think of going partially hungry
during the late fall and winter. but
they balk at attempting to carry
on their forms of war work without
plenty of heat and power.
DR.. Garfield seems to have sent
word here that all will be we'll. He
has the power of saying much now
in deeds rather than words. He is
working quietly, so far as they view
it here, and does not intend to have
judgment passed upon him until he
has actually won or lost his fight
They are waiting to see whether
he wins his fight. II he does they
will take it that he did his duty
but they will be too busy shoveling
coal to give him any excessive
praise.
If he does not win, however, and II
the coal is not forthcoming the doctor
will be much berated by these same
folks and they will not stop, in all
likelihood, until they have pinned the
good old doctors" scalp on their belt.
None of them, however, in spite Of
this ominous waiting. wants to have
the pleasure of doing this-they'd
rather have the coal and forego this
doubtful pleasure.
New Haven little understands the
way of the war, in that 1t has brought
so many changes. The folks have had
to keep up with the changes in so
many different directions. unlike other
communities, that they have had lit
tie time. in fast, to reason from cause
to effect and back again. When the
war is over doubtless this town will go
into solitary confinement to perform
that function. But just now it has
neither time nor disposition to do so.
The least understood situation is the
coal situation, for with coal in the
ground and enough miners on the
surface to dig IL and with people
wanting it and prices high enough to
justify its production they are utterly
at a loss n AofI fn
produce 1t in most liberal amounts.
The local. coal administration
however, is a compromiser who has
kept the situation down on a Gar
heldesque basis from the outset.
Not until he has to will he ever per-
NIT the situation to get away from
him. He has not achieved the rec
ord OF pleasing everybody-few Of
the administration have, we hear
but he has pleased a goodly per cent
OF the people and they are ready to
stand by, at least during the hot
days, and have peace Of mind
enough to see what will eventually
be brought them for use on cold
days.
There are any number of New
Havenites who insist Gen. Crowder
has interfered unjustly with the
production of coal, in that he has
taken highly skilled miners for
army service. They say these skilled
miners cannot be replaced by any
old labor. They fail to see why
there has not been coordination of
the effort between the Fuel Ad-
ministrator and Secretary Baker.
They think both of these officials
have attended to many other prob
lens which are less important than
this. Now and then citizens can
be heard to murmur that IL the War
Depc rtment and DR.. Garfield cannot
get along together the President
should interest himself in their
failures. Certainly just for the
sake of not complaining about some
of these things. they say, the two
offfcials should not be allowed to
deceive the public entirely with re-
spect to actual conditions.
The winter will either make or
break DIR. Garfield. The test of the
administration of the Fuel Depart
ment will come then. II the college
one wins then he can stand back
and pat his own shoulders with af-
fection--and Withstand the patting
of some of his friends who are
sanguine as to his ability to pull
through. But II he does not then
the people will use their hands on
him, but the taps will be too rapid