New-York tribune., 1918-01-26
7 Coal Zones
Established; 13
More Planned
Garfield Names District
Agents-Fuel Not Per-
mitted to Cross
Boundaries

WASHINGTON, Jan. 25.-Division
of the country's bituminous coal fields
into twenty districts as the first step
toward instituting a zone system of
coal distribution is under way by the
fuel administration. Boundaries for
seven of the districts already have
been cstabl lishcd and Fuel Admins
traitor Garfield has named repre-
sentative in each.
With the aid of the railroad admin
istration, the fuel administration next
will define consuming districts, each to
be supplied from one Of the producing
districts. A joint committee working
on the problem probably will announce
a definite zoning plan within a few
days.
Distribution by zones has been sue
cessfully tried in England Fuel adj
ministration officials say it will work
just as we'll everywhere. saving thou
sands of miles of transportation and
insuring the speediest possible move
ment of coal from the mine to the
consumer. 1t will eliminate to a great
extent cross-h hauling. generally CON
cedcd to be one OF the most un-
economic practices in the coal industry.
The producing districts already cs-
tablished and the fuel administrations
representatives therein are: South
eastern kentucky, Georgia and Tcnncs-
Gauley fields of West Virginia on the
Baltimore & Ohio. D. II. Lawson, of
Fairmont, w. Va. Gaulcy fields Of
West Virginia on the Chesapeake e.
Ohio and part of the Norfolk G. West
crn field in West Virginia, A. H. Land,
of Huntington. w. Va, Alabama, L. A.
Holmes, Birmingham; Indiana. c. G.
Hall, Terre Haute; Southern Ohio and
Mason County, West Virginia., w. d.
Mckinney; Northern Ohio. j. r. Zerby.
District Agents Coal Men
The district representatives in every
instance will be operators or men ia
mliar with coal production. They will
alot all orders received from state
fuel administrators and will be made
responsible for the prompt movement
Of coal out of the producing fields. All
demands for emergency coal will go di-
rectly to them.
The plan as now contemplated calls
for periodical reports from the produc.
ing district representatives as to the
amount of coal each district is mining
These will be turned over to J. d. A.
Morrow, the coal expert just named b.
Fuel Administrator Garfield as mana
ger Of distribution and apportionment,
who will make up budgets for each
consuming district on reports from
state fuel administrators.
The district representatives WI, not
in any way with the duties
of state administrators, but will be
to assist them. Anthracite
coal is not included in the zoning plan,
because most Of it is mined in mar
row strip Of territory in PENNSYLVANIA.
The consuming districts will be
formed as nearly as possible along
state lines. Producers in a district
serving a specified consuming district
will be permitted to sell in no other.
and consumers will be required to pur-
chase only in the districts serving
their territory. If consuming dis
trict, through its state fuel admins
traitor demands more coal than al
lotted to it. consumption will have to
decides permanent or
temporary rcadjustments are ncccs-
sary.
10 prevent a situation arising next
winter similar to the one that has Just
forced shutdown of industries, fuel
administration official; plan to create
in the summer reserves in every con-
suming centre. These would not be
touched except in cases of emergency,
and then they would be replaced when
the emergency was over
Early reports to-day indicated that
the rising temperature had brought
considerable improvement in the coal
transportation situation in the East.
but snow and high winds developed
later, and A. II. Smith, regional di-
rector for the East, tonight reported
almcst no pcrccptiblc decrease Of the
freight accumulations. Hundreds Of
cars of coal were tied up along with
other traffic, and the shortage of en-
ginea was declared even worse than
on previous days. The movement of
coal to New England was under ycster-
days. owing to snow, which driftcd
over tracks and required the attaching
of several locom olives to single train.