The Greeneville daily sun. (Greeneville, Tenn.) 1918-1920, 1918-06-14
DETECTING Industry.

BeueCC11g 1HuuStEys
congestion is the excuse for the Inauguration of the new
policy adopted by the war industries board the railroad
administration and the fuel administration under which
no additional war contracts are to be placed with indus
tries east of the Aeghaney Mountains unless is abso
utey necessary Hereafter it is the intention Of the
government to have its work done farther West if pos
sble /.
There comes frank announcement from those re-
sponsibe for the order to its necessities They
state that due to war orders there has been such slim
illus Of idusy the Eastern part of the country that
it is utterly impossible to supply those industries with
coal and at the same time transport the raw materials
required All of the btumnous used by the factories
Of the East mined west of the Aleghanes and it must
cross this natural barrier order to reach its market
comparatively few railroad lines and fewer boat lines
must transpot this COAL Under normal conditions it is
possible to do this but with the Eastern mills urgently
demanding lumber, ore iron and other materials in
large quantities, it is found that the transportation lines
unable to haul them and the fuel required and at the
same time carry the ordinary nonwar freight
The theory upon which the government bases this eff
fort defect industry westward sound but whether
it is possible to make any material change in conditions
remains to be SEEN For instance the larger portion of
the productive capacity Of the iron and steel industry in
Pennsylvania and the Atlantic states There are big
mills in the middle West and the far West but their pro-
ducton is small compared to the mills of the East Hence
will be impossible to transfer much Of the metal in
dusy to the West especially since the great factories of
Detroit Chicago and other industrial ceners of that
ton at present loaded up with contracts Nor
the textile in dusries be moved since they are located
principally in the East.
No doubt there war orders Of considerable size
which be placed west of the Aeghaney Mountains
and which degree will result in relieving the freight
congestion in the Eastern district And yet the finished
product much of it, will have to be transported to the
Eastern seaboard if it is intended for shipment abroad
Industries permanent and their location cannot
easily be changed. With war orders and the ordinary
demands of commerce. all plants are now being operated
at full capacity mill which is not engaged in filing
contract is busy producing something re-
CURED in the general Market and next to getting produc
ton Of the articles required in the conduct of the war;
is mperatvey necessary that business be maintained
nearly normal be- In this manner the civilian
population is kept in lucrative employment and the
ngs secured from which the collects its
So it appears that if the demand for fuel par
TALLY relaxed in the East because of contracts
being placed in the West the mills of the East must still
have fuel to keep them operating other production
be confronted with the alternative of closing down and
thus imposing harship upon both employer and employee
and also reducing the amount of war taxes available
Which brings back again face to face with the cold
hard fact that this country not producing enough coal
to meet the demands, and that the government is not
taking effective steps to increase that outputWash
ington Post.