Iron County news. [volume] (Hurley, Wis.) 1913-1950, 1918-09-21
NORTHERN WISCONSIN'S IN
DUSTRIES MUST FALL IN LINE
War Industries Board to Organize Man
ufacturers. Superior Head
quarters City.

Washington is calling upon the
West to mobilize her factories for
war purposes and though North
ern Wisconsin contribution of
timber and minerals is big factor
in equipping our allies, it does not
complete the service expected by
the National authorities. Factories
large and small in this territory are
now called upon 10 fall in line, and
assume their part of the manufact-
ure of wide variety of war essent-
ials.
The nation has arrived at the SUI
preme test of its capacity to fulfill.
Instead of an army of 2 900, 900
men and war limited to the West
ern Front, approximately 5000, 900
men are to be equipped, and Rus
sian Battle ground is before us.
The possible Russian campaign
points to an increasing demand on
northwestern manufacturers to sup
ply such products for transportation
to Siberia and other war fronts as
our resources and shipping connect
ions make possible.
The efficiency of democracy is at
stake, and the issue is clearly with
the manufacturers of American as
whole. Profiting by the efficient
manner in which Germany kept its
commercial life and its army sup
piled at the same time, even after
her commerce was lost, American
industry must realize, with Eng
land, that business as usual" can.
not exist. For it must be substituted
more unusal business rather than
a side-lin 1t is for this reason that
every branch of Industry is called
to support the War Industries
Board through it organization re-
presented in this neighborhood.
Never was business as a whole
harnessed, or individual enterprises
so completely correlated, as under
the plan of the Resources and con-
version Division of the War Ind
ustries Board, of which this sub
region is a part. Acting on the true
assumption that the facilities of
Washington are entirely inadequate
to bring together the possible pro-
ducer of war materials and the pro-
per purchasing agent, a gigantic
scheme of interlocking channels
has been opened up, whereby the
smallest manufacturer in the FEM
otest town may find a quick and
sure means of access to the govern
rnent's buying authority; the manu-
facturer of non essential" prod
uctS, may be shown where, by
slight notifications of his past me-
thods he may sell and serve the
government with profit; the com
munity, anxious to hold its labor at
home, can find employment for
labor on work in accord with the
war program.
At the outset of the war, the ma
tional purchasing authorities nat
urally applied to the centers of in
dustrial activity closest at hand
where the cream of the plants best
suited for conversion to war work
were most accessible. As a result,
since our entrance into the conflict.
the East has become loaded with
war production, and now faces an
abnormal labor situation. Therefore
/ the government must look for ad-
ditional production to other plants
not yet converted to these uses.
and govern freight facilities and
other elements of production and
distribution accordingly. The de.
mand of northwestern manutactors
to accommodate themselves to this
condition cannot be evaded. There
are few plants that cannot be utiliz
Ell feasibly for some purpose in the
nation 5 plan. Ii is no longer nee
eSsary for the manufacturer to de-
wise an article and seek out a mark
ct; the market has arrived. and Ike
Il