Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1918-01-17

ing produced a great deal more coal,
despite q shortage of $4,000 WORK
ers. The railroads have not been
able to move anything approaching
the total amount of freight offered,
and while every effort has been
made to expedite the movement of
coal, the weather conditions nave
nullified, to a considerable extent, all
the plans of Doctor Garfield and Mr..
McAdoo.
Consumption Increasing Faster Than
Production
The whole situation confronting
the nation may be summarized in
these words:
The coal is not available. 1t is
not necessary to seek other eXplana-
tionS of the governments decision;
they all revert back to the actual
shortage in coal. Men have differed
over methods of coal distribution,
but when consumption is increasing
fifty per cent faster than output is
growing, the answer is that some
thing had to give"
Doctor Garfield estimates that the
five-day closed shop" period. and
then an additional holiday on Mon
days, will result in an estimated saw
ing of 3O,0OO,000 tons of coal, which
will bring the actual supply avaII-
able close to the demands.
GarfieId's Summary of Effects of
Order
So many inquiries were addressed
to Doctor Garfield last night as to
possible effects of his order that he
summarized it as follows:
The coal consumers mentioned
above will get coal; all others will
not. Industry will stop, but Office
business will continue; stores,
churches, theaters, schools and the
like will remain open. on Monday
ali industrial, commercial and pro-
fessional lines will act just as they
do on legal holidays.
The order does not apply to news
papers during the fiVe-day shut
down period, Doctor Garfield said.
1t does provide that on Mondays
during the ten-week period newspa-
pers may burn fuel to such extent
as necessary to issue such editions as
such papers customarily issue on i'm
portant national legal holidays, ana
where such newspapers do not issue
any edition on holidays, they are
permitted to issue one edition on
said Monday"
The fears of owners of office
buildings that pipes might freeze
and their properties be left at the
mercy of fire destruction are an
swered by Doctor Garfield with the
assurance that they will be permit
ted to take measures designed
against any such menace. Steel mills,
blast furnaces and other plants
which require several days to get
started after once closed down will
be allowed to keep fires sufficient to
enable them to resume operations on
Wednesday.
In order to allay the fears of pro-
hibitionists and church leaders that
breweries might be permitted to
sion and on the Monday holidays,
Doctor Garfield made it clear that
industry" in its broadest interpre-
| tation, was included in the closing
order. He said the order made no
reference to churches, due to the
| fact that services are not held usu-
ally on Monday, but it is expected
that churches will curtail services
as far as possible on next Sunday.
The order under which these re-
strictions are made is designed to
! distribute with absolute impartiality
the burden of patriotic denial. All
classes of business are treated alike.
Except on the days covered in
the order, the normal supply Of
coal to all consumers will be main
tanned. The necessary consumers
designated in the order are given
preference and priority in the de-
livery and use of coal at all times,
as we'll as the days when other use
of coal is prohibited.
The United States fuel admins
tration counts upon the complete pa
triotic cooperation of every indi-
vidual, firm and corporation affected
! by the order in its enforcement. Ev-
cry effort will be made by the fuel
administration and other govern
ment officials charged with the en-
| forcement of the order to carry out
the plan proposed without undue in
terference with the ordinary course
| of business.
"It is the earnest desire of the
fuel administration to prevent en-
tirely any permanent dislocation of
industry or of labor"