New-York tribune., 1918-11-19
u. S. to Regulate
Cancellation of
Army Contracts
Board Will Stop Indis-
criminate Action That
Makes Many Idle
Tribune Washington Bureau


WASHINGTON, Nov. 1S.--The War
Department is instituting Cancella-
ton board of four members, probably
to be headed by General Crozicr, to
pass on all cancellations of army con-
tracts and put stop to the indiscrin-
mate cancellations into which the va
rious bureaus rushed the moment the
armisticc was declared.
The governing principle Of the board
is to be to salve all contracts for the
production of goods that can be util-
lied inside or outside the army. for
such materials as will be needed for
the maintenance and equipment of a
permanent army much larger than the
United States has had in the past, and
for the construction of plants neccs-
sary to the military preparedness Of
the nation
Notwithstanding all statements to
the contrary, it appears that the War
Department, before any sort Of policy
was agreed on. had issued orders by
telegraph cancelling a large number Of
contracts without any regard to
whether the general public interest
would be best served by their cuntinu-
ance.
Many Thrown Out of Work
The employment service of the Labor
Department has been overwhelmed
with reports Of cancellations and men
thrown out of work all over the coun-
try.
1t appears that purchasing officers
thought it their duty to discontinue
the manufacture of everything that
was not Immediately needed for the
maintenance of the men actually under
arms. There was no policy Of discrim-
lnatIon between continuing production
Of articles that could be used in peace
or war and those that would be use
less in peace.
Even the provisions contracts were
on the eve of being cancelled in whole
sale fashion when the food administra-
time to stop it. Had these contracts
been cancelled, vast stores Of food in
the best form for use in the emergency
provisioning Of Europe, would. have
been dissipated and hundreds of thou
sands Of tons Of provisions and food
stuffs would have been dumped. on the
market, with loss to the" government
and a disastrous unsettlement of PRICES
which mi ght even lfave affected the cX-
tent Of next years crops.
Chaos in Food Situation
With Food Administrator Hoover Just
sailing for Europe to survey the inter
national food problem. another branch
Ct the government was proceeding to
scatter its food reserves. This is cited
as an llustration of the fact, now
frankly admitted everywhere, that the
government had no plan whatever for
the armstce period. with the result
that chaos has been the rule every
where. Shipments of supplies to
France have been stopped one day and
ordered continued the next, and so on.
1t is now realized that while con-
tracts for the manufacture of pro-
jectles and ammunition and to some
extent of arms and cannon should be
discontinued at once, there arc other
contracts that it viii be economical to
continue, even though the army has no
immediate use or may not have any at
MI for the goods In this class are
provisions. shoes. clothing, etc. Then
some OF the government projects de-
signed to meet the war emergency may,
, it is contended, be properly brought to
| a conclusion as a part of the perma-
nent preparedness programme of the
United States.