The Seattle star. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 1899-1947, 1920-09-09
j. 5. deaf
TO CLAMOR
FOR HOMES
Need 5000. 900 Houses; No
One in the Government
Turns a Hand
ny GEORGE n WATERS

WASHINGTON. sept. s.-Noeods
In the United states government Is
turning a hand to solve the housins
shortage. The government hasn't
made a move. even to encourage
building. During the war Il com
pelled homc- building 10 cease.
London has program to spend
$3.50. coo. 900 for dwellings and sell
them to families on long time pay
ments. That Is being done. first. be
cause the people need homes. and
second. 90 bring contentment and
stop the growth Of Rolshevlsrn.
But in America. where 5000 900
more homes are needed. where peo-
pie are being gougcd by landlords
and throws into the streets because
they haven't the money to pay high
rents. not one thing has been done,
At the present time - SOC 900 people
are crowded into inadequate quar-.
tiers. In every 100 homes III fam
ilIes are living.
But a plenty OF things are being
done to prevent building. Following
are some OF them:
Concentration OF lumber and mate
rial In a few hands. and heartless
profiteering by the producers OF the
materials
Not only extraordinarily high
prices for material. but prices that
make homebaying absolutely prohlb-
tive for the average person. Lumber
prices are up from 500 TO 900 per
cent
Utter helpiessncss on the part OF
the railroads In transporting the ma.
tertal. even IL the peoples ability
to buy could cope with the profiteer.
ing prices.
Refusal Of retailers and iobbcrs TO
lower prices. altho at the source OF
the supply Of lumber there has been
. 20 per cent reduction In price the
last two months
Refusal OF mills and wholesalers to
eeii direct to consumers. because OF
an understanding with the retail
trade. The consumers must either
submit to exorbi,ant profits by mid
diemen or do without homes.
Total absence OF prosecutions
against lumber profi,cers and hoard.
err and those curtailing the cut OF
timber. despite the fact that every
person who has had TO do with the
source Of the lumber supply since the
beginning Of the war Is rolling in
wealth.
Aitho the forests Of the country
have been shamefuily and eriminaily
depleted and wasted by the lumber
kings. there In no relatfbh between
the scarcity Of lumber and the house
shortage.
With $4,000. 900. 900 feet of lumber
and other materials necessary.
enough houses could be built in the
United States to give every family
that Is now crowded In with some
one else a separate home. There are
sim In the forests :.2it.ooo. ooo. 900
board feet Of lumber.
But the fact that II would take
Is. ooo. o0o. 900 feet to catch up with
the housing problem presents a seri |
Gus problem alone. the annual nor
NAL cut OF timber being only "a. 600. |
900 900 feet. Only one third OF the nor. |
NAL cut Is supposed to go into dwell
ings- Normally IL would take more I
than i've years to build the houses 1
that are needed now. to say nothing |
about the increased needs that viii |
accumulate during the next half dec
AIDE. II a ban were put on the use
Of lumber in every other industry /
and on exports. II would take two \
years cut OF lumber to supply the
houses needed
But the lumber lords are not los
Ing minutes sleep over this condi. 4
don. for the larger the demand nc
higher the price. and they are getting
rich several hundred times faster
than they were under normal conci. |
tons.
The increase Of the demand over
the supply was brought about by the
great amount Of lumber used for war
purposes. the curtailment Of building
during the war and the more than
normal establishment OF new famIl.