Indiana daily times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1914-1922, 1921-08-31
DETROIT VISIT
IS INSPIRATION
TO SPILLANE
Business Good, Says
Financial Writer
for Times.
ON 20 PCT. BASIS
Labor Is Employed to
65 Pct. of Peak
Many Leave.
ON 20 PCT. BASIS
SpeciaI to Indiana Daily Times
and Philadelphia Public Ledger.
Bv RICHARD SPILLANE.

ECsCtal
and Philadelphia Public Ledger
BY RICHARD SPILLANE.
DETROIT. Mich, Aug. Sit is an
inspiration to visit Detroit. This
great manufacturing center has had
its depression. 1t was sudden and
violent. Now it not only is coming
back, but has come back to a re
markable degree. Business, whole
sale and retail, is good. The big in
dustrial plants are quite busy. The
streets team with traffic. Nobody
talks pessimistically. There are
some bad spots in the general pic
ture Of the city, but not many.
The turn came in January. There
has been improvement every month
since that time. Today the whole
Detroit district is on 20 per cent of
production measured by the peak
and labor is employed to 65 per cent
of the peak. The labor figures do not
mean that one-third of the workers
are idle. The labor population has
been reduced considerably. In the
time of the collapse Of the rubber
tire industry in Ohio a flood Of lab
orers flowed here from Akron. When
depression struck Detroit most of
them departed. So, too, with colored
labor. About 10000 drawn here
from the south have gone back.
Today the city has a population slight
ly less than one million. The statistics
show 100000 persons engaged in general
industry-one to five per capita.
In about 10 per cent OF the plants the
city labor is working on short time In
many they are working fun time.
Wholesale and retails merchants report
their business ranges from 65 to 100 per
cent of normal. All seem TO view the
normal from the 1919 standard. That is
one OF the things misleading In respect
to the whole situation and likely TO
confuse e person IN judging conditions
generally. The 1913-14 standard, with
allowance for natural growth, would be
a better basis.
Henry Ford has a force OF 4, 600 men
IN his huge plants. His production is
equal to that which he attained when
he employed $500.
HOW INDUSTRIES
OF CITY STACK Up.
The city's major industries rank as fol-
lows:
L. Automobiles, largest in worldly
2. Brass.
3. PharmaceuticaIs, chemicals, soda,
etc.
1. Stoves largest in worldly
5. Adding machines.
G. Varied textiles (corsets, etc.)
big and in some respects new indus
try is expected to be launched soon. The
Westinghouse and General Electric people
are working with the Packard Company
on q trackless trolley which is expected
TO revOlutinize interurban transportation
and in time. supplant the present trolley
system OF America.
There have been demonstrations OF the
new electric trolley bus at the General
Electric plant IN Schenectady and last
week there was one here with a Packard
chassis and Westinghouse motor It is
declared the trackleSs trolley electric bus
can be operated at a gross expenditure
Of from 10 to 10 cents per mile and ulti-
mately brought down TO Il. The gasO-
line bus from 2S to 50 per mile. Trolley
companies costs range from % 70 70 cents
per mile. The cost OF installation Of the
electric trackless trolley is put at SO
600 per mile The existing trolley lines
cost four or i've times as much
ANNOUNCEMENT
EXPECTED SOON.
It is said the next month or six weeks
viii bring announcements IN regard to
the trackless trolley that viii be highly
important and probably marx the begin
ming OF manufacture OF the next style Of
equipment on a considerable scale.
More is known about the General Elec-
trio and Westinghouse, the Packard and
the Fisher body operations in this field
than as to what Ford is doing in the
same line He has been working on the
problem for some years.
II IS staggering 10 see the magnitude
OF the plants Of Detroit. Here are the
principal ones:
Automobiles - Cadillac Columbia,
Detroit Electric, Dodge, Ford. Gray.
Hudson. Hupp. Kessler. King. Lib
erty. Lincoln. Maxwell. Chalmers.
Nelson, Packard, Paige Detroit. saxon.
Scripps Booth. Studebakcr
Adding Maehines-BurrOughs
Auto Trucks-AcasOn, American.
Commerce. DENLY. Federal. Lewis
Hall. Power, Signal, Standard, J. c.
Wilson.
Auto BOdies-Briggs. Fisher. Girls
void. Trippensee. Widman. Wilson.
FOundrieS-Acme, American Blower,
American Car and Foundry. Atlas.
Bellevue. Bohm. Buhl Central, De-
troit Gray, Enterprise Foundry and
Machine Products. Lake Side Mlchl-
gan Malleable Iron, Monarch, Muir
ply, Russell Wheel and Foundry,
Sherwood, Thiery & Kenrick
Furnaces-Hoskins. Bellevue
Furniture-Detroit Chair, Detroit
Cabinet, HaberkOrn & Co.
Electrical Goods, Heaters. Etc
American Flower, American Radiator.
Detroit Range B6ier, Peter Smith
Heater. American Electrical Heater,
Disco Starter, Mutual Electric and
CONTINUED on Page Six.)
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