The Washington herald., 1921-02-22
SHORTAGE OF OIL
MAKES IMPORTANT
WORLDWIDE TOPIC
reversed Status of u. S.
Adds Popularity
To Importance.
NOW AN IMPORTER.
question of National Power
BY Control of Petroleum
Underlying Issue.

NEW YORK. Feb. 21.-R. L
Neien. general secretary and coun-
SCI or the American Petroleum In
sutnte today made public a second
section of his Forthcoming report.
me section made public deals with
the International aspects of the
petroleum problem.
The report in part is as follows:
The fundamental and worldwide
shortage of petroleum and its pro-
ducts. and the fact that during
the past year the United States
mas become an importer of petro-
Ieum to a greatly increased extent.
nave made the international as
poets of petroleum of peculiar i'm
portance.
There is a larger issue underly-
Ing the oil situation of the world
than the interest of any or all of
American or foreign companies en-
gagged In the business. and that is
whether national power shall be
sustained on land and sea by the
acquisition and control of oil at
home and abroad This question
faces all nations. 1t Is receiving the
attention of the oil industry
throughout the world and of every
nation.
The following statement of
Thomas A. O'Donnell, president of
the American Petroleum Institute.
is quoted:
Fundamental Principle.
"Oil Is a world necessity, the pro-
duction of which, wherever found,
should be opened to individual ini-
tiative to the end that its refined
n 10
and assisting other forms of pro-
duction. may gain the widest pos
sible distribution. The American
oil industry asks only the support
of the nation in giving 1t an equal
status, putting IL upon an equal
footing with the nationals of other
countries in the development or the
worlds petroleum resources - and
IL asks this in the interest of the
nation"
international Chamber of Commerce
This statement of a fundamental
principle which ought to be adopted
throughout the world was made by
ODonnell as he was about to de-
part for Europe to attend the or
ganization meeting Of the Interna-
tional Chamber of Commerce at
Paris.
Mr.. A. c. Bedford. chairman of
the board of directors of the Stan
dard Oil Company of New Jersey,
and a member of the board of d.
rectors of the institute, was elected
vice president of the International
Chamber of Commerce, represent
ing the United States.
Resolutions ADOPTED.
The recommendations of the
the session of the International
Chamber were:
That the consumption of petro-
leum throughout the world Is ex-
ceeding the production;
That the world is confronted with
a serious shortage in the near fu-
ture unless energetic efforts are
made to increase the production;
That in their judgment sufficient
undiscovered petroleum deposits
exist in many parts of the world to
supply present and future require
That curtailment of exploration
and production is being caused by
restrictive laws and regulations Of
many governme nts;
That a free opportunity to all ma
tionaIs to explore and develop the
petroleum resources of the world
wherever found should be freely
extended;
They, therefore, recommend that
laws, regulations, or administrative
acts which tend to retard the de-
yelopment of the petroleum resour-
COS of the world should be repealed
or revoked. and that equal priVi-
J Ieges in all parts of the world be
granted to nationals of all coun-
tries in the production of this great
and useful natural resource, SO VI
tally essential to the worlds prog
THESE recomme ndations were
adopted.