Evening star., 1921-06-05
MINING ON A POOR
EFFICIENCY FOOTING
Complete Reorganization of Industry Is
Necessary for Prosperity of the
Whole Nation.

as a national problem that must be
solved.
Upset Econonfc Balance.
There are other phases of the sit
uation which similarly emphasizes
the importance of giving the mining
and mineral resources a larger place
in our national program.
When the war came on we learned
that it was absolutely essential to
the national defense to have quanti-
ties of materials, many of which were
entirely unknown to the general pub
lie and some of which were only lit
tie known to mining men. In some
cases we had been depending on inn
ports-our supply was cut off. We
had to develop new supplies and sub
stitutes. In many cases it was found
that interference with the. normal
course of international trade either
in bringing in a mineral or for the
sake of saving ships to cut OF its
import upset a delicately balanced
mechanism that disturbed our whole
national economy.
The national government was SO
poorly equipped to meet this situa-
; tion that it was necessary not only
to expand the activities of the regu-
lar organizations. such as the geo.
logical survey, the bureau Of mines,
the bureau of standards and. others
but to organize special services. such
as the fuel administration, the min
erals sections of the War Industries
de hoa rdS ee
on mineral imports and exports of
the Shipping Board and various
others which even as temporary
agencies brought together a vast
amount of valuable information Of
first importance to the right conduc;
of our national life. go
Bureau to Obtain Facts.
At the end of the war these activities
were dropped, and while it is true thzt
| there is in peace time no necessity for
any such elaborate organization rs war
requires, there should be along with
the bureau of mines and the geological
survey bureau of mineral industry.
a fact-fnding organization. which
should keep thoroughly in touch with
anything relating to the mineral indus
tries at home and abroad that has an.
relation to national defense or genera
warfare.
The data in possession of such ba-
! reau. which might be successor to the
| various war agencies concerned with
/, minerals. would give to the legislative
| and executive branches Of government
the facts on which. as emergencies
arose, sound public policy could be de-
! termined. Such emergencies come in
| times of peace as we'll as in war. II
| has twice been necessary for the
President to go out and constitute
special tribunal to get the facts with
| regard to the anthracite industry, ano
at least once with respect to btu
ninous mining, to prevent actual stop
page of the industry.
| AS has been said, agriculture ant
mining are the two basic industrie-
| In matters relating to them you nee.
| the point OF view Of man who is .
| specialist in those industries. Tax.
| the success achieved in the big auto
| mobile industry-it was due to the fac.
/ lidt Tie WHO lnc
| try were past masters in the art OF
| quantity production and distribution
| They could have made the same sue
| cess with almost any other kind OF
manufactured article. But with the
| men who make a success out Of the
steel industry it is different, where the
knowledge OF the raw materials then-
1 &c
cess.
| Needed knowledge Varies.
The point is that as you get up iu.c
commerce it is a knowledge Of men a,y.
machines that is most important, ba,
when you get down into agriculturc
and mining it is knowledge of the
raw materials that is most essential. =
| So the government should organiza
the agricultural and mining industrie.,
by centering its activities in men whp
are specialists on those materials.
Now, here appears the snapper" or
those who are making a campaign foi
better mining laws and for greater con-
sideration by the government as a nIs
| tional policy toward the mining indus
: try. 1t is pointed out that in 1920 tile
| total value Of the agricultural crops
was about s1o,5oo. ooo. 900. and the to-
tai value of the mineral output was
I $4,000, 100000. Congress appropria ted
in 1920 for the Department Of Agr.-
culture $143.0o0.ooo. while the conf
| bined appropriation for the geolos:-
| cal survey and the bureau OF mines
was $2.600,000. That would seem 10
show the relative attention that min-
ing gets from Congress as compared
with the other basic industry, agri-
culture. The mining industry is go
ing to endeavor to get more }ssm--
mensurate consideratiua ,s.,
DIPl 0MAT SM0KES PIPE