New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1921-08-21

States in the number of persons {
sumed, and is, therefore. supporting
general business depression than an,
How few would have expected thisN
Of the motor industry, so long re-
rarded as non-essential, but now
considered to be as necessary as any
other form of transportation to the
development and growth of the coun-
try.
The facts are, however. that the last
few years have demonstrated that mo-
tor ears are more of necessity than
clothing and many food products.
Msny q man has been able to get along
without buying new clothes, and the
same man has curtailed his consump-
ton Of food luxuries during the last
twelve months, but he has not hest
tated to invest in new automobile or
repair the old one so necessary to his
daily life The farmer, with his un-
marked crop in the bins, had no money
with which to buy farm implements
and machinery, but he has been buy
ing the automobiles necessary to his
daily life.
The report Of the Autom obile Cham
Der Of Commerce of July q shows
graphically the extent to which the
industry IS contributing to our welfare
at the present time, in that the pro
duction report of the car and truck
factories of the country show that the
automobile business in the second
quarter Of this year was 81 per cent
Of the spending period for 1920.
when the industry was at it's height.
And II it is taken into consideration
that export business was not entirely
eliminated from the figures of wear
ago. as i is to-day. due to the in
sbiilty OF the foreigner 10 purchase
cars, it is apparent that the consump-
ton OF cars in this country is to-day
practically 100 per cent. compared with
year ago, which is not true of anv
other large industry.
Can one question that the motor
car Is necessity, when the pig iron
production figures taken from Iron Age
snow only 80 per cent activity, and
labor IS per cent employed, as com
Jared with year ago, as reported BY
the Federal Reserve Brlletine
As Stable as Any
The motor industry is unouestionablv
as stable an industry as we have to-day.
and while we in Detroit, who have been
IN touch with it since the beginning.
have realized this possibly to q greater
extent than am other section of the
country. we hardly expected that this
industry would in times such as these.
be so large contrl butor to our welfare.
The First and Old Detroit National
Bank has. naturally, been more closely
identified with the industry than the
Eastern or Western banks. and we re-
gard the industry today as stable as
my We have
In discussing the stability Of the in
d1stry. President Haines OF Dodge
Brothers described the situation forci-
bly, when he said: The industry has
come back, as il always has cone back
ir every crisis which has taken place
since the beginning Of the industry, for
two reasons. namely. the principal one,
it is prime necessity. inasmuch as it
u mainly transportation; roughly,
would say, IS per cent trans ortation. if
not more-and secondly. because the
list prices are set by the factory, and
the car IS sold in all parts Of the coun-
try at the same price, transportation
cost and taxes being the only difference,
and consequently IS not dependent upon
the whirl Of the retailer 20 make sucn
prices as his greed may dictate"
Dodge Brothers are producing cars at
practically 100 per cent Of capacity;
nat is, upward Of 500 cars a day. and
they can see no indication Of a let-up
il their demand. evn though we are IN
the midsummer season.
Other local com panies reporting to
rs recently. for instance the Hupmo-
bile. advises that during May, June and
July. 1890. their production was larger
than for any similar period in their
history and that n the past three
months this company has produced and
sod SIS per cent of last years record
And If the loss OF export business is
taken into consideration, the figures
show that the company is producing
ard selling in this country % per cent
more cars than for any similar period
IN their history Fer the seven months
Up 70 July 8 Of this year this COM
rsny nas delivered more than so per
cent as many cars as it did for the
same period last year, and tire presi-
dent. Charles D. Hastings, advises that
orders on the BOOKS warrant the ex-
pecsatlon ma. this viii continue
through the rest Of the year.
sfudebaker's Figures
The figures which we have from A. r.
I'skine, president Of the Stude baker
corporation, are more impressive than
any others. As is we'll known, this