Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1922-07-26
PRIORITY ORDERS
PUT INTO EFFECT
Harding viii Announce Person.
nel Of Coal Control Com
.mittee Today
MOWER TO BE CHAIRMAN
RI Associated Press

washington, July 20. - While the
ua,,,nistration continued to await re-
.,,,s NJ the attempt to operate strike
.~.o,od mines, at the same time con-
s,,uc IFS policy in the rail strike to
..nnort Of the Railroad Labor Board as
.sa o,lv authorized agency to deal with
:, ,be interstate Commerce Commission
.,t into effect today transportation
.ou,inc and priority orders as the basis
=, the program for control of the coun'
wis depleted coal supply and trans.
oortation facilities. ,. l..
Based on n previous declaration by
A.. commission that an emergency In
.nee,snortntion .ne existed, which opened
~ rny for operation of the coal dis
,.s,hution plan adopted yesterday by
.u.nrescntatiyes Of the producing fields,
.sp nriority order issued yesterday es-
tshlisbed a preferential system for ship
rcnt of fuel and food over all rail-
.~ods east Of the Mississippi.
Another mandate going into effect at
,he same time today directs all the roads
~ A. the country to disregard established
snutincs in favor of such routing as
vould expedite movement an avoid con-
gestion. A., r.,., ,,,,.u,h,,-
Non plan thus prepared Tor, producins
operators and railroad tramc experts
.nday awaited the word from President
Harding to set in motion the machinery
Tor emergency control.
Secretary Hoover, after con.
,,renre with the President. said
,h., % within n few hours the President
w"n,d formally establish the directing
s.encv for the scheme by the appoint.
nsnt Of n presidential committee of
,.nresentatives from the Interstate
Cnmmerce Commission, and the DE.
nertments of Commerce. Justice and
Interior. with Secretary Hoover as
With the aid of an administrative
eommittee OF operators and railroad
traffic experts the Government body
rili direct the activities of the local
committees of operators in maintaining
fsir nrices and in distributing fuel to
roads and other public utilities in the
order of preference established by the
Interstate Commerce Commission as
best serving the needs of the general
public.
that the priority orders would make
NO change in the railway traffic of large
sections of the country east of the
Mississippi, where n great majority Of
the mileage can handle it's freight ef.
fectiyely. The priorities. he added, will
affect mainly the railroads which can
not now handle their traffic adequately.
The difficulty in the present situation
is In the whole working machine of
the railroads. Mr.. Hoover declared.
adding that chow soon it can be re-
babitatcd I don't know There are,
he asserted. thousands Of cars loaded
with coal and thousands of empties on
the sidings. but the difficulty Is to get
the men to move the traffic.
The ordinary coal buyers, Mr..
Hoover asserted, were under no great
pressure for the present and should not
feel any pressure for Mt least thirty
days. Coal imports, he declared. should
help the situation and step in this
direction was taken yesterday by repre-
sentatives of the pubic utilities of New
York. who. at his suggestion, took up
with the Shipping Board the matter of
obtaining coal imports for New York
utilities.