The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1922-08-23
FUEL FAMINE
MAY BE
AVERTED
Secretary II o o v e i
Hopes That Pro due
ton May Be Speed
ed Up to Supply
Needs
ton. Aug. il lBy the As.

4&SSSAo
| Washington. Aug. / GBy the As
;ociated Press EARLY resumption
OF coal production in the unioa
! fields covered by the Cleveland.
agreement was looked to today by
administration officials to avert fueI:
troubles throughout the country
next winter.
II the miners IN those fields leS
turn 10 work within the next few
days, Secretary Hoover deciars1s'
there should be no serious .shortases
Of coal during the winter. Froducs
ton of approximately l0.33e goo
tons of coal weekly made up oSs Sc:
bout four-ffths bitumineus and
one-flth anthrac cite. will be needed
according TO Federal Distributor
Spencer.
Even with adequate produesienss
Mr. Hoover asserted, action by Snn-
gress will be necessary to- enabls:
federal price control Temporal rtIp
and to facilitate the distributa6:agf
anthracite and to sapply the needs
Of the northwest.
With the resumption Of mining. =
lie said. .sthe price situation viii
be quickly over. While there VIII
be some control of dis1ribution ana
prices necessary. the matter viii
Iquickly adjust itself. . =
Collapse of the fair price agree
ments made with producing opera
tors. however, when the unisn
mines resume production was indiz
Gated by Mr.. Hoover. There would
be then "a or 80 districts he
said. TO hold into line as sto price
by voluntary means which wocld
be an .infeasibIe machine Teo1~
sidering the difficulty experienced
with the mines now in the price
agreements. =
Nevertheless. Mr. Hoover, deelar-s
ed, the. results of the fair prizes
agreements thus far have constitnt:
ed a remarkable showing With
70 per cent. Of coal now moving
being handled under the establish
ed naaxipunsss OF from 81 20 TO
S2.75 ton Difficulty In the price
situation. he asserted, arose from
the other 80. per cent which gave
rise to the charges Of prof1teerinE,
while operatnrs observing agree
ments were passing up from SO to
$40 on every ton Of coal sold
! Emergency pxsce control legisla
ton which it, IS understood Prasi-
dent Harding will suggest In his
message TO congress tomorrow
would apply. onlysto coal moving IN
interstate commerce, In the opin-
ion OF the commerce secretary. &C.
cording to the first advice at hand
he contended. the federal suthoniky
can not extend to coal transporta
ton within the states and the con.
troll OF speculation. and the prices
charged bY. VIII olesaiers and rstas:
ers on itrastate sales would be up
to the state authorities. sssssss:
State authorities. he believed,
would have the power to regulate
coal prices during the emergencS,
especially If the federal govern
ment acting nationally gave the
states the framework to build ng-
on. He advanced the opinion that
the federal government could con
troll prices charged by operators N
interstate commerce and could sde
liver coal over the state Ene at far
prices. after which the price hrob
lem weuld he one for the states
Devices for fixing coal prices. ~
federal agencies. Mr.. Hoover be-
lieyed. would be left to congress
but he gave the impression that
early action upon fuel iegislat5ons
was expected. Resumption OF ans
snracite production. he declared,
should provide for the needs OF the
nations honfes during the winter.
1t ought to be possible, he said,
to protect the householder, II
mining is resumed at an early date,
through g system OF priority or-s
ders which would insure suffiucienSs
hard coal for homes in advance az 5
anthracite supplies for industry