The Birmingham age-herald., 1922-12-24
WAR OFFICE ID.
 USE CIVILIANS. IN EMERGENCY.
Industrial Preparedness Is Planned by Secretary of War Department Nation Is Divided Into Thirteen
 Areas With Leaders
By Associated Press

, WASHINGTON, Dec. 23.-How the war department is working to- ward plan of industrial prepared ness, capable of marshaling Ameri- can material resources in orderly support of American man power should a national emergency de- mand it, is revealed by Secretary Weeks in an article prepared for the January issue of the Nations Business, official organ of the Chamber of Commerce of the United States.
 Already, the secretary writes, "thirteen ordinances have been marked out as part of the mobiliza- tion plan and a civilian leader, a, man high in the business life of his community has volunteered to serve as a point of intimate contact be- tween. the government and business interests which could be of service 1n war time productlon.
 Air Men Involved
 Progress also has been made to- ward establishing similar contact with alrplane producers and uni- form fixed price contract has been drawn in tentative form for use In future war purchases.
 The logical development of this project. MT. Weeks adds, would be 70 ~{x staff to control wartime industrial mobilization. He suggests that in furtherance of the scheme it may be advisable to place from year to year small educational orders" to fill peace time needs and to maintain a skeleton organization readily com vertible to war requirements. BrIpx Into Contnct
 There are being established be- tween war department and American industrial life everywhere" said the sarticle, points of contact that should bring the American people into this business of making ready in peace for the task that the American people alone can accomplish in war.
 Tt Is in our ordnance problem we have been able to make the most headway thus far. The ordnance dis tricts marked out In relation to the peace time industrial establishment available in each district for ord- nance production are 13 In number, and are known, respectively, as the Baltimore, Boston, Bridgeport, Chi cago, Cincinnati Cleveland, Detroit New York, Philadelphia. Pittsburg, Rochester San Francisco and St. Louis districts.
 District chiefs so far appointed are as follows (the military titles where used indicating a reserve cornmis- sion): Col. c. Fl. Penney at Boston, Col B. A Franklin at Bridgeport. E A. Russell at Chicago. c. l.. Harrison at Cincinnati, Col. Bascom Little at Cleveland, F. J. Robinson at Detroit Col. John R. Delafield at New York, J. c. Jones at Philadelphia, R. M Dravo at Pittsburg and M. E. Sin gleton at St. Louis.
 These men will have the wartime job of procuring 90 per cent of ord nance material. as government ar- senals can produce at most but 10 per cent It Is to be noted that this entire project rests upon the patriotic willingness of civilians. be they re- serve officers or not, who have vol- un,cered to undertake this work. think 1t well to emphasize again that the plans we have formulated look to the development under Assistant Secretary Of War Wainwright of what we might term civilian indus trial general staff to be charged in war with the coordinate function of munitions procurement as the gen eral staff of the army is charged with the duty of employing the se- lected man power and the mobilized material for combat purposes"