Evening star., 1923-07-18
AUTOMOBILE trade.
HOLDING Up WELL
Last Halt Year Almost Sure
to Beat Sales Records for
1922 Season.
nY ]. c. ROYLE.

special Dispatch to The Star.
NEW YORK. July lS-One of the
surprises of an automobile year, full
of surprises. is the announcement by
the Oldsmobile Company that truck
production has been increased 100
Per cent.
During the last sixty days. H..
u. Peasley. sales manager of the COM
pany said today, "a most unusual
feature has been found in the truck
'sftuation. At the start of the sea-
son we openly predicted that the
farmers would buy passenger cars in
large numbers, but we did not see
that they were going TO need trucks
in a rush.
Yet today our distributors are de-
mandins more trucks to meet farm
ers' needs. We have gone into the
last half of the year with more or
ders than we can fill."
Other Sales Tlunning High.
Similar reports come from sources
associated with the Hudson Motor
Company. One local dealer said to-
Gay: Up to the fist of July. the
Detroit territory has been so fortu-
nate as to sell as many Hudson and
Essex cars as in the entire year of
In discussing the prospects for the
remainder of 1923. President Charles
d.. Hastings of the Hupp company
said: Information gathered by our
own officials and by our district rep
resentatives and that obtained from
our dealers makes it appear almost
certain that the last six months will
show larger results than for the cor
responding period of 1922"
Parts Plants Rushed.
Employment in industrial plants in
Detroit increased by 1850 workers in
much of the gain has taken place in
the factories making automobile
parts 1t gives weight to the gener-
ally expressed opinion that the low
point of the usual summer showdown
In the automobile business has passed
and that the fall bulge has set in.
The employment upturn is the first
recorded in Detroit since June 2.
when the curve started downward.
The Cadillac factory resumed work
at full speed this week. following the
annual inventory. with more than
1000 men employed. the largest in
the history of the company. People
who wondered how Ford would coun-
ter opposition BE- Durant and Chevro-
let find their answer in the fact that
the Ford factories. in the first half of
1928, turned out 1,050.1S5 cars. trucks
and tractors. or within $4,000 units
1920. the banner year previously.
These figures mean that in eighteen
months Ford has doubled his rate of
sales. The total Ford production for
1873, including the Lincoln plant, is
expected to exceed 2-000,o 900 units
Harbor Change COmpleteod.
The opening of the River Rouge to
the largest of the lake freighters is
one of the most significant events of
the year to the automobile industry.
The company plans to have three lake
freighters week dumping iron ore
River Rouge blast furnaces until the
close of navigation or an average
weekly delivery of $4,000 tons. 1t is
expected enough ore will be stored by
winter to run the furnaces until
spring.
The deepening and widening of the
River Rauge has added six miles of
water front to Detroit waterways.
Ford acquired property rights on both
sides of the river and donated them
to the government. under direction of
which the river was widened to 800
feet and deepened to an average of
twenty-five feet. The Ford company
itself has built a turning basin. 1900
feet long and 122 wide. which also
will be turned over to the govern
ment.
Possible Textile Wage Adjustment.
The slackening in the operation and
sales of the New England textile
plants is attributed by New England
mill executives to labor demands.
which they assert are unreasonable
The public. they say. has refused to
follow up advances in cotton goods.
which were based on the 12h per cent
wage increase granted last spring.
Some manufacturers maintain the be-
lief that unless conditions improve.
notifications in wage scales must be
made. 1t is generally felt. however,
that these may be avoided if the de-
tciency in output resulting from mill
curtailment brings a better inquiry
from the public.