Watauga Democrat. [volume] (Boone, Watauga County, N.C.) 1888-current, 1923-01-25
FRENCH AGAINST
PROBLEM IN RUHR
full if They Will Produce
Much Coal
BUILD UP NEW SYS-
TEN.

l.
who are familiar with the industrial
organization of that region are in
superable. And according to the dis
patch from abroad it is the realiza-
ton that their technical services in
the Ruhr are inadequate. that has
caused the French to move slowly
since their occupation.
The coal industry Of Germany is
more highly centralized than any in
dustry in this country. 1t might be
compared to the packing industry in
Chicago a number of years ago, be-
fore local packing plants began to
spring up all over the country. 1t
is entirely controlled by the coal
syndicate or coal trust of Germany,
which centers in the Ruhr.
So when the mine owners of the
.Ruhr refused to obey the orders of
the French generals they broke down
the entire coal distribution system
of Germany. Distribution was en-
tirely in their hands. Therefore even
though the French should succeed in
producing coal they will have to
build up a whole new system of dis
tribution. And France is not coun-
try with large industrial experience.
Moreover the flow of coal from the
Ruhr before the French occupation
was one third to France for repair
alton and two-thirds to Germany to
be consumed in industry there. Even
he German government should per-
NIT the transportation of coal mined
by the French over its railroads that
it is doubtful whether German indus
try can now buy coal from the Ruhr
or anywhere else.
Thus the French have not on got
to build up new distributio
tenn but must find new markets for
coal which Germany will either re-
fuse to take or will be unable to
buy. ......
The belief here is that the French
will be able to produce coal from
the Ruhr mines. The German min
ers there must either work or starve.
If the French pay them and provide
them with food it is expected that
they will work.
But they will hardly be efficient.
Even if they had the best will in
the world to produce under the new
masters the complete break up of
the old organization alone will slow
up production so it is doubtful, &C
cording to experts in industry, wheth-
er the French will be able to take
out of the ground much more than
so per cent OF the coal the German
syndicate was mining.
Then the feeding Of the miners
will be a serious problem. The Ruhr
is not an agricultural region. Nearly
all the food for its population has
to be brought in. Most of it has been
coming from other sections of Ger
many. But the German government
will probably cut off that source of
supplies. In the Ruhr today there
is only food enough on hanu for
few days. So the French faae the
task of not only distributing the coal
they mine through new channels, but
also Of providing food from new
sources. And you cannot improvise
steamship lines and railroads at
moments notice. Here is a highly
populous region whose output hither-
to has flowed east and whose food
has flowed in from the east. Sud-
denly and without. preparation, its
output must flow west and it's food
must flow in from the west.
1t is not much exaggeration of
the problem of the Ruhr to compare
it to what would happen if New Eng
land one fine morning, should draw
a military Gordon about New York
city and the other industrial cities
around it, and New England should
have to provide the food for this in
dustrial region and the outlet for its
products. The flow of food from the
west to New York and of products
from New York to the west. What
the French have accomplished is
violent dislocation of an industrial
system that has taken generations
to build up. Their task is to substi-
stute new one overnight.
Of course the rest of industrial
Germany will starve. 1t has only at
most few weeks supply of coal on
hand. And the mark has dropped to
the point where 1t is little better as
a purchasing medium than the Rus
sian ruble. German industry will be
unable to buy coal either from the
French in the Ruhr or elsewhere on
any such scale as to keep the in
dustrial population fully employed,
It is believed here that the French
are counting on starving Germany
into submission. But in the mean
time they are seriously lowering if
not destroying her capacity even to
pay reparations.
The American Government feels
that it can do nothing but watch this
complex situation develop, ready to
use it's friendly Offices when the mo-
-ment for compromise arises.