Evening star., 1926-11-08
National Progress and Waste.

report as head of the Department of
Commerce, admonishes the country
that its further material improve
ments can come only through better
utilization Of industrial resources and
effort. If the standards of living in
America are to advance further the
goal Of all in the economic field
should be the elimination of waste.
The word waste" primarily sig
nihes the loss of materials through
uneconomical collection, fabrication
or distribution. Such is the waste in
the forests Of the country, which
have been denuded with only a small
percentage Of economic use of ma
terials. Such Is the waste in the
factories, where heavy percentages
Of raw materials have been al
lowed to flow away into the streams
or have been piled up for destruc-
ton. Innumerable examples OF the
wastefulness Of prodigal processes of
manufacturing are established.
But there is another form of waste,
in the neglect of opportunities to use
the forces of nature, in conservation
and in expansion of economic funda.
mentals. Such is the waste of water
power. which is daily proceeding,
through lack of comprehensive meas
ures for it's utilization. Much has
been done to this end, but much more
remains to he done. Meanwhile, the
mines are being carried deeper for
fuel, with constant drain upon the
man power through accidents Incl
dental to mining. Fluid fuels are
being pumped out of the earth. with
the exhaustion of the supply within
an appreciable period confronting the
country.
Rail transportation, though highly
developed, Is not yet at the point of
ultimate economy Duplication of
lines, needless occupation of profit
less territory, for purposes of corpora
ton advantage. tardiness in consoli-
dation for more efficient service and
curtailment of cost-these are causes
Of waste in that vitally important
field.
Cooperation between the factors Of
the Industrial and commercial equa-
tions makes for the elimination OF
waste. The Department OF Commerce
IN seeking to promote that co-opera-
tfon, through better understanding OF
the principle that only through mu-
tuality of effort can come the full
use Of the facilities for making and
marketing the products of the land.
A problem of great proportions con-
fronts the producers. fabricators and
distributors of the United States-a
problem arising largely from the
great fruitfulness of this country and
the ease with which its resources
have been developed in the past. The
time has come-has indeed, long since
arrived-when conservation must be
the primary principle, recognized and
respected and practiced by all.
Much is being done. Chemists are
diligently pursuing researches in
their laboratories to effect utili;a ton
Of hitherto unconsidered trifies of
what Is generally called waste ma
terial. Only recently announcement
was made of the discovery of high
~ profitable utilization of the leather
Of old shoes, always regarded as
worthless. That is but an example
OF the new economy now prevailing
to an increasing degree in this coun-
try. There are other fields and other
lines of inquiry and other materials
yet TO be put to work in accord with
the principle that in the highest
economic situation, which Secretary
Hoover proclaims. there Is no such
thing as waste.