Evening star., 1939-12-31

ca ,.sser. celer alton OF
m a n ufacturing
and trade should keep wheels spin
ming we'll into the new year.
Some have warned that inventory
accumulation might bring a fresh
slump, but thus far available sta
tistics are interpreted as indicating
that supplies of goods generally are
still far from burdensome.
Heavy industry, such as railroad
equipment and industrial plant
building, laggards in previous re-
covery efforts, have shown some
sharp STRINGS.
The effects of war on industrial
price levels have been minimized,
and corporation financing in the
securities markets, brought to a
standstill in the early weeks OF war.
has been resumed on q small scale.
U. S. Gets War Orders.
Although buying of war materials
by belngerent powers outside OF
aircraft and machine tools has not
amounted to much, most Of the
experts agree that a fair volume
of business is bound to come to
American factories, both from bel
ligerents and neutrals whose former
sources of supply have been inter-
rupted.
The Federal Reserve estimated
that the allied powers at the end OF
August had bank deposits, securi-
ties and gold in the United States
worth s8,44O 100000, providing q
substantial basis of payment.
The very fact that Americas
factories are once more turning out
the largest volume of goods since
1929, brings hope that once more
the various wheels Of the national
economy may be coming into mesh.
Millions Are Jobless.
But despite the quickening in in
dustry, America faces 1910 soberly.
Some 5000 900 or more remain un-
employed. more than 5000, 900 new
workers have become available since
1920
The private capital pump has not
been effectively primed. The Ma
tional Government debt has risen
more than 20 billions during the de-
preston years, and its deficit spend
ing has lately been running around
a quarter of billion a month.
New capital raised in the secur-
tiles markets the last year came
to only about $685., 900 900, compared
with an average of 51a billions an
nually in 1925-29.
Huge surpluses of farm products
remain in warehouses, and pros
perity prices for the farmer still
are not in sight.
Conflict between Government and
business leaders continues, with
Government accusing business Of
wanting freedom to repeat the ex-
cesses and abuses of 1929, business
men insisting that Government con-
trols have damned up the flow Of
capital, inhibited enterprise. ag-
gravated labor squabbles.
The September visions of a war
boom have blurred. Many business
men are leery Of the false pros
perity" resulting from war orders.
england and France, having pooled
their economic and financial re-
sources, plan to buy carefully and
sparingly, bargain their own goods
in world markets to the highest
bidder. use every means to conserve
their funds.
New Frontier Open.
Much of the world vastly increased
its industrial plant after the World
War and the wave of nationalism
of the depression years, resulted in
strenuous efforts to become ma
tionally self-sufhcient.
The American geographic frontier
is no longer, and with foreign mark
cts seemingly diminishing, some
have despaired over the lack Of
new industrial frontier.
But with mass production not yet
effectively applied to flll as vital
a want as housing; with a whole new
industry developing in plastics and
talking of soon making automobile
bodies from soy beans, pressing air.
planes from resins; with new cloth
ing fabrics made from cellulose and
grass fibers going into production,
with these and innumerable other
developments of the laboratory and
the factory on the horizon, maybe
the American productive capacity
will be put to new tests before long.