Evening star., 1940-07-28
Defense Officials
Swamped With Pleas
For Orders and Plants
Determined to Follow
Carefully Developed
Procurement Plans
Nv ROBERT BRUSKIN.

BY ROBERT BRUSKIN.
An ever-increasing flow Of de-
mands from organizations seeking |
defense orders or ALLEGATIONS to their
communities Of projected Govern
ment plants Is swamping the War
Department, but officials are ada
mant in carrying to completion their
own carefully developed procure
ment plans.
Although yesterday was half |
holiday for the postman, 496 letters
were received by the facilities di-
vision OF the Assistant Secretary of |
Wars ONCE, asking for share in |
the defense program. They In
cluded 81 letters from members Of |
Congress seeking information on
prospective orders for plants in their
districts. One civilian employe,
however, declared the legislators
were leaning over backward" to !
avoid any indication that pressure
is being brought to bear for con-
tracts.
Many were from civic organiza-
tions asking for larger share OF
defense expenditures for their State,
particularly Of the lO8 plants which
the Government plans to erect
eventually should major defense
effort be required.
Plants Have Plans.
Hundreds of similar demands are !
being made of the National Defense
Advisory Commission which ap-
yS1n
the Army and Navy. Each letter
is being analyzed for possible value
and politely answered, but the War
Department is quick to point out
that during the last 20 years more
than 10000 commercial plants have
been inspected by Army and Navy
experts and of these 10,340 have
been selected as capable of produc-
ton for defense. The firms have
locked in their safes plans for the
type and amount of equipment 1t
will start turning out on M-day
mobilization day.. Most are al
ready manufacturing supplies for
the expanding Army and Navy.
Experts figure that modern
army and navy need 10000 COM
plete items of equipment. Ample
facilities are available for all but
3.7O0 and ii is this type Of equip
ment which will be manufactured
to a major extent by the l0.340
firms. located in every State and
the District of Columbia, except
Nevada, New Mexico and South
Dakota However, special machin-
cry and plants are needed for 200
items and procurement is consid-
cred critical. This has been over
come to some extent through edu-
cational orders which permit the
purchase of machinery and perfec-
ton OF production plants.
Government Must Build.
But private industry cannot man
ufacture all the critical items and
the Government has been forced
to plan construction of its own
plants. 1t is the location of Gov
ernment plants which is causing
the greatest concern to States
Practically every large community
has asked for them and some have
sent delegations to Washington to
press their claims. These include
78 plants to manufacture ordnance
chiefly powder, shells, machine
guns and airplane cannon-at
cost of 1858 100000. Also contem-
plated Is construction of % plants
for the Chemical Warfare Service
and two for the Quartermaster
Corps, to cost s45 900 900 more
Congress has already appropri-
ated or has been asked to appro-
pirate about s500.00O 900 for this
purpose and President Roosevelt
has been given additional authori-
zation for $66 5000 A contract
has been signed for construction of
one smokeless powder plant and
another is soon to be awarded.
Without exception, all Govern
ment plants are to be located in
sections not easily accessible to in
vaders. They will be away from
coast lines, behind the Allegheny
and Rocky Mountains, and far from
the Mexican and Canadian borders
Thus the World War "triangle"-
which confined the ma jority of mu-
nitions plants between New Haven,
Pittsburgh and Baltimore-will be
avoided.
See Boon to Farm Areas.
War Department officials believe
location of the plants in interior
States will have a profound eco
nomic effect in decentralizing in
dustry and will become a boon to
depressed agricultural areas.
The sites, which in many in
stances have already been selected,
must also be accessible to sources
of supply, power, water, coal and
rail centers. They must be near
localities where skilled labor Is
available, thus preventing a mass
migration of workmen who are
needed in existing industries en-
gagged in defense work. And there
must be sufficient housing nearby
for the workers. The nature of the
terrain must be suitable.
For instance, a powder plant re-
euires a vast area of fiat ground so