Evening star., 1940-07-12

month and a Frederic William Vile.
half ago, but no evidence has
reached the public that it has
really got going" An impression
persists that the commission is en-
veloped by SO much hard -shelled
Washington departmental routine
that it finds itself sorely handi-
capped in setting factory and foun-
dry wheels to Whirring, smoke
stacks to belching and freight cars
to moving, In one well-informed
quarter, it is contended there has
been costly and intolerable delay"
in arriving at even so elementary a
program as specifications and stand
ardization for the various types of
guns. planes, ships and tanks so
urgently needed.
Few Americans realize that not
only was it more than a year after
declaration OF war in 1917 before
the United States had an army
in the field, but that at no time
did the A. Il. Except for four
14-lnch naval guns-fire a single
cannon or shell made in this coun-
try. No tank of American manu-
facture was ever used on the vest
ern front. We had to buy artillery,
howitzers, machine guns, automatic
rifles and bombs in both France
and Great Britain. Our airplane-
engine fiasco is of painful memory.
Are we headed in the same bum
bling and fumbling direction?
Today's gratifying announcement
Of plans to produce 25,0O0 Army and
Navy warplanes by 1912 would indi-
cate that reports of defense delay
are not wholly justified
X X X
Who's to Blame.
Unless fabulous preparedness ap-
preparations voted by Congress are
soon converted into some of the
things for which the money is in
tended, or tangible proof is forth
coming that their naturalization Is
reasonably in sight, a patriotic and
generous. but impatient, House and
Senate may break out in question:
asking mood. Capitol Hill, If so
minded today, would be asking why
thus far, for instance, as alleged,
Government orders have not
reached steel, Oil or copper COM
panies on anything like the expected
scale. Congress may want to
know, in short, just who's TO blame
for the fact that while the Stet-
tinius-Knudsen group has gone
manfully to work, its actual author
ity apparently still leaves much to
be desired. House and Senate may
become curious, too, as to exactly
who or what is responsible for the
bureaucratic methods said to be
paralyzing advisory commission ac-
tivitles in vital directions. The view
Is seriously voiced that until the
vast defense procurement system is
improved-cO-ordinated or central
ized-over anything so far devised,
the billions Uncle Sam is ready to
spend may fail to serve their pur-
pose in time. The need for strictly
civilian or industrial control is en-
phasized.
"Throttlebottoms" at Chicago.
Those who think It's all over but
the shouting at Chicago-that
Roosevelt is as good as renominated
-envision the Democratic conven-
ton as a mere contest among would
be "Throttlebottoms," a wild, unpre-
cedented scramble for second place.
The woods were never SO full 'ot
vice presidential Barkises. Some of
them would be in the race for the
presidential crown had not Mr.
Roosevelt blocked everybody else
out of the picture. Tail-end eligi-
bles, more or less in the order of
their prospects, are Secretary Hull,
Justice Douglas, Gov Stark, Paul
McNutt, Senators Byrnes, Lucas,