Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1941-08-21
BY DON WHITEHEAD,
The Stars Special News Service.

| Inc star 5 Special news ScIFlCt.
NEW YORK, Aug. 2l.-A terrific
recoil in the Nations industrial pro-
duction for war and defense is lash
ing out at the little manufacturer
and jobber who are not prepared to
handle defense orders.
The pressure is increasing daily
on the small fellows because raw
materials must be funneled into
channels producing defense mate
rails. Somebody is bound to be hurt
in the rush.
Planes, tanks, guns, ships and am
munition are more important to
Uncle Sam right now than anything
else, and that's why there are
strangely contrasting stories of men
being thrown out of jobs while gen.
eral industrial production hits new
high levels.
Defense Contract Is Key.
Manufacturers of essential defense
materials have prior claim on the
raw materials by Government order
The little fellow using these mate
rails can't join the prosperity parade
without a defense contract.
The big industries are letting sub
contracts on some of the billions in
defense orders, but industrial engi-
neers estimate that only IS per cent
of defense production can be farmed
out.
1t is too early yet to say what the
ultimate effect of the industrial dis
locations will be, but a good many
small producers have been able to
dodge the pressure of defense prior
tiles by converting their plants for
defense production.
A notable example was at York,
Pa, where foresighted industrialists
surveyed the city's supply of skilled
workmen and machinery and was
able to utilize manpower and facili-
ties for turning out defense orders. .
For the most part, the big indus
tries have been able to absorb the
unemployed from smaller plants as
their facilities were expanded, and
so far there has'been no great prob
lem in men being thrown out of
work.
Steel Output Jumps.
For example, the steel industry
was operating at only 1917 per cent
of capacity nine years ago when
production was only 15,323,000 tons
and 100000 men were employed.
Today the steel plants are operat-
ing at 90 per cent of capacity and
in the first six months of the cur
rent year more than 100000 en-
ployes produced 4o,912,OOO tons of
steel
There is much talk in the automo-
bile industry of unemployment be-
cause of curtailment of new models
to conserve metals for defense pur-
poses, but not even the manutac-
turers themselves know what the
volume of production will be.
They may build 100000 vehicles
or they may not build half that
many because of defense priorir,es
and concentration On manufacturing
engines, airplanes, plane parts,
tanks, shells, artillery units, anti
aircraft guns and other implements
of war.
Science may be able to find sub
stitutes for many Of the materials
now going into defense requirements
and ease the pressure on small !
manufacturers.
Science in ParadoxicaI Role.
The men of science offer one of
the greatest paradoxes of a world |
at war. for they continually strive
to devise new means of destruction, |
and then they must learn to de-
stroy their own inventions or render
them harmless.
Not all scientists are engrossed |
in the test tubes of death, of /
course, but science has been geared |
in the manner of industry FOR the
job of defense.
One out of every four American !
Is doing scientific re-
search on secret national defense
work. They are missing from the
colleges and universities and IA
miliar haunts, turning up in WASH
ington or closely guarded labora-
tory.
They don't talk nowadays about !
their work. Except in rare cases they
get little publicity, for their expert
ments are military secrets.
When the war started in Europe
there was talk of fearful secret |
weapons which could wipe out
whole armies; of cases more terri
flying than anything used in the
World War, and of death rays which