Evening star., 1942-12-21
Transportation 1ie-up
May Interrupt Many
Supplies, Nelson Says
Urges Loree Inventories
To Bridge Cops, in
Letter to Senote Body

Board Chairman Donald M. Nelson
that transportation difficulties may
create serious shortages of con-
sumner goods in various areas from
time to time during the war has
been sent to Senate committee
for study when it reconvenes.
Mr.. Nelson, in letter addressed
to Chairman Murray of the Senate
Small Business Committee. pre-
dicted greater restrictions on auto
mobile travel and a heavier burden
on the general transportation
system.
Mr. Nelson also declared that If
we are to win the peace as we'll
as the war" the principle of in
dependent enterprise-small busi-
ness-"must not only survive, but
also become stronger, more effec-
tive force In our economic life"
Regarding transportation prob
lens, Mr.. Nelson wrote:
The mobility of consumers will
be greatly restricted, both of neces-
slty and by consumer choice. Travel
by automobile is due for restriction
much more drastic than that OBJ
tanning today.
Travel to Be Restricted.
Travel by common carrier will be
increasingly inconvenient and in
some instances not permissible. Re-
duced variety of goods, rationing,
price controls, the value of time to
the individual, and the general level
OF consumer incomes are among the
factors which will reduce consumers
desire to shop around or to buy at
distance from home.
1T is conceivable that military
factors may even necessitate the
restriction of travel and of freight
movement in certain areas. These
factors suggest that goods must be
available to consumers close to their
homes, and that such locally avail
able merchandise should cover al
most the whole range of essential
needs"
In this connection, Mr.. Nelson
suggested storing civilian supplies
near consuming centers as one safe
guard against distribution break
Gowns. He commented, however,
that whatever the system which
emerges, it may be subject to break
down for shorter or longer periods
and in smaller or larger areas"
Urges Food Inventories.
There may be occasions. hours,
Gays or weeks in duration. when
civilian goods cannot be moved in
adequate quantities to or from GER
tam areas" he said. 1T may we'll
be advisable, therefore, to have
considerable inventories of food.
fuel, clothing and health supplies
stored adjacent to consumers at,
all times against such an eventu-
ality."
Mr. Nelson promised that the
tangible and intangible resources
OF many of our smaller business
enterprises, manufacturers and dis
trloutors be put to work"
When manufacturing facilities OF
smaller. less fully engineered"
nrm cannot be put to work on
military and essential civiIion
goods ne added, our response
olllty Is to use all available mean,
LOT transferring component parts
OF It's facilities, such as individual
machines or inventories, to some
productive use"
Mr.. Nelson also suggested that
some mechanism be created to
hnance and otherwise help business
nrmS to get on their feet when the
war ends. He pointed out that "a
SOUND economy calls for ample op-
portunlty for small enterprises to
enter particular fields and add their
imagination. initiative and drive to
lne competitive struggle to pro-
VIDE more and better goods at
continually lower prices"
Queries on WPB Policy.
Mr.. Nelson submitted tn Senator
Murray's committee a list of oues-
lions relating to policy on which he
SAID WPB would appreciate sugges-
tlons, among them:
Inc extent to which freedom Of
entry into the distributing trades
should be suspended during the war.
ANY such proposal will require de-
clslon as to the extent to which
wholesalers and retailers should be
prevented from shifting from one
branch of distribution to another
when they are pressed by shortages
OF supplies.
The extent to which it is desira-
bic to control the variety of mer.
chandise sold by retailers. For ex-
ample, a number of retailers have
recently increased the types of goods
handled because of the curtailment
OF the supply of some of their previ-
GUS lines of merchandise.
The nature of the steps that
should be taken to withdraw man.
power from the distributing trades
so as to maximize the war effort and
at the same time maintain neces-
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