The Waterbury Democrat., 1942-09-22
. NATIONAL
 SPOTLIGHT
"HOratio Alger''-- Like Hero Now
 Rules U. s. Rubber
(Peter EdsOn is on vacation, dur ing which time his column is be- ing written by Robert RnarlE).
BY ROBERT RUARK Waterbury Democrat Washington
 Correspondent

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 Correspondent
 The man who is going to unrayel the tangled skein of the American rubber situation quite frankly ad- mits he doesn't know the first thing about rubber. But, says William M. Jeffers, newly appointed rubber czar he damn soon intends to find out about rubber" and then he's going to pull all stops on rubber oonser- vation and rubber manufacture.
 Tt won't take long to find out everything we need to know" says the 66-year-old president of the Union Pacific Railroad. Tt is not our way to take long"
 And you believe him. Bill Jeffers, big and bald and heavy of jaw, doesn't look like one of the dilly- daily brotherhood which infests Washington's bureaus. He is tough Mick whose pappy. an Irish immi- grant, worked on the section gang which laid the tracks for the Union Pacific. Old Man Jefferes came over here with special contingent of imported laborers.
 Young Bill never cottoned to book larnin' He quit school at IA and went to work as janitor in the U. P.'s station at North Platte, Neb. Like one of Horatio Alger's sink or swim heroes, young Jeffers began to climb the ladder so fast he scorched the rungs.
 Bill moved from janitor, to tele- grapher to clerk to dispatcher to trainmaSter, assistant Superintend- ent of the Utah, Wyoming and Nee braska divisions, general manager, vice president, executive vice pres fdent and finally, in 1887, president. His span with Union Pacific ran from 1890 to the present.
 HE'LL BE
 MIR. RUBBER
 Jeffers is going to work for a dol lar year, and he is, according to WPBoss Donald Nelson, going to be MT. Rubber. T am delegating all my authority to MT. Jeffers," Nell son said, announcing the appoint ment. Prom this point on any mat ter connected with rubber is a mat ter for MT. Jeffers' decision, and I know he will do this job"
 As sole boss of rubber. Jeffers power will be immense. The Rub Der Reserve Company and "all other government agencies" have been instructed by special Presi- dential directive to obey Nelson to the last inch. Nelson's delegation of that power to Jeffers makes the Irish railroadman one of the most potent figures in cur war effort.
 Jeffers is to have full and com- plete authority over synthetic rubber manufacture, from initial research to plant operation"
 One of the first jobs Jeffers must attempt is a civilian rubber conservation program.
 During his first press conference, Jeffers swore he had no idea that he was being considered for the job. Called from his home in Omaha, he hopped a plane and flew down to Washington. MT. Nelson wasted no words, but dumped the job in his lap, despite Jeffers' declaration that all he knew about rubber he had read in the papers.
 CRITICS
 ANSWERED
 The controversy in Washington, as to whether it was smart to invest a total stranger to rubber with all the power of a czar, is being answered pretty well. Chief answer is that, knowing nothing about the commodity, Jeffers at least won't make the early mis- take of prejudice in favor of any particular kind of synthetic rub Der. He is going into the job with a wide open mind.
 The other argument is that he can't make any more of mess of his job than his expert predeces- Sors already have made. He is going to pursue closely the main points in the Baruch report, and his record as a self-made success indicates he has more than suff1- cient executive ability to handle any sort of an administrative job.
 Although he has no, plans as such, the rubber chiefs brain must be immediately concerned with the six points of the Baruch re- commendation = a national 35- mile speed limit; reduction of ay- craze annual mileage to 5000; re- lease of more rubber for recapping essential cars; nation-wid gas ra- tioning, enforced inspection of tires, and voluntary tire conserva- ton pending nationwide gas ra- tioning.
 He must have plenty on the bali. It's long way up from janitor'S job to railroad presidency.