The Waterbury Democrat., 1942-11-27

Hawaii, Australia, where U. s. ships are easily observed unloading their cargoes of war supplies, then pull- ing out with their holds empty. Cubans and Hawaiians with sugar to export, Australians with meats and wools to export, naturally want to know how come and they start raising cain about 1t.
 There is considerable truth In these stories, but shipping offlcials say that explanations to such ru- mors are bound up in one of the most difficult of all the planning operations which the fedral gov- ernment war agencies are called upon to perform. The answer is supposed to lie in knowing for sure where the ship was bound to after 1t left Q foreign port, or where 1t came from when 1t got back.
 There isn't anything to haul back from Murmansk, for instance, so all ships which have carried Lend Lease aid to Soviet Russia come back in ballast.
 CAN'T WASTE TIME
 Ships have come back empty from Hawaii because of the need for quick turnaround so they could get back to U. s. ports and carry out other loads of war sup plies. Holding the ship in Honolulu for a couple of days to load it up with sugar or pineapples, then talk ing another couple of days to un- load them in California would mean a four-day delay in getting the ship back to Hawaii with war supplies.
 ships have taken machinery into South American coffee ports, then sai.ed empty-not back to the United States but to other South American ports to pick up man. gA-ese or chrome ores, rubber or hides. oils, and the like.
 Ships have sailed empty from Australian ports, but they have returned by way of Chile, picking up copper or nitrates before re- turning to the United States.
 And so on.
 Control over ship movements and what vessel hauls what, when and where Is a four-headed monster of State, the War Production Board, now controlled by the Department the Board of Economic Warfare, and the War Shipping Administra- ton. Their job ils admittedly in- tricate and mistakes have no doubt been made.
 Tn the first place, Board Of Eco homie Warfare decides what can be exported from the country, and buys the materials which are im- ported for the government war program.
 WIPE decides what should be im- ported, and has set up g. list of production. assigning a priority some POO items essential for war rating to each one from Al down. Roughly, the rule is that no item can be imported if there is avail able for import cargo or higher rating. Most ores and rubbers, for instance, rank above coffee and sugar. CoNsULs REPORT
 U. s. consular agents of the De- partment of State, working with BEW, VISA, and WIPE, maintain an available cargo reporting service in all ports open to U. s. shipping. AS these reports are received in Washington, they are given to War Shipping Administration. which as- signs the vessels to runs and tells them what loads to pick up.
 VISA was set up last February. and is headed by Lewis W. Doug las, former director of the budget. If he thought he had troubles then, he can honestly console himslef with the thought that they were nothing to the troubles he has now.
 Every ship under the U. s. flag is now under VISA control and its division of operations must know not only where every one of these ships is, but where 1t is going and what for,