Evening star., 1942-04-01
n. Y. A. Machine Tools
Offered Contractors,
Williams Testifies
No Responses Yet Received
To March II Letter.
Senators Told
BY J. A. OTEARYs

Answering charges that the Ma
tional Youth Administration has
machine tools in its training shops
that are needed by war industries,
Aubrey Williams, administrator, told
the Senate Education and Labor
Committee today the Army and
Navy sent out list OF N. Y. A.
equipment to defense contractors,
but Ito this hour" no requests have
been received.
The letter containing this list was
dated March 27, six days after the
beginning of newspaper series tell
ing of the quantity of machine tools
in the N. Y. A. shops.
However, Mr.. Williams testified
that his agency obtained list OF
critical materials from the Ordnance
Department Machine Tool Commit
tee on February 20.
Representatives of the War Pro-
duction Board have been provided
with property records of the N. Y. A.
in order to ascertain whether N. Y.
A. equipment includes any of the
items in the War Production Boards
list Of critical machinery" he told
the committee.
I'VE obtained copy of the list
of critical materials on February 20,
1912, from Col. S. E. Reimel, Ord
nance Department Machine Tool
Committee. On February %, we
wrote to Col. Reimel that prelimi-
nary investigation of our January,
1912, inventory of equipment had
disclosed no tools of the sizes and
types specified, but that additional
information would be transmitted to
him as soon as the remainder Of
our inventory records could be
examined"
421,000 Trained in Year.
Mr.. Williams also said the N. Y. A.
made 421, 900 trained young workers
available to industry in the last year
and is continuing to turn them out
at the rate of 10000 every three
months.
OF those trained last year 210.-
600 went to work in plants holding
WdT COlllI dCGS, lie SdlO.
Testifying against the McKellar
bill to abolish N. Y. A. and the C.
C. C. and authorize a limited voca-
tional training program in the Office
of education, Mr.. Williams de-
clared:
To attempt to transfer N. Y A.
facilities and functions to another
agency at this time would disrupt
going organization and would re-
tard the progress of the war pro-
gram considerably.
Limit on Training Opposed.
Mr.. Williams also declared it would
be 'unrealistic" to limit the training
program to young men. Millions of
trained women may be needed in
war industries. he added, and N. Y.
A. is training thousands of them.
The administrator declared N. Y.
A. used salvaged and surplus ma
chinery in training these youths. and
testified nearly all its machine shops
are operating on a three shift basis.
and some on two shifts. Only
small percentage are on one shift,
he said.
Pointing out mechanical workers
must be trained on machines, Mr..
Williams asserted all N. Y A. ma
chimes are serving a vital war pur-
pose.
Senator Taft, Republican, of Ohio
suggested that the series of articles
dealing with N. Y. A. machine tools
be placed in the record and that Mr..
Williams file a detailed answer to
them later.
Senator McKellar asked Mr.. Will
liams to comment on one newspaper
charge that N. Y. A. had some ma
chinery in its possession uncrated.
Charge Denied.
Mr.. Williams replied that was
simply untrue" Under further
questioning Mr.. Williams said that
on a certain day there may be some
Grated machines just arrived from
one place to another, but he insisted
N. Y. A. has no machine that stand
unused week after week.
Mr.. Williams recalled that in
October, 1888, the President gave the
N. Y. A, priority in receiving Fed
eral surplus property which could
be repaired and made useful for
training purposes in metal and me-
chanical fields.
Since the inception of the ma
tional defense program in 1910,
the N. Y. A. has followed a policy
of converting its facilities to the
training of war workers and of elm
mating all non-essential activities"
Mr.. Williams testified.
by April (today) this transition
will be complete" the administrator
added.