Evening star., 1942-05-10
Textile Mills 10 Set
Records for Fourth
Consecutive Year
Many Firms Foeine
Big Problems Under
War Regulations
Special Dispatch to The Star.

0pCSAdl OlcpdlSu w AHc 1bdis
NEW YORK, May 9.-From the
tempo of the first quarter of 1912 in
textile production, that industry is
all set to try for fourth successive
record year, according to Douglas G.
Woolf, editor Of Textile World.
The mill activity index of the pub
lication shows an increase of II per
cent over the corresponding period
of last year. The activity has been
at the annual rate of 96 per cent over
the assumed normal 0923-1925=10O
which means that the tentative
index for 1912, based only on the
first quarter, is 1876, as against the
previous record of 1873 in 1941. It
also compares with the records set
in the preceding two years-l42 In
1910 and 1873 In 1889.
OF the four major fibers, there
are only three left, silk being no
longer in the picture. OF those
three, cotton consumption in the
first quarter Of 1912 was approx
mately 13 per cent over that of the
same period of 1941, while rayon
consumption, including that of both
filament and rayon staple, was up
II per cent. Wool consumption
showed a slight increase.
Affected by Curbs.
Unfortunately for many manu-
facturers and their employees, this
overall picture shows only a part
of the story, adds Mr. Woolf. while
textile mills able to produce any,
thing required for military use or
for essential civilian use are hard
put to turn out every additional
pound of yarn or cloth possible, !"
he says, there is an increasing
number of mills which are affected
in the other direction by limitations
of raw material for non-essential
civilian use
That trend will be intensified, but
| it is difficult at this time to indicate
how rapidly the tendency will grow.
For at least the first half of this
year, that will have little effect on
the total activity since there will
be a market for all military and
essential civilian goods.
The length of time during which
the former can continue to carry
the industry along depends, of
course, upon the progress of the war
and the number of men it is decided
to activate at any one time.
"All in all, it can be stated that
the performance of the first quarter
of this year was statistically swell,
but pregnant with trouble for a
great many units in the industry.
Which is to be expected in wartime.
Vast Changes Faced.
"Just within the last month. two
major actions were taken in WASH
ington which hold prospects OF revo-
lutionary economic change for the
industry One was the conversion
order which transferred certain per-
centages of the equipment of va
ried group of mills over to the pro-
duction OF other and more essential
fabrics. 1t is safe to say that this
was but the forerunner of many
similar orders, each of which will
have a profound effect upon the
destiny of groups of textile mills
The other major action was the
issuance of the new general max
imum price regulation, which auto
matically disposed of the flexible
schedules whereby ceilings on cotton
products were tied to the f1uctua-
tions in the price of raw cotton.
Here, too, the potential effect Is
enormous.
Under such conditions, and fac
ing such prospects, it is easy to see
that all past yardsticks by which to
measure the industrys future are
gone"
Business Lays in Week.
/ Cotton textile business Jagged this
week while traders studied recent
] (See TEXTILE, Page CO