Imperial Valley press., 1942-06-26
CAPITAL TALKS
by
Peter
EdsoI,

cultural workers, as well, is one oi
the biggest of the stumbling blocks
over which the War Manpowel
Commission is trying to drag its
leaden feet. On May 81. VINO
Chairman McNutt announced, with
flourish, an eight-point program
calling for immediate action" II
was said these directives would be
helpful in focusing and co-ordi-
mating the activities Of the various
government agencies. If the peo-
pie of this nation would cooperate
fully with their government
Well. on June 81. just
month after this announce
ment. this nation was still wait
ing and not one of the direc-
tives had been drafted.
One OF the directiveS was to
go to the Office of Defense
Transportation. ordering ODT
"to assure adequate transp0r-
tation facilities to move mig
grant agricultural workers"
After sounding off in this noble
fashion. the Manpower Commission
discovered they had no money to
move migrant workers. and the
Office of Defense Transportation
didn't have any money. too. Thus.
things are stymied. And ODT has
not received the directive which
VINO hasn't written.
ODT did a little preliminary
sounding out of the railroads, and
found the carriers would be glad
to haul workers at the regular
coach rates of los cents per mile
In the south and 30 cents per mile
in the north. furthermore. ODT
calls attention to the fact that it's
against the Interstate Commerce
Commission regulations and law for
employers to haul workers by truck,
as common carriers, if they cross
state lines.
So everything is in a beautiful
| lam of status quo.
PSB IN PICKLE
If the Plant Site Board had its
! Job to do over again. lot Of the
war production factories probably
wouldn't be located where they are,
because no one foresaw the rubber
shortage and the resulting problem
of transporting workers from home
to job and back again.
Ford's huge Willow Run
bomber plant outside Detroit
is the best case in point. All
brains agreed the working force
would get itself back and forth
in private automobiles, using a
beautiful 4-lane highway to
Ypsilanti. But along comes the
rubber crisis, and look what
happens:
The Michigan Central railroad,
which runs right past the plant,
can't carry workers because it's too
busy carrying war freight.
The Federal Public Housing Au-
thority has to rush plans for II
new projects, near the plant, to
shelter some 10000 families who
will have to move closer to the
job because by next year there
simply won't be am way to get
them to work except on foot or by
short-haul busline.
One emergency bus system
between Willow Run and De-
troit has been running its bus
es half empty because work.
men don't want to ride a bus to
work as long as there is an
ounce Of gas i'm the tank. an
ounce of rubber on the rims.
What this indicates, il anything,
is that the only way to solve the
rubber problem is to take the tires
away from everyone and make peo-
pie find other transportation
GLAD TO GET ALONG
transportation of business men
and government men into Wash
ington, in the meantime, moves at
terrific rate for the paying Gus
toners. The railroads say nearly 30
more PullmanS are moving into
Washington every night than were
coming in a year ago. Twenty OF
them originate in New York, anc
another 20 come from Chicago.
Moving out, on the New York
run, peak traffic comes in the late
afternoon. On many of these
trains not only Is everT seat sold
but someone is sitting on the arm
of every chair and seat, and some
passengers are actually forced to
stand up all the way to New York
three-and-ahalf to four-houy
run.
War agencies nov number more
than 30. and since there have been
lot of recent changes, here's a
revised list Of the most important
two dczon:
CEM-Office for Emergency Man
agement
WPB-War Production Board.
WMC-War Manpower Commission
BFW-Board of Economic Warfare
WDC-War Damage Corporation.
CWI-Office Of War Informal on.
WI B-War Labor Board.
OC-Office of Censorship.
WRA-War Relocation Authority.
CLLA-Office of LesSe-Lend Ad-
ministration.
DCB-Defense Commun cations
Board.
APC-Alien Property Custodian.
PCW-Petroleum Co-ordinator for
| War.
SFC-Solid Fuels Co-ordinator
FRC-Food Requirements Com
mittee.
CDT-Office of Defense Transpor-
tation
CDHWS-Office of Defense Health
and Welfare Services.
| OSRD-Office of Scientific Re-
search and Development.
| UUCh Uyor Gbippipu hdtpipicf ra =