The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1942-09-25
~ RAYMOND CLAPPER

Gently, Il is not because ! am in
carping m I'd. Nobody can
watch the progress of our war ef-
fort without feeling deep pride in
its spectacular growth.
Criticisms which I make are
for the most part those which
come from responsible officials
themselves, from men who are
working as hard as they can and
who become impatient at delays
and confusion which slow down
the show. In most cases they feel
that public discussion of such crit
icisms. If carried on in construe-
tive spirit, viii be helpful. That
certainly is the only spirit in
which they can be made without
doing harm.
As a specific case. take the
question of msnpower and the
draft. The thing which disturbs
many here and which have writ
ten about a number of times shows
up sharply in testimony before
the Tolan committee of the house.
Kew officials - General Hershey,
director of selective service, and
Paul v. McNutt, chairman of the
manpower commission-both tes-
titled that no final authority ex-
ists to allocate manpower as be-
tween the armed services and in
dustry.
For instance one government Of
fetal, charged with obtaining pro-
duction Of indispensable war ma
teria,. has been notified that the
selective service is going to move
in soon and take large numbers OF
men from the essential industry
under his direction.
General Hershey has his orders
to produce a certain number OF
men for the army. The other Of
fetal has his order to produce a
certain quantity of his war equip
ment. Who Is to decide whether
several thousand men working In
/ these plants are to be held on the
[ lob or be taken in to the army?
Nobody has authority to decide
now.
General Hershey was asked by
the Tolan committee whether Sc
lective service was answerable to
the army or to the msnpower COM
mission in such matters. General
Hershey said that was something
that had not been entirely figured
out. He said cooperation had
worked successfully so far. But
General Hershey said that If the
time came when he could not
carry out the directives Of the
manpower commission and at the
same time provide the armed
forces with the men they called
for. he did mot know what the
answer would be.
Chairman McNutt of the man.
power commission gave the same
reply in substance. He said he
did not know the answer TO the
question that baffled General Her.
shey.
In other words, for m n MS
Washington has seen the needs OF
the armed forces and of war pro-
duction coming closer and closer
TO a collision. Neither the admin
istration nor congress has taken
action.
You hear much discussion about
the proposed size of the army,
questions raised as to how many
men can be taken without cutting
into war production, and questions
as TO whether men will be piled
up far beyond the ability to trans
port them. You hear questions as
TO the need for better balancing
Of the various programs-instead
Of ships, guns. planes, and other
supplies competing for materials,
each pushed without much regard
to the needs of the other.
These are mostly questions that
have 70 be answered al the top or
very near the top. There il no
compact group hand in glove with
the president to bring strategy and
all msnpower and production
needs into close relations WITH
each other. Some branches are
over-ordering. in the judgment OF
production officials, and some
times at the expense of other ur-
gent parts Of the program. There
are too many watertight compsrt-
ments.
We are running short, so tna'
eventually the president will have
10 sit down with a top group and
dovetail the whole program into .
unified and balanced whole. some
here who are struggling with these
difficulties feel il is urgent that
this be done very soon and that
Il should have been done before
now. Il is still too much OF ar
Observation-Disclosures war.
Mr.. Ciapper is heard on kho
Mutual broadcast Mondays and
THURSDAYS At m m