Evening star., 1942-12-15
Coordination Is Needed

No-0rdIndtI0n Is Needed
If Mr.. Ickes has any authority as
Petroleum Co-ordinator, Washington
Is a good place to begin demon
strating it. One way to do it would
be to send for the representatives of
the retail oil distributors and talk
to them about the incredible
situation, as dangerous as it is
confusing. that is being created
here by the evident lack of CO.
ordination between his Office, the
Office Of Defense Transportation and
the OPA. The harassed dealers
know the facts. They are predicting
. breakdown in retail oil deliveries
unless something Is done. They COM
plain that they are shunted about
from one agency to another without
being able to obtain satisfactory
action anywhere.
Washington is not getting the fuel
oil this area is entitled to, according
to the dealers. Instead of saving
truck mileage under ODT orders,
they say they have to waste mileage
IN going long distances to get fuel
that could be delivered to them more
economically. The OPA oil coupon
red tape is begging down deliveries,
causing endless confusion and ex-
pense and is actually preventing
people from getting the oil to which
they are entitled. A dealer told The
Star his trucks made sixty-one stops
on Saturday without being able
for one reason or another-to deliver
a single gallon Of oil at any of them.
Another dealer said he delivered 700
gallons of oil when he should have
been delivering 1,70O gallons in the
same time. Another dealer estimated
that his office force would have to
paste up coupons on over a quarter
OF a million separate sheets during
the heating season to comply with
regulations. Another one said 100
more man-hours were used on Satur-
day in his establishment in deliver
ing less oil than he had delivered on
comparable day last year.
Mr.. Ickes did not plan 1t that way.
Nobody planned it that way. But
the plans Of OPA, the ODT and Mr..
1ckes' own office are partly respon-
sible, 1t seems, for the mess created
in Washington and, presumably, in
other cities along the Eastern sea-
board. II the system devised by the
OPA mathematician on ration
coupons had worked in practice as
1t was supposed to work in theory,
things might be better. But the
system is not working that way.
Householders and ration boards have
made so many mistakes between
them In computing ration allowances
that numbers Of people are getting
drastic cuts in oil, far below their
needs, while others actually are get
ting more oil than they used last
year. And the arbitrary nature Of
the formula fails to take into
account certain conditions which
should be factors in determining
correct oil allowance
Now the situation here must be
duplicated in other cities All Of the
confusion cannot be eliminated. But
In the opinion of the dealers some Of
1t can be If three steps are taken:
One is to get more oil into Washing
ton; another is to set up shuttle
truck service to distribute oil to the
dealers, instead of having each deal
er use scarce trucks, as at present, to
go after his own supply; the third is
to abandon the period system under
which coupons are valid only for
stated periods, and to make the cou-
pons good for any period during the
heating season.
The Star does not believe these
dealers are actuated by selfish mo-
tives in asking these things. Mr..
Ickes' own experience in obtaining
the willing cooperation Of the oil
industry in handling the fuel situa-
ton for the Nation must have con-
vinced him of the benefits to be
gained by working out problems with
the men who are face to face with
the business of getting the oil to the
homes. If the fuel oil mess can be
Strengthened out here in Washing
ton, it is possible that the improve
ments suggested by the oil men can
be applied helpfully in other cities.
They should have an immediate
hearing.