Evening star., 1942-01-29
viii.
The Home Front

uC luVuItO IVul
Our plush days are over. We
are no longer the carefree land
Of plenty, every counter heaped
with chromium-c coated gadgets,
every store bursting with limit
less supplies of shoes and seal
ing wax. Total war requires so
many materials that there Is
just not enough to 60 around.
The production of much-needed
ammunition requires copper that
formerly went into ash trays,
weatherstripped windows or toy
trains. We need the ammuni-
ton. We can do without the
toy trains.
To see that first things come
first is a major task Of the new
War Production Board, which
supersedes the Supply. Priorities
and ALLEGATION Board, or S. P.
A. B. The new board includes
representatives of the agencies
formerly represented on S. P. A.
B.: the Army and Navy, the
Board of Economic Warfare, the
Office of Production Manage
ment, the Office of Price Ad-
ministration, the Federal Loan
Agency, and the Lend-Lease Ad-
ministration.
Immediately after its creation,
S. P. A. B. called for detailed
estimates Of all requirements of
materials, labor and equipment
for the succeeding 18 months.
The situation on strategic ma
terials and tools was carefully
studied before the United States
entered the war. After the war,
added attention was given to
commodities imported from the
Far East, such as rubber, tin,
antimony, bristles, chrome, mica
and burlap.
Expansion Of production was
a general policy of S. P. A. B.,
and the ONCE of Production
Management was charged with
its realization. Since few fac
tories were adjusted to war pro-
duction at the beginning of the
effort, the job has been tremen-
dous and the perplexities unend-
ing. Existing plants have been
expanded and new ones built.
To this end, the Government and
private industry had by Decem-
Der l, 1941, committed them
selves to spend 81 billion dollars
and 1.2 billions, respectively.
Expansion Stepped up.
In September, S. P. A. B. ap-
proved a program of expanding
steel ingot capacity by 10000, 900
tons. Before Pearl Harbor, prof.
ects for about two-thirds of this
program had been approved.
Since then additional projects
have been rushed through, vir-
tually filling out the 10000, 900
tons, Before Pearl Harbor, too,
expansion programs had been
drawn I'D and, in the main, got
ten under way to expand our
aluminium capacity by 700, 900 900
pounds and magnesium by $780,
100000 pounds a year by 1943.
With q goal Of 125 900 airplanes
for 1943. both these programs
will have to be stepped up.
High priority ratings have been
granted to increase substantially
the production of high-octane
(aviation) gasoline.
Production schedules of all mu-
nitions and tools have been ac-
celerated. Before June, 1910, the
normal annual output of ma
chine tools-without which no
airplanes or complicated guns,
tanks or combat cars can be
built-was $l50,0O0,00O. This was
expanded to 100000, 900 In 1s41
and should reach IL billion VOL
ume In 1912.
II X II
Requirements Expanded
To insure adequate supplies Of
scarce materials for war pur-
poses, less essential uses Of these
materials have been curtailed.
Steel plates and welding pipe for\
the construction Of petroleum
pipe line, for example, we're re-
fused. Construction projects not
vital to the war effort have been
limited.