Detroit evening times. (Detroit, Mich) 1921-1958, 1942-07-24


and deeper into the mire Of
business competition and policies.
To cite a typical example, the
five big rubber manufacturers
trooped into town with an ex-
hibit of rubber processes. de-
signed 10 show that so per cent
of civilian needs and all military
requirements could be satisfied
without much trouble.
FORE most officials got
~ around TO il, they read some
advance stories in one local
newspaper suggesting that this
exhibit would solve all national
problems Of tires and gas ration
ing That happened 10 be little
more than the industry claimed,
and il made the government
officials angry and critical in
advance
Few even went 10 the show
until the arrangerS for the in
dustry made it clear they were
not responsible for the publicity.
WPB Director Donald Nelson
then came in. made a few notes
and went on his way.
The oil industry stole march
Of five days on the rubber manu-
facturers, when w. S. Parish,
president of Standard Oil of New
Jersey, announced his company
will produce 100000 tons of
synthetic rubber by the end of
next year.
HOWEVER, Franklin Walt
H man, former publicity direc-
tor of the Republican National
Committee, succeeded in antic-
ipating MIR. Parish by assem-
bling a large press conference
here A week earlier TO promote
interest in the houdry process
of one of his new clients. which
apparently is backed by COM
petitorS OF Mr.. Parish, namely,
the Sun Oil Company and the
Standards of New York and
California.
So II goes in an active COM
petitiVe business battle TO pro-
duce synthetic tires for the
nation, while government Off
Gals look on specifically. They
naturally want TO justify their
policy, continuing rationing.
They find numerous faults
with the various proposals, con-
tending for instance that there
is nothing new" in the rubber
show that the other processes
will not produce good tires or
will need too much steel for
plant construction, or cannot
produce in time. etc.
MEANWHILE, Mr.. Donald
NI Nelson has thrown the
powerful weight of his position
against the Gillette bill in Con-
gress proposing TO create a
single rubber authority, not Mr..
Nelson and 10 manufacture
more rubber from alcohol than
Mr.. Nelson wants.
He practically told Congress
that if he had it TO do over
again he might allow more
synthetic production from AL
co1of but that the change now
would upset his calculations.
As result OF this, or other
congressional diSSa { iSfaction
with Mr.. Nelson's failure in this
one line Of production, the Cap
itOl cloakroomS are filed with
rumors that ne may stay in Lon
don on his forthcoming trip, or
that he viii otherwise be re-
tired.
Thus all avenues Of activity
seem 10 lead into the same dead
end street upon which the rub
her problem has been running
from the beginning. No one. not
even Mr. Roosevelt. seems TO
have been entirely without fault.
IL CIRCULATION in congress
Il sional quarters is a clipping
from the New York Times of
Feb 26, 1871, containing the fol-
lowing account Of a presidential
press conference Of the previous
day.
THE President expressed his
belief that the United states
was In no danger Of running
short Of rubber, much Of which
comes from the Netherlands In
dies. Much raw rubber has been
bought by this country and there
u good sized supply on hand,
he said. II "A pickup campaign
becomes necessary. enough rub
her could he obtained from old
ttrrS arti-tt~ed- F,it,hpF -ta-kAap
going until synthetic rubber
plants could be put up"
The failure Of the government
under us managed war economy
TO provide either sufficient tires
or eastern gasoline for necessary
civilian work while succeeding
IN all other production lines is
practically thn- exclusive subject
of civilian conversation IN the
East where the StTictcr gas ra-
-tinRIpg - atieR- r wreck went
into effect Wednesday.
The state of public opinion in
the Midwest is generally ac-
cepted by Congress as The rea-