The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1942-09-11
Ry RAYMOND CLAFPER

Nv RAYMOND CLAPPER
WAS HINGToN-Ws pro-
duction rests on steel. You can't
make steel without using scrap
metal. To make steel you dump
pig iron into the furnace and
then YOU dump in junk. Maybe
something else. for all I know.
But scrap metal must go into
the furnace when you make the
steel.
So when steel men tel US
there Is only two weeks supply
Of steel scrap in the hands Of
the nations steel mills. that -
what they are worried about. II
is lust as bad as IL they were
going to have strike in two
weeks. No scrap. no steel. Two
furnaces in Chicago were in
danger Of going down over the
weekend for lack of scrap.
Pittsburgh and Y o IN & own
steel mills are in horrible shape
on scrap. so industry Spokesman
say.
There is enough scrap lying
around the country to get us
through. But It must be coll
lected, sorted and hauled TO the
steel mills. The sorting and
hauling will be taken care Of.
But the junk must be collected
from millions of easements. mil
lions Of back yards. millions OF
farms. Hence public assistance
is necessary.
The Omaha WorldHerald re-
Gently conducted scrap collec-
ton campaign throughout Me-
braska. The result was so sue
cessful that WPB has asked that
similar campaigns be conducted
throughout the country. and the
newspapers have agreed TO CO.
operate.
I don't know what the details
will be but they will be simple
for the householder. All he
needs TO do at the moment is to
go through his basement, his
backyard, and around his place,
and pile up his metal junk. The
main thing at the moment is to
get the household pile of scrap
together. so that collections can
move rapidly.
There really isn't any point in
going into all the how-come-we-
got-into-this-fix, except to en-
pha size that il has come about
as natural result OF the terrific
steel production which has been
going on and which eats up half
ton of scrap for every ton Of
steel manufactured. or some
thing like that. True, we used
10 send scrap to Japan, but If
We had kept il here it would
have been used up long ago. The
overwhelming fact that mas
made everybody tumble in war
planning is that we are trying
to rush the war job at a pace
We never expected to have to
make. We are in a race with
Hitler and it's hotter race than
we had expected it to be.
The drafting of men is going
up into figures never dreamed
OF few months ago. II is going
up higher every month. In an
other year the size Of our army
may be twice what il is now
or more. Ships, tanks. weapons
far beyond original schedules
will Be necessary. We already
have passed the World war
stage and from here on are NOV
ing into something far bigger
than that ever got TO be.
Unquestionably the war will
go on for some time-most peo-
pie here think for several years.
We must not only supply this
enormous army and the enorm-
Gus navy and merchant marine
with all the steel that will be
needed. We must also supply
large quantities TO our allies.
The main load of the war is
rapidly shifting to Americas
shoulders.
There has been bungling In
the distribution OF steel. That -
being worked on. Some plants
have had TO shut down or go on
short hours because other plants
we're boarding steel, or because
the navy or the shipyards were
excessively stocked. But that is
another problem. one OF distribu-
ton. II every kink is worked out
OF the bungled steel supply stu
alton, We will still need 10 keep
steel production at the peak
The appetite Of this war is bso-
lutely Unsuitable and steel IS
the wheat the staff Of life. on
which our army and navy feed
10 gam strength for battle. That
y WHY scrap Is 50 dhsosra telY