Detroit evening times. (Detroit, Mich) 1921-1958, 1942-07-29
The Big Town
Gets Go-By
In Wartime
400. 600 Idle in New York.
Apartments Available
BY DAMON RUNYON

THIS war has by-pasSed New
York City in curious man
ner, and particularly the Island
of Manhattan. The big town
seems 10 be the forgotten town
in the nations surge Of war ac-
tivity.
1t is the only city OF any size
in the United States where
there is any considerable num-
Der of unemployed. 1t is esti-
mated that upwards OF 100000
persons are seeking work in
New York. In the other large
cities of the land ii is becoming
increasingly difficult 10 find men
and women for the jobs at hand.
There are said TO be 10000
apartments available for rental
I'm New York while other cities
complain of housing shortages.
And only in New York Is buSl-
ness, outside of a limited num-
Der of lines, reported poor.-
Almost everywhere else the
business men say they cannot
kick. There are more empty
store rooms in New York. pro-
portionately 10 the population,
than in any big city.
OF course IL is not hard 10
find the answer. New York has
no great defense plants hard by,
NO vast soldier camps. II lS not
The seat OF any of the more
elaborate war production efforts.
nor of the war direction. IL is a
StepctAld among the cities IN an
era of the greatest government
spending in all history.
IT'S normal peacetime indus
Il tries have suffered from the
war restrictions and II has re-
ceived little in the way OF war
industries 10 make up FOR the
loss.
At the same time II has
tighter war regulations than
any other city, an example being
the dlm-nut which has knocked
many a small business operator
into the creek. No blame at
taches 10 any one for these nap
peningS-It is Just BAD bTedk
Tor the big Town.
II y the fortune, or rather
misfortune. Of war.
In the first world war. and
in all our other wars. for thai
matter. New York was pretty
much the center Of the nation 5
activity. save for the master
minding in Washington.
II was always a boom town IN
those trying periods. Now about
the only conspicuous booming Is
among the night clubs and bars,
and the movie houses.
There are big crowds on
Broadway at night, but they are
not the crowds Of workers that
YOU see in the defense centers,
where many establishments, in
Guiding theateTS. remain open
all night 10 take care OF the
graveyard shifts.
ALONG the West Coast in
y the Middle West and the
Northwest. the critics blaze with
light al night and the cash
registers sing their cheerful
melody while New York re-
mains shrouded in necessary
gloom and money continues
more or less a rumor.
You see fewer soldiers and
sailors on Broadway than on
Vine street in Hollywood or
Market street in San Francisco.
The very tempo of the big town
seems 10 have slowed down.
II is an odd situation, as you
can see. And there would APP
pear 10 be no remedy, unless
some arrangement could be
made 10 transfer some of the
war activity TO New York and
! do not see how that is possible.
Certain departmental work
might be shifted from over
crowded Washington 10 New
York 10 good advantage all the
way around But that is unlikely
to happen and anyway II would
scarcely take care OF the UNI
employment problem in Now
York.
The best way 10 handle that
would he 10 ship everybody out
west where an able-bOdicd man
willing 10 work runs the risk Of
abduction
Copyright 1912 nv kins Features