Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1943-01-06
Spread of Available Fuel Oil
Seen as Second Best Solution
Dealers Insist Short Stocks Cause
Problem; Make Other Suggestions

The one thing that would come
close to solving all of Washington
fuel oil rationing problems, say the
dealers. is more oil-which is what
top Federal officials Monday told a
Senate investigating committee the
dealers couldn't have.
In the first comprehensive study
made Of difficulties confronting the
fuel oil dealers in this area, the
primary lack of supplies stood out
as the most pressing complaint. But
there were others, more than three
dozen Of them, many of which
would be non-existent if oil were
abundant-all of which will have to
be faced, since 1t isn't.
There is general feeling that
since oil cannot be obtained in I'M
limited quantities. particular efforts
should be made to spread the avail
able supplies as equitably as possible
among all the dealers. Despite talk
OF pooling arrangements and sharing
OF, transportation facilities, no real
progress has yet been made along
these lines.
Would Lift Heating Periods.
Almost unanimously, the dealers
feel that a lot of trouble could be
averted by eliminating the present
heating periods. What they'd like
to see done is an arrangement
whereby the coupons still valid Nos,
through S, be made redeemable at
any time.
In line with this latter suggestion,
the dealers want the Office of Price
Administration to scrap most of the
red tape that is now necessary for
both consumers and the dealers.
Many of them recommend that the
coupon sheets be deposited in toto
with the dealers and that the deal
ers, In turn, be permitted to turn
the sheets back to the ration boards
in exchange for inventory certifi-
Gates.
After this is done, they argue, the
dealers can get back closer to their
own methods OF bookkeeping, with
out having to take time out for
FASTING thousands of coupons to
sheets and making almost incessant
reports for the benefit of suppliers,
ration boards and the OPA.
Manpower a Problem.
Tied up with this, the dealers
point out, is the manpower problem.
Right now they are having a rough
time of 1t trying to get clerical help
and keeping it and hiring truck
drivers who don't mind spending
hours wrestling with the intricacies
of coupon sheets. The Office help
now Is being overworked. the oil men
say, and the routine bookkeeping
has fallen far behind. Even Gov
eminent tax reports, one dealer said
bitterly, are being neglected because
every one on his staff is busy lick
Ing oil coupons and pasting them
on sheets.
The dealers still deprecate the
TACT that the Government never
began a real educational program
to convince the public that the
shortage Of oil was serious. Many
Of them believe 1t is not yet too late
for such campaign, based on facts
rather than on threats. But they
also feel that it is not their bust
ness to do the educating.
They want consumers to stop
calling them to ask questions about
rationing, but instead to have them
call the ration boards. And they
want the boards to provide accu-
rate information. Unfortunately,
many Of the oil men say, the boards
have not always been careful what
they tell people, with the result
that the public becomes suspicious
when another board or the dealers
themselves straighten them out.
Expect Solution.
Although the dealers showed con-
siderable concern over the problems
of rationing, most of them indicated
they were interested chiefly in get
ting more oil into their tanks. They
were willing to concede that the
total supply in this area is low, but
they see no reason why some method
can't be worked out guaranteeing
each dealer a just share of what
ever stocks may be available.
The dealers themselves have a lot
OF different notions on this point
Some have said merely that the
supply situation should be organ
lied" Others are more specific
They recommend that the primary
suppliers work out a system whereby
each dealer would get a specified
amount of oil each day without hav-
ing to telephone his supplier fire.
quently for deliveries. Along with
this, is has been suggested that the
suppliers set up transport schedule
so that the dealers know at what
time to expect their shipments
Other suggestions which at least
some of the dealers have advanced
include shipments of oil to a single
point within an area and distribu-
ton among the dealers located
nearby: immediate unloading of rail
tank cars to release them for fur
Their shipments, even if this means
pouring the oil into some one else's
reservoirs, and keeping at least one
barge in service between Norfolk
and Washington.
Some Orders Troublesome.
A few Of the dealers gripes are
aimed at the consumers who, 1t
seems. call for small orders, fail to
have their coupon sheets ready and
properly filled in with their ration
numbers, duplicate their orders so