Evening star., 1943-02-15
Newsprint TO Be Cut
Another 10 Pct, WPB
Official Announces
Reduction Will Be Made
About April !, Wokemon
Tells Producer Group
BY The Associated Press


NEW YORK, Feb. l5.-A. G.
Wakeman, paper chief of the Wal
production Board, advised the print
Ing industry today to prepare for
another 10 per cent cut in printing
papers, including newsprint, about
April /.
Mr.. Wakeman director of WPB' s
Pulp and Paper Division. outlined
the whole paper outlook in an ad-
dress Lefore the American Pulp and
Paper Association
Speaking of newSprint. he said
consumption must be cut further.
probably 10 per cent, about the end
OF the first quarter of this year"
Other Papers Face Slash.
OF other printing papers, ranging
from book paper to tablets and post
cards, he added another cut in con-
sumption in the neighborhood of 10
per cent at the end of the first
quarter is indicated"
Wakeman related that spokesman
for al paper users had presented
their estimates of 1943 needs to the
WPB Requirements Committee and
that the committee fixed the years
necessary requirements of paper and
paper board at about $4,000 900 tons.
compared with 1854 500 last year.
Mr.. Wakeman said output OF
wrapping and speciality papers, now
being produced at Is per cent less
than peak output, probably could
not be reduced further on an overall
basis, but that military demands for
strong fiber paper might divert con-
siderable paper from ordinary civil
ian wrapping purposes.
Mr. Wakeman estimated the
available supply of wood pulp this
year at 8,500,000 tons, compared
with 1O,500,OoO last year.
Waste Paper Use.
The rest" he said in analyzing
the source of raw materials for
making paper, will have to come
from waste paper and other waste
fiber. This will mean forcing the
use of waste paper and other waste
fibers up to the limit, and further
down grading"
Col. Charles M Piper, business
analyst and member of the Advisory
Committee of the Office of Price
Administration, said shortage of
pulpwood and of labor might lead
to concentration of the paper in
dustry in fewer plants.
IF pulpwood supplies and labor
get much shorter than they are
now concentration is clearly indi-
Gated with closed mills getting q
fair compensation for maintenance,
Col. Piper told the papermen in an
address. He continued:
Horizontal industry wide cuts in
production cannot be compensated
for by continuous series of price
increases. We could by such
method see newsprint go to $500 a
ton"
The OPA speaker touched on the !
possibility of concentration for the
industry after pointing out that con-
version TO war goods was virtually
impossible for the majority of such
mills. -.....
Overall Result Sought.
Turning to business generally. as
by war, Col. Piper said:
We have no reason to say that
business mortality during this war
IS going to be 100 per cent in the
ranks of small business. But we do
have every reason to feel that if our
various regulations and controls give
the best possible opportunity to the
small businessman to continue in
existence, that we will probably ar
rive at total over all result pretty
satisfactory to all business, big and
little ..
The theory that a small business
man is probably a marginal or sub
marginal operator and that the eco
nomic system would be better off If
we didn't have him. simply does not
Snlls re with the faotc