Detroit evening times. (Detroit, Mich) 1921-1958, 1943-03-10
Mary a Blush
Marks OPA
About-Face
Benign Policy Replaces
Harsh Oil Crackdown
By PAUL MALLON

TofSn VII NJ dCkOOWIl
By PAUL MALLON
WASHINGTON, March To-
w The OPA has solved the
problem of getting around its
own unfair fuel oil rationing
formula.
Without admitting or correct
ing its mistake. it adopted the
policy of the thrifty Finnish
housewife in an Old World fairy
tale.
When she discovered that the
blanket she had bought 10 keep
her husband warm covered him
only down TO his knees, she inn
mediately decided TO cut two
foot strip from the top of the
blanket and sew il TO the
bottom.
That" she said. twill make
IL longer"
The college men who devised
the fuel formula soon found it
was inadequate 10 heat the ma
ton through The winter, so they
moved up. from time 10 time.
the date of validity of each OF
the five coupons.
On MARCH 3. with nearly
" one-fourth of the heating
season left. they advanced the
date for use of the last coupon,
No. 5. 10 March 7, 8 and Il, in
the various zones.
This was the coupon which
was supposed to be used from
mid-April TO next September 30,
largely for hot water heating.
Their device has actually in
creased the formula allotments
for the winter about one-fifth
in general, but they have now
reached the end of the blanket.
No more coupons are left to
run until September 30.
Public discovery of the error
is at hand.
To ward of that discovery.
the OPA has now come forward
with an announcement that il
intends to be more generous.
Not by single phrase admit
ting il made an error. il now
invites "householders who face
hardships" to get more coupons
from their local rationing
boards.
IN AN entirely different tone
L from that Of last December,
when IL was cracking down on
the nation, the OPA now prom
Uses wide discretion to local
boards.
You can get more oil if you
prove that what you have is in
sufficient and that you are
otherwise unable to meet your
problem.
No effort is to be made to re-
capture oil from many who re-
ceived too much under the I'M
fair formula. but benign policy
is promised.
An order has even been issued
allowing additional coupons for
the i'll and infirm without get
ting certificates of approval
from their p lum b s-which
were required up to March 5.
TIVE best of all war news has
l. been lost in the shuttle of
more dramatic announcements
from the battlefronts.
We are now turning out more
planes month than Hitler has
altogether spread around all the
theaters of war in Europe.
War Undersecretary Patter-
son announced that we produced
5000 planes in January, of
which IS per cent were fighting
planes, and he moved the fig
ures up to $500 for February.
This means we produced 3,575
combat planes last month.
No current official estimate
has placed Hitler's total air
strength higher than 5000
planes, and his production rate
is known to be declining.
He passed the peak last year.
Ours is approaching.
II we cannot win the war
swiftly with such air superiority,
there will be something radically
wrong with other parts Of our
effort.
4 FINNISH blanket policy also
~ seems to have been adopted
by the War Manpower Commits
sion.
Its draft bureau has taken the
middle-aged males of SO to al
back into threatening classical
tons, for the professed purpose
Of inspiring them TO go TO work
on the farms. and that same day
the army divulged plans 10 re-
lease 5i6, 900 of this same over
age class for reasons of physical
unfitneSS.
The government thus Is at
one time releasing an average
group for physical unfitness and
threatening TO take in more of