Evening star., 1943-01-05

the delays that
made it difficult David Lawrence.
to get rationing of fuel oil under
way before the cold season started
The OPA also claims that it isn't
responsible for the matter of supply
and that this is a question wholly
within the jurisdiction of the
petroleum administrator. Then there
is the Office of Defense Transporta-
ton, which issues rules and regula-
tions relating to the use of trucks
and rail carriers that transport oil
Again, governmental agencies urge
the public to convert to coal. The
citizen IS assured that the cut might
be as much as Is per cent, but he
isn't told 1t might be as much as
10 per cent. The citizen, meanwhile,
tries to get equipment to convert
his furnace to coal. Maybe he is
fortunate in being able to find the
right equipment. Or maybe he runs
up against the fact that priorities
have to be obtained-then the WPB
comes into the picture.
One Government to Citizen.
But the citizen isn't interested in
all the ramifications of jurisdiction
that seem to enmesh the bureaus
here. He looks to the Government
his Governmental make out his
ration and tell him what it wants
done. He isn't concerned with the
iealousies or frictions between
bureaus or departments. He knows
only that his Government is a single
entity In the imposition of its restric-
tive power.
Under system Of responsible
government such as exists in what
are known as parliamentary system
countries, the administration in
power can be turned out of office
overnight because of the acts of any
Of its constituent groups. whether
legislative or administrative. In the
United States there is a sort OF
irresponsible setup whereby no one
agency can be held to account and,
as a consequence, each agency can
point to another in an alibi as to
authority and jurisdiction.
Price Administrator Henderson
says he wasn't tough enough and
that II he had 1t to do over again
he would be even tougher" But
the place where he ought to have
gotten tough was with some of his
official brethren or mayhap with
his theoretical boss-the Chief
Executive.
II Mr.. Henderson was right about
his program, he didn't get the proper
support at the top. This, by the
way, is the customary complaint
among the bureaucrats - namely,
that they are not helped as against
other agencies whose authority over
laps or whose powers have not been
made clear.
Essentials Forgotten.
The persons who thought up all
the curious questionnaires and COM
plicated ration systems, for the
farmer to get gas for his trucks, for
instance, try to shift the blame.
They can always say they consulted
some one in industry. But industry
has Its inefflcient planners, too,
And the citizen isn't interested so
much in who was consulted but who
thought up all the queer ways to
ration and then forgot that there
was a simple matter of transporta-
ton and supply involved.
People who have coupons and find
1t hard to get oil because deliveries
have broken down or because there
has been maldistribution aren't
interested in the fact that one
agency didn't get busy soon enough
or that some one else held up the
regulations because Of complexity
Of legal or other obstacles The
citizen expects his Government to
have known AS early as last summer
what its probable oil supply prob
lem would be and to have taken
measures to meet it, telling the pub
lie the facts forthrightly and pre-
pairing for the restrictions in a SEN
sible and candid way.
No Battle Alibis.
The Army and Navy have similar
matters of organization and supply
and delivery and these armed serv-
ices cannot make alibis to the effect
that the weapons didn't arrive on
time 1t is always somebody's busi-
ness to see that supplies reach the
front in time for the fight.
In this war there is no overall
commander on the civilian front.
The President has delegated all
sorts of tasks to different individ-
uals, but he hasn't cleared up the
Implications and overlappings
That's why the alibis are so numer-
Gus. In truth, the President is to
blame for the mistake of his sub
ordinates, and yet he can't supervise
them in person. Maybe if the par
liamentary system were in vogue
there would be more care in select
ing the so-called administrators in
the first place