Evening star., 1944-03-09
Postwar Restrictions
On War-Born' Firms
Urged by Nelson
Would Allocate First
Available Materials
To Established Plants
By the Associated Press.


Government controls on war
born companies to hold them out
OF civilian goods manufacturing
until established firms can re-
turn to peacetime production
were advocated today by Chair
man Donald M. Nelson of the
War Production Board.
Restrictions on new companies
which want to enter a industry for
the first time will undoubtedly be
needed" he wrote Senator Ma
loney, Democrat, of Connecticut
until the now critical components
and materials are in easy supply.
Certainly, so long as wartime
controls are retained, materials ano
components should not be allocated
to these new firms until firms al
ready established in the affected
industries, and which are in a posi-
tion to resume production OF their
former products, have received their
just allocations.
At dinner meeting OF Industrial
and advertising leaders here last
night, Mr.. Nelson declared that the
Nation cannot expect large scale
civilian production until six to eight
months after the surrender of Ger
many.
Would Control Transition.
The WPB chief told the executives
that the Government will have to
control industry's transition from
war to peace, but that he would
"strenuously oppose any attempt to
put the postwar economy in total
itarian straightjacket."
Mr.. Nelson's letter, virtually a
blueprint for the coming industrial
switch to peacetime production, was
placed in the Congressional Record
by the Connecticut Senator.
Senator Maloney had asked Mr..
Nelson if WPB has a specific policy
concerning firms which desire to
enter production of particular civil
ian items even though such firms
did not produce such items before
the war"
Must Avert Shortages.
Declaring the Government should
not attempt to prevent new compe-
tition, Mr.. Nelson wrote that Gov
ernment industrial controls should
be relaxed whenever they cease to
be necessary to war production, but
added:
However, the need for controls is
obviously going to continue for some
time. Even in the case of mater
ial which is in good supply today, if
suddenly the controls were relaxed
another shortage would be likely to
occur, injuring production for war" d"
Mr.. Nelson said the supply of
manpower, materials and parts were
the controlling factors in getting in
dustries into civilian production
when their war contracts are cut
back, adding:
Our policy is to expand civilian
production as it becomes possible to
do so without interference with the
overall war program. and particu-
larly in concerns whose war orders
have been cut back"
Hardships Inevitable.
To Senator Maloney's question
whether national producers will be
given an even start on civilian pro-
duction, Mr.. Nelson said:
1T would certainly be convenient
as well as fair to allow all manu-
facturers in each industry to resume
production at the same time, but
this Is, OF course, physical impos-
sibility. $50
1T goes without saying that the
tremendous impact of war on the
economy is bound to produce hard
ship for some business concerns, as
well as for other elements in the
society. Obviously, the Government
cannot entirely prevent such hard
ships.
IF, without interference with the
war effort, we can give manufac-
turer in noncritical manpower
area materials and parts to resume
production of things the civilian
economy needs, 1 think it is to the
public interest that we do so with
out waiting until another concern in
a critical area is permitted to re-
sumo production.
Outlines Problem.
This policy may seem hard on
the manufacturer in the critical
area, but it would be at least an
equal hardship on the manufacturer
in the noncritical area if he were
prevented from resuming production
just because a manufacturer in
critical area could not do So"
1t is against the Nations interest
tSee NELSON, Page A-5)