The Waterbury Democrat., 1945-08-04

 of the argument over next winters coal shortage. August is terrible season to have to worry about Feb ruary's frostbites, and Washington officials aren't supposed to have feuds. But somebody in charge around here had better start worry ing about this, hard and fast, or there will be a lot of freezing and a lot of agonizing six months hence.
 The dispute over how to get more coal out of the ground 1arrows down to nothing more than ques- ton of shaping 8 manpower' policy for the period of reconversion and demobilization.
 What seems to be needed is some kind of organized reverse selective service. That is, way to draft men out of the armed services and out of cut-back war industries, placing these men where they are most needed and where they will find jobs waiting.
 Today Ickes says 30,000 more miners are needed if the mines are to get enough coal out of the ground. Last April Ickes wanted only 5000 more. The Army turned him down then and turns him down now.
 SHORTAGE OF MINERS
 ACUTE
 On April 1, beginning of the 1945 coal-year, there were 453,000 people working in hard and soft coal mines combined. On April 1, 1941, there were 545,o00. The drop is 92,0o0 miners.
 Of the pre-war mine labor force, an estimated 90,000 enlisted and 40,- 900 were drafted. An additional 75,- 900 to 100000 pre-war miners left the mines to work in other war in- dustries where the jobs were pleas anter and the pay higher.
 Army spokesmen say why not hire those people to go back to the mines or why not hire people from the 100000 soldiers already released from the Army or the 4,000 now be- ing discharged daily?
 Well, the mine operators and the U. s. Employment Service have put on numerous drives and they have succeeded in recruiting over 100, 900 less efficient new workers and older retired miners. But most of the peo- pie who left the coal country don't want to go back and the veterans don't want to go into the mines either, and there is no way to make them. Ickes therefore proposes that the Army release 30,000 of the ex- miners now in service. Army refuses. ARMY OPPOSES
 SPECIAL DISCHARGES
 In the course of the war the Army has granted temportry furloughs to skilled tire makers, foundrymen, copper miners and munitions, tex tile, aircraft and railroad workers. That is the precedent Ickes builds his case on. But today the War De- partment says it would be mistake to release men from the Army just because they have special skill and a job is waiting for them.
 Reason given is that the Army has committed itself to a policy of discharging men on the point sys- tenn. Soldiers with most points for active service and men with families regardless of their pre-war occu- patton, are designated for first re- lease. The men in the Army were polled on this question and this is the way they wanted it.
 The War Department makes further point that if coal miners are now discharged, railroad work CTS and skilled labor from every other industry will clamor for men Requests have already been made for discharge of a million men with special skills. That is half the num- Der of men the Army plans to re- lease by June 1, 1946, leaving Il with a force of seven million with which to whip Japan.
 The argument against that ii that the Army isn't going to need seven million men and hasn't any way to get them to Japan if it did Also, that if the coal and railroad industries break down for lack ol men, the Army will feel it most.