Evening star., 1945-10-12
SCHNEIDER Halls
Trade Boards
Planning Job
Coils on Businessmen
To Act Boldly for
Prosperous Nation

fred SCHNEIDER, in an address las
night in which he bade the Nation.
businessmen take bold, courageou,
action" for prosperous America
hailed the Washington Board ol
Trades postwar planning program
as an example for other commu.
mites.
Speaking at the fall meeting ot
the Board of Trade in the Statlel
Hotel, Mr.. SCHNEIDER told the 90C
members present:
The work of your committees Is
one of the most outstanding jobs OF
many similar community efforts
that I have SEEN"
Emphasizing that the immediate
future will put American business tc
q severe test, Mr.. SCHNEIDER declared
he believed Government postwar
planning should exist simply to fill
In the remainder that may be left
after the individual, company ano
community planning have been
done"
For that reason, he said, "a better
and more effective job of planning
by private industry automatically
reduces the need for Government
planning" and sit is pretty much up
to business to determine how large
will be the field of future Govern
ment economic action.
Cites Figures on Trend.
The Commerce official predicted
that by mid-1946 the Nations gross
production would drop from an an
nual rate of $205, ,000, 600 900 prevail
ing during the first half of this year
to between $160, 900 000, 900 and Sl70.-
100000, 900, and That the national inl
come would decline from about
s166,000, 900, 900 to s13o, 900 ,o0o, 900 or
$3.50 ,000,0 900.
Unemployment, he added. may
reach as high as 100000 persons,
but by the second half of next year
the economic trend should be up
ward again, with the rising volume
OF consumers and business expendi-
lures more than offsetting the con-
tinued drop in Government outlays. "
Mr.. SCHNEIDER spoke at the first
general membership meeting of the
Board OF Trades 56th year. General
theme of the session was Wash
ington Looks Ahead"
Meyer Explains Aims.
Sharing place on the program,
Eugene Meyer, new chairman of
the organizations Postwar Plan
ming Committee, pointed out that
the two-year effort of the COM
mittee would be continued and en-
larged ito maintain an understand
Ing of economic development" here.
IN the past the committee has
Analyzed and studied adjustments
essential in the postwar period 4"
Mr.. Meyer said. THE postwar era
is here now. Consequently we must
focus our attention on the present
rather than the future"
He explained that under a three
point program, the committee will
study immediate problems. such as
the effect of Government layoffs:
widen knowledge of facts developed
which indicate the city's economic
prospects, and embark on study
OF veteran establishment.
Referring to the latter phase of
the work, Mr.. Meyer said, I'VE not
only owe the veteran an under
standing of his needs and the as
sistance which he may require in
getting his feet on the ground again,
but we owe this much to the gen.
eral health of our community"
Slides illustrate Surveys.
After his address, colored slides
were shown to present graphically
the results of the postwar planning
surveys.
During the meeting, Lee D. Butler.
chairman of the current Community
War Fund campaign, appealed for
support of the drive in behalf of
humanity and the maintenance of
our stable future" Ernest V. Con-
molly, area VINO director. urged
employment of handicapped per-
sons.
Noting that special honors" had
come to two members during the
year, B. M. McKelway, president of
the board, who presided, intro
duced Justice-designate E. Barrett
Prettyman of the United States
Court of Appeals, immediate past
president of the board, and S. Dolan
Donohoe, recently elected president
OF the Washington Real Estate
Board.
Members cited for distinguished
service in recent months were Floyd
D. Akers, chairman of the Citizens
Committee for the Reception to Ad-
miral Chester w. Nimitz; Robert ".
Fleming, chairman of the Citizens
Committee for the Reception to Gen.
Jonathan M Wainwright. and Jo-
seph c. McGarraghy, chairman of
the citizens luncheon for Gen.
Dwight D. Eisenhower and chairman
OF the dinner for Admiral Nimitz.
Introduced at Meeting.
Among those introduced at the
meeting were Commissioners John
Russell Young and Brig. Gen. Cor
don R. Young, Herbert F. Corn.
managing editor of The Star; Alex
ander F. Jones, managing editor of
the Washington Post, and William
shelton, business manager of the
Times Herald and a director of the
trade board.
Also introduced were 1t. Col Will
liam H. Press, who has returned to
assume Dis duties as executive Sec
retary, and Edwin N. Lewis, who
served as executive secretary during
part of Col. Press absence in the
Army and who will now be director
of public relations and secretary of
the Postwar Planning Committee.
P. Y. K. Howat gave the secre-
tarys report and George E. Keneipp.
chairman of the Public Schools Com
mittee, also gave a report for his
committee.
President McKelway, in a brief
address, pointed out that the Board
of Trade has an unparalleled op-
portunity for service to Washington.
with its membership the largest in
the organizations history. There
are SOFT individual members and
1,194 representatives of 539 firms
or a total of 6,211 members, he
said. Last year $500 new mem
bers were enrolled, and in the first