The Waterbury Democrat., 1945-06-13
Surplus Sales Solve Shortage Problem For Many Businessmen
By ROSELLEN CALLAHAN NEA Staff Correspondent

A1e DedIlIlS pdIll OO IAAC WOl AN biggest bargain basement - Uncle Sams surplus property sales.
 Dealers and manufacturers who have exhausted their sources for machine tools, industrial and struc- tural steel, chemicals, general house wares and hundreds of other items have found these countrywide sales a mine of hard-to-get merchandise.
 There are no under-the-counter deals and no favored customers. Anyone who can establish his legiti- macy as an authorized dealer, man. ufacturer, wholesaler or retailer can bid and buy.
 Several agencies have been named to sell surpluses. Most buyers deal with the REC, which dispenseS cap- ital and producers goods such as planes, machine tools, metals and production equipment; Or with the Department of Commerce, which handles consumers items ranging from finger splints to coffee pots.
 No matter how strange the item, there's usually purchaser. Con- fronted with shortages, American businessmen have bought and con- verted OCD helmets into ornate flower pot stands; small-sized mems pants into women's riding breaches; fingered mittens into i've fingered gloves; bayonets into hunt ing knives; spurs into bookends; rejected bandages into ladies shoulder pads; stirrup pumps into vegetable sprayers.
 PIGEONS MULTIPLY
 Biggest headache was the sale of 10000 homing pigeons declared sur plus by the Army. Before pur- chaser could be found the flock had increased to 15,000 They were final ly bought by store which sold them in pairs - Commerce Depart ment insisted on this because pi- geons separated from mates dies for pets. Army booklets on how to train them were included in the sale.
 To keep would-be purch asers posted, Buyers Guide for Sur plus Property" booklet was pre- pared, which tells what agency sells what type of goods. It can be had for 10 cents by writing the Superintendent of Documents, U. s. Government Printing Office, Wash ington 25, D. c.
 A firm in the market for a gener- ator, for instance, would write to or call at the nearest REC office - they're located in Federal Reserve Districts. Firms interested in sur- plus goods generally would get & questionnaire on which they would check various items they want to purchase.
 "All our difficulties - and many a buyers could be solved, if we could get people to let us know what they need specifically so that we could add their names to our specialized mailing lists" says G. E. Chapin, Assistant Man ager of REC in New York.
 Planes are high on the REC request list. For the most part prices are fixed. You can buy Pr 19 for around ss75, depend ing on its mileage and condi- tion; a glider for from $35o to $7oo, depending on the number of places; four and five passenger Cessnas for from $500 to sS,5oO. Piper Cubs, however, are sold on bid basis.
 All would-be purchaser has to do to buy one is to prove he is citi- zen, go to the field, make a selec- ton, pay the purchase price and fly the plane from the field to his home.
 When the War or Navy Depart ment Cor any other government agency finds 1t has surplus of goods which it cannot use, this ur- plus Is declared to one of the sell- ing agencies
 Goods are declared as and where they are," says Bruce Reynolds of the Department of Commerce's Office of Surplus Properties in New York. And to avoid placing any further load on the already over-burdended trans portation system. the goods nor mally remain where they are until sold"
 GOODS TTEMIZED
 If dealer is interested in buying mattresses, kitchenware, sterilizers, wearing apparel or such, he would write to the office in his area - there are II regional offices in the country - and ask to be put on the mailing list of the Surplus Reporter which itemizes available goods.
 Often, samples of these items are on display in the regional offices. Otherwise the dealer must go to the depot where the goods are stored to view them, or he must buy them sight unseen.
 '"The majority of sales are by sealed bid" explains MT. Reynolds. "If . dealer in our area sees an Nem in the Surplus Reporter he