Evening star., 1946-12-08

!
allocate scarce raw materials to the
producers of building supplies.
| Abandonment of allocations would
be disastrous.
Under the Veterans Emergency
Housing Act, which runs to the end
of 1947, the housing expediter Is au-
thorized to take all necessary action
to allocate raw materials into the
building materials and equipment
1 industries.
Without these allocations of raw
materials, present production levels
on building materials can not be
maintained.
The building materials obtained
| by these Government aids must go
into homes for veterans and not be
drained off into nonresidential con-
struction and unnecessary aitera-
tions of existing homes. Priorities
and set-asides of materials to be
held solely for sale to home builders
are necessary to accomplish this
end. Obviously such control is need
ed only in the case of scarce mate
rails. Increased production means
more and more materials can be
returned to the free market and
set-asides reduced. However, so long
as homes are uncompleted for lack
of scarce items, these items must
be set aside for home builders and
set-asides must be vigorously en-
| forced.
Veterans will continue to be given
first chance at the homes and
apartments built through this
emergency action. They will con-
tinue to receive the opportunity to
buy a new dwelling at prices gen.
orally below those for similar homes
that are not under price ceiling;
they will continue to be given the
first chance to rent new apart
ments.
This preference to the veteran Is
based on the principle of fair play
The Nation took the veteran from
his home to serve his country dur
ing the war. He has returned to
find the existing homes occupied by
those who remained behind. The
Nation has an obligation to see that
the men it took from their homes
are returned to a home. Anything
less would be imposing penalty on
patriotism.
Industrialized Housing.
Industrialized housing will provide
homes within the range of $500 to
So, 900, as shown by estimates on
thousands of houses now under mar
ket guarantee contracts.
Emergency RFC loans-100 per
cent If necessary-must be made to
launch this new industry. During
the war we did not hesitate to risk
dollars to protect our fighting men
from the enemy. We must not hesi-
tate to risk dollars now to protect
these same men from the bitter
Illustration of failure to find a home
and from the generalization OF
family life which follows.
The measure of the Government Is
responsibility in this housing emerg-
ency is not the yardstick of busi-
ness-as-usual and Government-as-
usual. The yardstick is the des-
perate need of the homeless veteran
1t is the Governments responsibility
to take every step possible to see that
homeless veterans are housed quick
ly. These loans are part of an eff
fort to do this through private
business with Government assist
ance.
Once the loans are made, the In
dustry must move into high gear al
the earliest possible moment. This
will require the channeling of ma
chinery and materials to these COM
panies promptly and efficiently tc
get them into mass production
quickly.
The development Of mass-pro-
duced, factory built homes well may
mark the most significant housing
development in many decades.
The 100 per cent financing oi