Evening star., 1947-12-05
MANS New President
Sees Productivity as
Answer 10 Initiation
BY Froneis P. Douglas
Stor SfaH Correspondent

NEW YORK, Dec. 5.-Morris
Sayre, newly-elected president of
the National Association Of Manu-
facturers, discussing the means of
curbing imitation and bringing prices
down. today said, This is time
for work"
Mr.. Sayre, president of the Corn
Products Refining Co. of New York,
was chosen to head the NAM last
night by the directors Of the organ
ization which is holding its SD an
nual convention here at the Waldorf
Astoria Hotel. He will take ONCE
January 2, succeeding Earl Bunting,
president of the O'Sullivan Rubber
Corp, of Winchester, Va.
Mr.. Sayre told q news conference
today he knew Of no good short-time
answer to imitation.
II wish I knew it," he said. II
think production and productivity
accomplishing something without 1t
costing any more-is the real an
swer"
Sees No Recession.
Did he see a recession ahead?
mot now I don't. I can't see
anything but continued pentup de-
mand."
Mr.. sayre said he saw no real
solution to the problem Of high
prices but increased production at
lower cost. He did not see overtime
work as the real answer. Citing his
own company, he said, "Our people
have worked 50 many hours they
are overtired."
But he added that other concerns
cannot afford to pay overtime or
believe it would not be wise because
the higher costs would be added to
prices already high.
Over the long pull he looked to tax
cuts providing new capital as So
luton, providing new plants and
more efficient tools to replace those
now in use.
This is part of the MANS 12-point
program as announced by Mr.. Bunt-
ing, a program Mr.. Sayre said he
stood behind.
Cites Need for Capital.
I'VE are going down hill by the
minute" Mr.. Sayre said Of the need
for capital. I'VE are way behind.
It is slow work beating back. Work.
ing harder in the meantime is one
way Of digging ourselves out"
Citing his own experience again,
he said his company has been re-
vamping all factories and construct
ing a new one in Texas.
THE cost is about double what we
thought it would be-" he said. de-
iveries are slow. The Texas plant
Is taking about six to nine months
longer than we expected"
On foreign relief, Mr.. Sayre,
whose company is closely geared to
agriculture, said in his opinion we
could supply 550,OO0,0O0 bushels of
grain to Europe without seriously
hurting ourselves. He made the
proviso, however, that there be mot
too much publicity about it" so peo-
pie here Would not get the impress
sion we would be short, start to
hoard and prices would rise.
In helping Europe, he said, we
should take care not to wreck our
own economy In helping that of
Europe. On the basis Of the Harri-
son and Krug reports, he said, he
assumed we could provide $4,000, ,000,-
600 for European aid. The NAM
budget put actual aid at a lower
figure and let the $4,000, ,000, 900 fig
ure cover contingencies and inter-
national affairs and finance" as we'll
Reared Near Hampton.
Mr. Sayre, who is 81, was born
In Montrose, Pa, but grew up on
/ farm near Hampton, Va, where
his father operated several iron
foundries. He is graduate of
Richmond College (now the Uni
versity of Richmond and of Le-
high University, where he studied
engineering. Shortly after his grad
uation from Lehigh he went to work
for the Corn Products Refining Co..
washing boilers in its Granite City
Ill0 plant. He has been president
of the company since 1945.
The NAM today was in the final
session Of its convention.
Lewis II. Brown, chairman Of the
board of the Johns-Manville Corp,
addressing the convention, said
what the country needs is little
gentle dehation.
Mr.. Brown in his address COM
pared the current postwar period
with the days that followed World
War I. In the 28 months after